Gabrielle's Story
I couldn't believe that there was a website for other women who
went through much the same experience as I did. Gave birth to a very small 29
weeker earlier this year. I believe that much of the reason that she is doing
as well as she is is because of my determination to EP when she was in the
NICU, and until she could correctly latch on.
I was determined to continue to EP until she either learned to
latch on or got to 12 months adjusted. I know many people thought I was crazy.
I thought I was headed that way. It is so much work. To pump, to feed an
infant, to have all of the work of bottle feeding and breast feeding, and get
sleep in just tiny snips and snatches. You start to go a bit crazy. All I can
say, is that someday it will be over, and watching your baby grow with your
milk, faster than she could possibly grow with that nasty formula is worth it.
Take heart, keep pumping. Especially when you don't think you
can any more. Keep trying for that latch. I managed that special miracle one
week after her due date. Then I was crushed to realize that she was losing
weight. She wasn't getting enough from me. I was back to bottles. I tried
again about two and a half weeks later. She got it. Then she wouldn't take
bottles at all. Which was better, but still a problem, as no one else could
watch her for me for more than a few hours. Another week or so after that, and
all was better. She will take a few bottles during the day, long enough for me
to get a little time away for errands, and then she is quite happy to return
to breastfeeding.
But it was a long difficult journey. And I couldn't have done
it without the support and encouragement from a close friend, the NICU nurses,
my daughter's pediatrician, and my dear husband. And reading some of the other
stories that others have posted, I think my 4+ month odyssey was an easy one
by comparison. But I would like to encourage everyone who reads, to take
heart. Even if you have to pump every day to give that precious milk to your
little one, don't give up. It is worth it in the end.
Ex-EP'er
Sending best wishes and good luck to other EP'ers