Read this blog post
Why?
because.. so true!
Apr7
Author Archives: pumpmasterkamp
Sep7
Labor Day 2012: The State of Evidence-Based Maternity Care in the United States
A good read Durning birth empowerment week-
Labor Day 2012: The State of Evidence-Based Maternity Care in the United States.
Aug31
The Story
Buba Will be turning one in a few days
So I decided to tell my story and our family’s journey to and though breastfeeding. The good the bad the ugly.
In 2008 I was pregnant with our first child, a son, and we were SUPER excited. At 18 weeks we found out that there was a problem. The baby had intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). At 22 weeks when they found the baby had not grown at all in the last month I was admitted into the hospital and placed on bed rest. During my 10 day stay a NICU doctor came to speak with us. He ask if I was planning on breastfeeding. I said yes I wanted to try. He then said that that was going to be the biggest decided factor in my babies life because he was going to be VERY tiny and needed every chance for survival. By breastfeeding I could save my babies life. Only a few days later we found that my Son no longer had a heart beat. Part of me died with him. I was induced and 14 hours later on Aug 15th 2008 at 6 months gestation my son was born at 11 ounces and 10.5 inches. His cord had become tied. That Doctors comments on breastfeeding has stayed with me and will forever.
A very short time later (to short). We found that I was again pregnant. I lived in fear everyday but, thankfully, my pregnancy was normal. When I was 38 weeks pregnant I asked to be induced as soon as possible. I could not have her die inside me, so at 38 weeks 8 days I was induced. First off the hospital couldn’t find my test results saying I didn’t have strep B so I had antibiotics, I had a epidural at 7cm, and gave birth 4 hours after the actual pitocin was started. Princess was tiny 5 pounds 9 ounces 18 1/4inches. I was an emotional mess. Talk about post traumatic stress. I couldn’t stop crying. I was so sad, so happy, and filled with so much fear. I could barely hold her, all I saw was my son, but I didn’t want to let her go I wanted to protect this tiny girl from the world. My husband held her the longest before she was taken to the nursery. I didn’t nurse her her when she was born, and I wouldn’t be able to for 5 hours because the nursery nurses took so long to bring her. She latched “well”, but ended up with jaundice (a “pit.” birth and delayed breastfeeding I’m sure had a lot to do with it). I had no information, no Lactation consultant, and no one who knew anything about breastfeeding exclusivity. At 2 1/2 weeks we added formula per the pediatrician because I felt like princess wasn’t getting enough food. I returned to work early because of many things , but I pumped 3 times during work. I would breast feed her and give her bottles, then I pumped and gave her bottles, for the first 2 1/2 months slept in her room in a bed with her and breastfed through the night, but eventually by 2 1/2 months she slept through the night and I stopped the actual act of breastfeeding, at 4 months we added food per the perpetration. I had no one to tell me I was doing it ALL WRONG. At 5 1/2 months I through in the towel. I never pumped more that 12 ounce during a day.
January 2011 I was pregnant again! This time I had to use another Doctor and hospital. I also educated myself for 9 months I read and read on low supply and what to do. 13 days before Buba was due I went into labor suddenly at 3:30am I didn’t think it was real it didn’t hurt enough. I had 2 previous induced births and the natural contractions weren’t hard enough to be labor and didn’t last long enough. So I talked my self into going to sleep. Until suddenly I awoke in honorable pain that wouldn’t stop I couldn’t walk, I had to crawl. I couldn’t talk, I had to scream or whisper. I throw up and I could stop rocking my hips it was ingrained into my soul to rock side to side back and forth. I was in labor and according to the contractions that NEVER STOPPED I was probably in the 2nd stage. We got to the hospital and in the door about 7:00. After a fight to get a IV in me while I screamed at them to help me please help me (really should have told them to stop with the freaking IV). My bag of waters was broken, as it was bulging, and trying to come out at the same time as my son, I gave birth at 7:19am. Buba was 6 pounds 8 ounces and 20.5inches long. The nurses cleaned him and took his vitals and cleaned me up. Suddenly they realized ”Are you breastfeeding” the nurse asked and I answered an ecstatic yes!. She apologized and broguht My son to me. I held and fed him for the first time and we connected. He and I laid there I’m not sure how long. I healed during that time. He and I looked at each other and I thought of my other two children. I talked to God. I knew what had happened with Leah at that point and I remembered how long it took for us to “connect”. I regretted her birth. I had taken it away from her. I didn’t trust Her, my body, or God. Her birth was the first mistake I made in our breastfeeding journey and as a mother. I felt sorry I could not give her what was best nor had I been able to give her all of me. I made a promise that I was new. I had lost part of me but I found a new part and a much stronger person.
My son was EBF from 3 weeks till 6 months I and my husband gave a small amount of formula around 2 1/2-3 weeks. After reading about the “Virgin Gut” I through out all the samples that we had been “gifted”. I still had some supply problems after returning to work at 3 months, and I got sick that also effected my supply. We tried fenugreek first, then goats roe and fenugreek, then I got a Rx for Domperidone. It worked Like a charm If fenugreek doesn’t work for you I highly recommend Domperidone. I used Domperidone from about 5 months till 10 months when his food intake was enough for me to risk slowly stepping down off the Domperidone.
We tried to introduce food at 6 months and got an almost a total refusal. I continued to try being careful not to ”push” but would offer different tastes at least once a week. A week before he turned 8 months old we finaly got him in for his 6 months shots. The Dr. ( I think I will call her Dr. “breastfeeding is never complete nutrition”) Dr. BF NcN stated that since he wasn’t eating food that I needed to stop the vitamin D drops (already did that, thanks, because I researched and found there was NO NEED) and start him on vitatmin drops with Iron, and that she wanted to see me in a month and that if he hadn’t started eating foods that she would send him to speach therapy. Now understand that My sons wieght is very low on the CHARTS, but mesures in the 50% for height and is very active meeting all his phyisical milestones at or before he should meet them. Also, another thing Dr. BF NcN tried pushing me to add baby cereals at 4 months. I flat refused stating that the ADA, CDC, and WHO said to wait till 6 months. Also, at that point I would not add baby cereal but I would add ”real” foods, because Human milk is high in carbs and iron so he didn’t need the cereal. Dr. BF NcN’s responce was “hummph”. She then stated that if the mothers Iron is low then so is the babies that the cereal was needed to add that iron that the mother was lacking blah blah blah… ( so you are telling me my milk isn’t enough nor is it full nutrition? That I’m a bad mother? or both?)
So we didn’t go to that next visit and we scheduled the 12 month visit. Since then Buba has decided the he likes many different foods though he is very couscous. he really started enjoying for at 11 months when he got his top teeth and could realy chew. I plan On showing off my wonderful son who has developed quit normally despite not doing ANYTHING she told me to do.
Buba is still nursing on demand while I’m at home 12:15am-3:00pm and weekends (despite 4 teeth on the top and 2 on the bottom thats another post). He gets 6-8 ounces of human milk in a cup or bottle while I’m at work, plus all the cheerios, crackers, yogurt, scrambled eggs, chick peas, apple slices and what ever he wants to try to eat.
So, I did it. I made it to magical 12 months. He isn’t done yet though, and neither am I. My new goal it 24 months! Full Term Breastfeeding here we come.
A big thanks to the ladies from the support group, Cheryl, Angela, Vivian, Kristen, and the ladies of the Facebook support group!
-Pump Master Kamp
“The story don’t mean anything if you got no one to tell it to. Oh it’s true I belong to you” -Brandi Carlile (The Story)
Aug15
Review: Dill, Sea salt , and Olive oil Triscuits
I never wanted to try Triscuits before I found these. Crackers of any sort have never been a favorite snack of mine, un less I put peanut butter on it. I have now been schooled! I LOVE Dill Triscuits. I acutely googled them just to see what other people were saying,lol. They are great with homemade Peco-de-gio(sp?) with garden fresh tomatoes, onions, and crushed cilantro and dill seed. With Sweet iced tea to drink. I high recommend!
Here Is the kicker and why I’m posting about Triscuits on a breastfeeding blog if you are breastfeeding these Boost your supply! Whole wheat whole grains are always great for milk supply, but I found out after 2 days of extra milk (and eating a whole box by my self) I googled dill herb and it increase supply. Great gift for a new (or any) mom to keep for snacking on when nursing and healthier than lactation cookies. I would add this to a nursing mom gift basket for any day!
Aug14
No nursing while the car is moving!
As a pediatrician in a NICU and the daughter of a lactation consultant, I'm very, very pro-breastfeeding… but nursing has a time and a place. A moving vehicle is NOT the time or the place. Nursing your child while the car is moving puts both you and your baby at significant risk of unnecessary injury. Here's why:
In a crash, everything will weigh its weight multiplied by the G's of the crash - G's being the force of gravity.
I never thought of the points this article brings up
Jul27
Lactation yoga …side-lying nursing without getting up to switch sides
It is important to try different positions as your relationships, confidence, and size of your little one grows. Nursing while sleeping is one of the things that has helped me continue to get sleep with both of my kids. I never tried to side lay nurse with out switching sides with my daughter as I stop actual breastfeeding when she was still small. With my son I have become very good at this positioning and it makes getting him down for a nap SUPER easy. 1st side… 2nd side… Done!
Lactation yoga …side-lying nursing without getting up to switch sides.
Related articles
- “Lactation Nurse” (thepsychobabble.net)
Jul19
Bad Breastfeeding Advice we have all been a victim
We have all been a victim of bad breastfeeding advice. Some of us knew we were given bad advice and ignored it politely and others fell into the traps. Remember all your baby needs is you! The warmth of your body, the milk from your breast, and love from your heart. Don’t be pushed or bullied into anything. ALWAYS question anyone dr., nurse, family, or whom ever why they are suggesting that you give your baby anything but your milk for the first 6 months. Dr.’s arn’t always trained in breastfeeding and they are NOT experts in the subject. Same goes for nurses and family members. The experts in breastfeeding are Lactation Specialists(IBCLC). If supplementation is ever suggested you should contact your Lactation consultant pronto!
CLICK SOME OF THE MOST COMMON Bad Breastfeeding advice.
great job Mother-2-mother.com with putting this list together!
Jun29
Science & Sensibility » Highlights of, and thoughts regarding the AAP’s Policy Statement “Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk”.
Jun27
First Meeting and webinar for Beast Fed Beginnings
WeLLLLLLL…. I was picked to be one of the Mothers on the Best Fed Beginnings Team sponsored by a grant from the NICHQ for our local hospital. on our team for the beast fed beginnings to help our local hospital get the Baby-friendly USA stamp of approval. It was not hard to get the “job” honestly I am not a staff member, I gave birth at EAMC in the last year, EBF’ed(“exclusively breastfed” for the first 6 months), and I plan on weaning when he is ready, AND I’m passionate and educated about breastfeeding. I have to go to meetings every 2 weeks and I might have to take a trip to Atlanta.
I’m so glad that East Alabama Medical Center is changing the way they do business in the Mother Baby unit. They want to let mom and baby be skin to skin (breastfeeding or not) for at least one hour after birth (if medically able) and to Room In 24 hours a day. Baby’s never leave mom unless Medically needed.
ALSO here is the biggy part of getting BFHI certified GETTING RID OF the free formula! no more discharge bags with free formula. AND hopefully have none of the OB’s that deliver at EAMC giving them out either. The goal Is to make Breastfeeding the Norm and Formula the exception by 2014. So something like that 90% of moms try breastfeeding and 75% or higher exclusively breastfeed through out their baby’s hospital stay. Alabama‘s average is only 56% of new moms even try to breastfeed
EAMC is one of the few hospitals with a breastfeeding Goal in the area. If they get the BFHI Certification they will be one of (as of this year) only 143 hospitals with that recognition.
I’m SUPER EXCITED!
Related articles
- NICHQ Launches Unprecedented National Effort to Increase Breastfeeding Rates in US Hospitals (southernbreastfeedingsupport.wordpress.com)
- Baby Friendly Hospitals Initiative (southernbreastfeedingsupport.wordpress.com)
- New push to stop free infant formula at hospitals (miamiherald.com)
- We Need to Support Moms Who Breastfeed, Not Shame Them (colorlines.com)
- Baby-Friendly Maternity Units Aid and Encourage Breastfeeding (njspotlight.com)
- Working Mothers Can Still Breastfeed Exclusively (ejaife.wordpress.com)
Jun21
NICHQ Launches Unprecedented National Effort to Increase Breastfeeding Rates in US Hospitals
Newborn child, seconds after birth. The umbilical cord has not yet been cut. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
http://www.nichq.org/who_we_are/in_the_news.html?id=80
http://www.nichq.org/our_projects/cdcbreastfeeding_participating_teams.html
I’m so happy about our local hospital getting a grant to help them work on becoming baby friendly. The first link here is the press release and the second is the list of 90 hospitals across the nation getting the grants.
I have spoken once before about the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative. A hospital taking the BFHI steps will help so many more Momma’s and babies get to have the wonderful bond and relationship of breastfeeding.
No breastfeeding is not always easy or beautiful and some times it does down right hurt (thanks to new teeth). I have never heard a woman say “I wish I had formula fed” but I have heard many say “I wish I would have”… “tried”…”not stopped”….”had milk” (don’t get me started on that one)….”know more and had more help”. When a hospital takes these steps to becoming a BFHI many of these statements and pit falls could be avoided by many.
My hope and wish is for every mother to at least try to breastfeed. I would love to see that the U.S. not only meet the goal of have 75% of babies born in the U.S. to start out breast feeding But to exceed that and have 90% of babies start out breastfeeding and 75% still exclusivity breastfed at 3 months. Now that is a goal to have!
