WIC Breastfeeding Peer Counselor
My first son Ezra was born three months too early, with serious medical problems. I was unable to put him to breast, but I began pumping breast milk for him as soon as I could. He wasn’t able to have it yet, so we froze it for later use. At one point, though, his doctors tried giving him a drop or so of the colostrum I had pumped.
Sadly, Ezra passed away from complications after nine days. It also broke my heart to have to throw out all the milk I had pumped for him, but it wasn’t something we would be allowed to donate for other babies. I became more determined than ever that if I were ever blessed with another child, I would do everything possible to breastfeed him/her.
Almost a year and a half later, my second son Eric was born. He came a little early, born at 35 weeks gestation. He weighed 5 pounds even. He was very healthy, but he did not yet know how to suck. He stayed in the hospital almost a week, while we tried every trick the nurses could think of to get him to suck. Finally, he started to suck, though it was weak at first.
When we got released from the hospital, we had a feeding plan for him. I would put him to breast each feeding, and let him suck, even if it was just a little bit----we wanted him to learn where the milk was really supposed to come from. Then, when he soon tired of trying to nurse, I would give him pumped breastmilk in a special preemie bottle. After he fed, I would pump my breasts for milk for the next feeding. Then I would clean the pump parts, and refrigerate the milk. Each feeding/pumping session would last about an hour or more, and I did this about every three hours around the clock. It was exhausting, but I was determined to do whatever it took. Our goal was to get Eric fully breastfeeding eventually. He just needed some time to get stronger so he could nurse better.
Gradually, Eric was able to nurse for longer at a time, and needed less pumped milk from the bottle. I kept a “log” of his feedings and his eliminations. This way we could make sure he was getting enough to eat. Especially after he was nursing more and getting less from the bottles, his diaper contents were reassuring evidence that he was indeed eating enough. We also had him weighed every week for the first month or so, to make sure he was gaining weight the way he should. By the time Eric was about a month old, he was getting almost all of his feeds straight from the breast. By five weeks, I stopped pumping altogether, and by six weeks I no longer needed to keep the “log”. And Eric gained well. He had nearly reached 10 pounds (double his birth weight) by the time he was two months old.
After we got through that initial tough part, I found Breastfeeding to be a wonderful experience. It not only was bonding time with my baby, but it also was the easy way to feed him. When baby got hungry, the milk was ready for him, any time, any place. No messing with bottles, warming formula, and washing stuff after.
I was fortunate to have breastfeeding support from several sources. Of course my mom supported me, and so did our family doctor. Also, I could call the birthing center and get advice from their lactation consultant any time I needed. Perhaps most important of all, though, was the friendly support I received from my Breastfeeding Peer Counselor from WIC. She kept in contact with me throughout the whole first year of Eric’s life. I was able to nurse him until he was almost 14 months old, at which time he lost interest and weaned. I felt very proud that I was able to nurse him for so long, especially after the tough start we had after his birth. Though I had a lot of self-determination, I know it also helped to have support from others, including my peer counselor.
...to be continued...
....and how I also became a Peer Counselor myself.