365 days ago, on the same auspicious day on which my baby shower was held, I was merely a 6 months 3 weeks pregnant, happily enjoying all the attention and celebration. “Baby shower without a baby? I am too eager to join you there mamma”, said my baby boy from my womb and decided to make an early show into this world on the very day.
Born 2.5 months premature, my preemie weighed a mere 1.3 kg and put up a brave fight for life for 45 days in the NICU. There was nothing more painful than watching my fragile baby helplessly from a distance, while his teeny tiny body was all covered up in pipes and plasters and needles and what not. The smallest sized diaper would fit him like a full shirt and when held, he would perfectly fit in just the palm of my hand. Giving him the kangaroo mother care every day, all I would do is just shed silent tears with the enormous guilt for having brought a life into this world so early, totally unprepared.
As a first time mom who had least expected this, was totally unaware of all the challenges of breastfeeding. After long episodes of clogged ducts, fever due to unbearable pain, extremely torturous hand expressing attempts by nurses to remove the clogging to avoid mastitis, day and night bi-hourly pumping to maintain milk supply and bringing expressed milk to the baby in NICU, my baby was finally ready for direct feeding after a month and a half. Feeding him for the first time was purely a bliss, bringing tears of happiness. Finally the long awaited time had come. My baby was in my arms drawing his nutrition from me. I was at last able to do it.
Fast forward 365 days, with enormous blessings from the Almighty, best wishes from the loved ones and amazing encouragement from this wonderful group, we complete a year of breastfeeding and it’s nowhere but here that it feels like a big milestone, a major achievement and hence decided to make this post. Feeding expressed milk from spoon for many initial days, cluster feeding sessions, sleepless nights, unbearable body aches, the endless ways of tricking the baby to feed when he would reject the breasts for days and sometimes even months, feeding when happy, bored, tired, sleepy, scared. Baby wouldn’t accept side lying feeding and sitting up to feed all night till date 🙁 Breastfeeding is no joke. But certainly worth it. Because the results show up amazingly right in front of your eyes.
Breastfeeding Facebook group has been doing such an awesome job imparting knowledge and great information to mothers, encouraging to breastfeed, answering every query patiently and repeatedly and explaining the unbelievable benefits from it. Simply cannot thank enough!
Wanted to share a few points which I myself wish I had known earlier, specifically to NICU moms:
1. Stop feeling guilty if you have a premature baby. Whatever happened was destined to happen. Every mother would do nothing but the best for her baby and it probably wasn’t in your hands to avoid early birth. Stop regretting and think what next!
2. Please visit the hospital and give kangaroo mother care for as long as your body permits, stay with the baby for as long as you can. Your presence means everything for your baby though he/she is asleep most of the time. Talk to the baby, sing to the baby and hold him/her close. He/she will get better sooner and definitely come home much earlier than expected.
3. While your baby is in NICU, never ever give up on pumping as often as 2 hours, day and night. Your baby needs your precious liquid gold and you need to maintain your supply until your baby is ready to draw milk directly. Nothing rejuvenates your baby the way your breastmilk does.
4. Preemies tend to have preference to position their heads in the same direction while sleeping leading to flat heads. Though this can be rectified eventually in the coming months, it’s best avoided at the earliest. So please make sure NICU staff will alternate the position of their heads while they are asleep.
5. After the baby is discharged from the hospital, please maintain a hospital like environment at home too. Strictly avoid visitors for at least a couple of months. Sanitize your hands often.
Thanks for reading! Happy breastfeeding and parenting mommies.
— Meghana S Murthy —