Breastmilk (Keeping Supply While Baby Is in NICU)

Talk to the hospital. My sister's son was born 7 weeks early and she pumped for him. She said they were good in getting her started, but nobody (and I feel badly here because I thought she knew) told her that her oversupply in the beginning would even out so initially she was tossing milk vs freezing it. If you find you have a lot of milk that isn't used in a couple of days, freeze it. In the deep freeze it can last you 6 months and you can supplement from the freezer vs having to find a formula baby can tolerate. My sister had to use some very expensive formula for a little bit (not that formula is cheap!) because he was so sensitive. Babies naturally nurse about every 2 hours, so I'd pump every 2 hours. I stored most of my milk (if it was going to be used within 5 days) in the bottles. Medela makes bottles and also fits Evanflo or Gerber (cheaper). If you pump to a bottle, it's more accurate. Always note the amount before freezing and try to use what you can before it needs to be frozen. I liked the sticker on the Medela baggies that held it to the pump, but honestly Lanisoh worked fine, too, and I only kept the Medelas on hand when I needed an emergency container.

If you have a Medela, they're pretty good. I used a PISA for a year. Once she is born, try it to see if you need a different pump or if the Medela does it for you. Get measured for the right sized "horns" - it can make a huge difference. I started being rubbed raw and the LC said it was the horn size. Went up a size and ta da! My output increased.

Hang in there, get local support from someone who knows about preemies, and try not to get frustrated with little setbacks. My nephew is 8 mo. old (6ish developmentally) and my sister sometimes uses a nipple shield to nurse, but he does nurse for some of his feeds.

I'm laughing a little here b/c my sister is a big planner, too, and her son has laughed at all her plans. Plan for him to be home in 4 weeks? Nope! Let's go for three. Plan for him to be a girl. Ha ha again! Etc. I'm hoping the same for you. Plan for the NICU? Maybe not! Good luck to you and your little one.

kellymom.com is also a good resource. Oh, and depending on the NICU setup, you might want a small cooler and some flexible ice packs for transport from home. I suggest a hard sided cooler like an Igloo.

My son was taken straight to the NICU when he was born, and it was a surprise. I looked up at the nurse with a panicked look on my face, and said, "I was hoping to breast feed." She was very reassuring and brought a breast pump into my room and had the lactation consultant stop by and talk to me and the nursing staffed just really worked with me.

I did rent a pump, and those hospital grade pumps are far superior to any you can purchase. It was definitely a good idea to rent.

At the hospital where my SIL had her girls, they did not have very many breast pumps. With her oldest, she had to request a pump every time she needed it, and it was taken away right after she was done because someone else needed it. My breast pump stayed in my room until I checked out.

I would call the hospital and find out if the pump can stay with you for the duration of your stay. If not, do what my SIL did with her second child. Rent a pump and bring it with you and don't let anyone take it away!

You are doing such a great job of learning and trying to be prepared! I was completely caught off guard, and I was just so lucky to have a great, supportive nursing staff helping me out.

Try to relax, and remember that your hospital should have a lactation consultant on staff to help you through this process.

Good luck!!!

Pump at least every 2 hrs and even if she eats from one breast, pump the other. Drink lots of water and watch your diet (no caffeine, artificial sweetners, spicy foods, vegetables such as brocoli, coliflower, cabbage).
Freeze everything you don't use, in case your supply goes down at some point and you want to keep using breast milk.
Best of luck to you and congratulations on your baby daughter!

I breastfeed my son for 13 months; and I was solely pumping (working mom) for 12 of those 13 months. Luckily I was a big producer (I produced 44 ounces a day), but it was because I trained my breast. If I were you, I would pump as often as possible (every 1.5 hours the first 3 days until the milk comes in and then every 2 hours after that – mimic a normal feeding schedule) to train your breasts. Otherwise your body will cutback because it doesn’t think the demand is there. Once your supply goes down it won’t return to its previous level. Additionally, even if baby girl isn’t drinking as much as you’re producing, store it!!! As your frozen stash grows, don’t think you can cut back. Keep to your schedule!!! When storing your milk make small bags (however much baby girl is eating at the time), because once it’s thawed you have to use it in 24 hours (I’m sure you know this, but once you heat it up it’s only good for one hour). The worst thing in the world is pouring liquid gold down the drain.

Also, you won’t have the natural stimulation (skin to skin contact, hearing her cry, etc.) to help, so look at pictures of her, see if you can sit next to her in the NICU, focus on a baby’s cry while pumping and tell yourself that the baby is hungry and you need to make food. I know this all sounds silly, but it works. You also need to drink twice the amount of water you would normally. If not, you will notice a decrease in your supply. A trick I learned is to eat two packs of instant oatmeal with maple and drown sugar daily. Oatmeal and maple syrup are natural milk stimulators.

Good luck. I hope everything works out.

E. - which hospital are you going to? I'm in Ft. Lauderdale - message me directly for additional resources. C.

A lot of education and If/Then planning will be your friend-- it'll help you make fast, informed decisions under pressure.

I'd make two calls today-- the lactation consultant at the hospital where you plan to deliver and your local La Leche League leader-- you can find LLL near you at http://www.llli.org/webus.html it's full of helpful supportive moms and you'll need that!

When my son was in the NICU in 08 the hospital had plenty of hospital pumps that I used right by my son's crib. I just had my own applicators. I would pump every 2.5 hours, just before his feeding and would store it all in their freezers in the NICU until the day we took him home (we had to bring a great big cooler to take it all home!)

I ended pumping exclusively for a year as my son never took to the breast an had a lot of milk left over. I think our guideline was storing for 4 months. You will find on the Internet some sites that say 3 months others that say 6 months.

Best of luck with your little one!

Wow, you are not kidding when you say you are a planner! This baby is lucky to have such a good mommy looking out for her. I am truly impressed. I don't have any advice, I breastfed and pumped, but i can tell any advice I have, you already know. You are prepared! Good luck to you and your family! God will watch out for you!