This story comes from Shannon. Shannon discoved triple-feeding after a NICU stay with her first and found exclusive pumping the best option for her with her second. Read on to see how different her two stories are!
My breastfeeding journey started when I delivered my son at 29 weeks. I unfortunately had many complications and was initially concerned about getting well enough to visit my son. I received a care package from an organization Today Is A Good Day, with items to help navigate the NICU. Inside was a bracelet that had “One day at a time” inscribed on it. That ended up being my motto for our NICU and breastfeeding journey. Although my son was doing well in the NICU in the back of my mind I knew at any minute that could change and each good day was a step closer to having my son home. Providing breast milk for him was one thing I felt like I had some control over.
“I was so proud of myself when I was able to fill that syringe up.”
I vaguely remember a nurse asking me while recovering on the mom unit if I started pumping. Shortly after she got us a pump and educated my husband. Next thing I remember my husband was cracking open heating pads, warming me and helping me self express into a medicine cup. We would then pull up the colostrum into a 5 ml syringe. Then my husband would take it to the NICU. After 24 hours I was able to hold my son. The nurses encouraged me to continue to pump every 2-4 hours and to look at pictures or videos of my son while pumping. I was then moved to the maternity unit which was rough because I could hear other families and babies crying. I got a message from the NICU that I needed more milk. And if I couldn’t produce enough I could consent to using donor milk. I didn’t want to use donor milk because there was just a case advertised on the news about milk being contaminated. Luckily my younger sister was also breastfeeding and donated 6 ounces. I had never seen anyone else pump and was shocked how quickly she got those 6 ounces. This special gift gave me time to allow my milk to come in. As the days went on my supply came in and I was happy to continue to have enough milk for my son. I was never stressed about having enough because he was taking less than I was pumping. I quickly graduated from syringes to” snappies” which held 2.5 oz. My son was about a month old when we attempted to latch, we gave it a few tries with a breast shield. The breast shield was helpful but hard to manage with one hand, along with all the cords my son was attached to. I didn’t have high expectations, I just wanted us both to get comfortable. At this time he still had a feeding tube.
Learning how to take a bottle in NICU.
Eventually he was introduced to a bottle and we all were concerned about how much he could drink. Whatever he didn’t finish was then placed in his feeding tube. I wasn’t attempting to breastfeed because I wanted him to be able to drink independently and knew this was a big goal to accomplish to go home. As time went on I got in a rhythm with pumping. I had a schedule, got a 2nd set of pieces and kept one set at the NICU and one set at home. We would still attempt to latch before feeding here and there. I will never forget the time I got a message from his nurse saying that he finished his first bottle. I was so excited and knew he was closer to coming home. Then a few days later, he finished a bottle with me. I felt so accomplished. I was never concerned or disappointed we were not breastfeeding, I was just happy I had enough to feed him and that it was helping him grow. Exactly 2 months after we entered the NICU we were discharged. I still have the voicemail of the doctor stating that he was cleared to be discharged and it was a great day to go home. The same doctor was there when we were leaving. He asked how breastfeeding was going and I admitted I hadn’t been trying much because I was concerned about him taking his feeds independently. He encouraged me to keep trying and reminded me that he was still not a full term baby. And that some 40 week babies take weeks to figure it out.
Once home I continued to pump. But would attempt to latch and then give him a bottle and then pump. I think the correct term is triple feed. We tried different positions. He preferred to nurse while I was laying down on my side. We had follow up appointments with his NICU provider and they encouraged visiting a lactation consultant. We went and they helped us with additional positions to try. We began to get more comfortable but were still triple feeding. My maternity leave was quickly coming to an end and I was debating if I should continue attempting to breastfeed or just pump. Then the pandemic hit, and we were going to be home longer. At this point it was a little added motivation. My son was about 6 months old when we figured it out. We exclusively breastfeed until he was 25 months old. We only stopped because I was expecting baby two in a few weeks.
Our last milk bank donation!
My second breastfeeding experience was very different. My second son was born at 37 weeks. He immediately attempted to latch after birth. I had some difficulty getting in a comfortable position in the hospital but we kept giving it a shot. He would get very sleepy and fall asleep and was only nursing for 5-10 minutes. Lactation consultant suggested self expressing into a spoon. That’s what we did. Once we got home we continued to attempt to breastfeed but he would get frustrated or distracted by his big brother. I also felt bad nursing him in front of my first son because he wanted to nurse as well. Eventually, out of habit I began pumping and feeding my son with a bottle. He seemed to enjoy the bottle more and at the time I was just satisfied he was being fed and getting the nutrients to grow and flourish. I exclusively pumped for my 2nd son until he was about 18 months. It wasn't always easy but it's what worked out best for us. He began to wean himself around 15 months. I had a hard time decreasing my pumping schedule and it took about two months to eliminate my milk. Now that my breastfeeding journeys are over I'm sometimes sad I didn't have the same motivation the second time around but remind myself I was blessed to have a great supply to provide to my boys and other babies. I ended up donating 603 ounces to a local milk bank that supplied donor milk to NICUs. And also donated about another 600 ounces to local moms. I'm still holding on to some and got two beautiful pieces made by Milk and Honey. I decided to share my stories to show other moms that everyone's breastfeeding stories are different and unique. Whatever your body was able to do whether it was days, months or years it is an accomplishment and special memory you will have with your child or children.
Shannon with both of her adorable boys!
Shannon showing off her Milk+Honey Petite Pearl Choker made with milk from both her boys and her Milk+Honey Pearl Earrings (also using both milks)!
What do you think about Shannon’s story? We think she did amazing! Thanks for sharing Shannon!
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