Don't give me no pop, no pop
Don't give me no tea, no tea
Just give me some milk
moo, moo, moo, moo
Just give me some milk
moo, moo, moo, moo
That's Abigail's favorite song. Wanna know why? Cause that baby LOVES milk! She loves it so much that she ate 17.5 ounces at daycare yesterday! For some perspective, the average 3 month old eats 20 ounces in a 24 hour period. The downside to her hearty appitite that's kept her in the 95th percentile for height/weight? Mom only pumped 14 ounces yesterday - which leaves us at a deficite of 3.5 ounces!
Being a mom, feeding your baby is a basic requirement. You're meant to feed your baby. We are mammals & this is what is natural for us. It's what nature intended. That's why when a breastfeeding mom hears a baby (any baby) crying, she'll most likely spring a leak! Now this can cause for an awkward situation, but it's natural. So when a mom finds that she's not able to produce enough milk to satisfy her baby's needs, it's concerning to say the least. In fact, to me, it's downright unacceptable!
Doctors recommend that moms breastfeed their babies for at least 1 year. We're only 3 months in! And so far, I haven't had this issue. So why now? Well I called lactation twice in the last week & it basically comes down to the fact that I'm at work all day pumping and pumping is never as effective as feeding baby directly.
In the past week, I have been double-pumping (both boobs at once - supposed to trick your body into thinking you have twins), I started taking a supplement called Fenugreek (makes your pee smell like maple syrup), increased water intake, attempted (and failed) decreasing my stress level, and have not given Abigail bottles when I am home, available to feed her directly. All this to no avail. And my backup milk supply, which I painstakingly collected as I could while on maternity leave, is almost out!
So, after staring at the freezer & wishing a miracle would happen & more backup milk would magically appear, I decided to call the pediatrician's office. I explained the situation & that I'd been trying my hardest for the past week to increase production, but I still can't quite meet Abigail's requirements. You know what she said? "Well you don't want to supplement with formula unless it is the absolute last resort..." OK? So what should I do!? It's not like I'm giving up & not trying here! And if I can't produce enough milk, the only option is to supplement with some formula, I don't really know what other 'resort' I have? So after that little pep talk, she suggested I call Lactation Services. (Which I had already done a week ago).
Once I got over feeling beat up from the pediatric nurse, saying that formula was a last resort & making sure to state the bad effects supplementing with formula can have on a baby (constipation, dehydration), I called Lactation Services for the 3rd time this month.
Now, lactation services deals with breasfteeding issues all day long, it's their job. They're the ones who suggested that I try the Fenugreek supplement & "double-fisting" with the pump. So I call & explain my situation & what all I've been trying. You know what advice she had for me? NONE! Nope, no real advice, just more comments like, "Well nature intends the mother to be with her baby at all times." and, "Well that's what happens when you try to be super mom & do it all - you just can't."
Do these people realize that I am already feeling like a bad mother!? The negativity is NOT helping & I can tell you for a fact, that if stress is what is hurting my milk production, their backhanded comments dont' help that either. They just had to lay it on & make me feel even more guilty...and at the same time, offer no suggestions or help. So, here I sit, staring down at my daughter's one & only food supply and I wonder to myself, "What is wrong with me? Why can I not provide for my child like I should be able to?" And then I start getting creative, "I wonder if they rent out mamography machines so I could squeeze every drop out?"
So, after a very frustrating morning & no real answers, I will be picking up some formula from the pediatrician's office tonight. I feel like I'm giving up. Of course I will continue to do what I can to increase my milk supply, but fact is, Abigal's sucking it down at daycare & I'm almost out of extra milk. What's a girl to do? Somebody? Anybody? A magic answer to my problem? I would be with Abigail all day long if I could, but I can't & this is what get for it.
I'll just add that to the ongoing list of reasons I feel guilty sending Abigail to daycare. Boo!
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