I thought I'd share our success story. On Monday I was taken to the ER via ambulance, admitted to the ICU with pneumonia. Spent 1 night in ICU and three nights in the telemetry unit. I was released yesterday (Friday) afternoon. Now it is Saturday morning and my 3.5 mo old is asleep on my breast.
From the moment I got to the ER, I asked for a breast pump. The hospital was very accommodating and brought me a beautiful new medela symphony. I didn't need to pump until I was settled in the ICU (around 7:30). A nurse from the mother-baby unit came down to show me how to work the pump and how to clean the parts afterward. She said she could come back when I needed to pump again. It was pretty tricky to pump with 2 IVs, a chest monitor, a blood pressure cuff, and a pulse ox thing on my finger. But somehow I managed to pump about every three hours the entire time I was there. Unfortunately I had to dump everything. I moved to a regular floor after one night in the ICU. It was much easier to pump there because I only had 1 IV and the pulse ox and blood pressure cuff weren't permanently attached like in the ICU. One night, we had to switch IV sites because one of the antibiotic had burned out the vein. I couldn't use the bad arm at all. And a mother-baby nurse came down at 11:30 PM to help me pump. She offered to come back in 3 hours, but by then I was able to manage myself.
The entire time I was in contact with two LLL leader regarding exclusive pumping and the effect of the drugs on my BM. Although the doctors said to pump and dump for another week while I'm home, apparently Dr. Hale says the drugs I'm on are okay for BFing.
Unfortunately, it was very difficult for my son to take a bottle. I only had 3 servings of BM in the freezer (I'm a SAHM), so he had formula while I was in the hospital. My husband says his first 24 hours away were really difficult, especially since my son had a nasty cough.
I was worried about him latching back on, but the second I showed him my breast this morning, he opened his mouth and latched right on. He nursed for a few minutes and then smiled at me.
I just thought I'd share my story. It was a nightmare experience, but it has a happy ending.
From the moment I got to the ER, I asked for a breast pump. The hospital was very accommodating and brought me a beautiful new medela symphony. I didn't need to pump until I was settled in the ICU (around 7:30). A nurse from the mother-baby unit came down to show me how to work the pump and how to clean the parts afterward. She said she could come back when I needed to pump again. It was pretty tricky to pump with 2 IVs, a chest monitor, a blood pressure cuff, and a pulse ox thing on my finger. But somehow I managed to pump about every three hours the entire time I was there. Unfortunately I had to dump everything. I moved to a regular floor after one night in the ICU. It was much easier to pump there because I only had 1 IV and the pulse ox and blood pressure cuff weren't permanently attached like in the ICU. One night, we had to switch IV sites because one of the antibiotic had burned out the vein. I couldn't use the bad arm at all. And a mother-baby nurse came down at 11:30 PM to help me pump. She offered to come back in 3 hours, but by then I was able to manage myself.
The entire time I was in contact with two LLL leader regarding exclusive pumping and the effect of the drugs on my BM. Although the doctors said to pump and dump for another week while I'm home, apparently Dr. Hale says the drugs I'm on are okay for BFing.
Unfortunately, it was very difficult for my son to take a bottle. I only had 3 servings of BM in the freezer (I'm a SAHM), so he had formula while I was in the hospital. My husband says his first 24 hours away were really difficult, especially since my son had a nasty cough.
I was worried about him latching back on, but the second I showed him my breast this morning, he opened his mouth and latched right on. He nursed for a few minutes and then smiled at me.
I just thought I'd share my story. It was a nightmare experience, but it has a happy ending.
