First I will give a basic overview of how I breastfed my daughter whom I adopted
from China. Then I will describe what I am doing now for my 2nd baby whom I adopted from Haiti.
The first thing to do is get a hospital style double pump. Usually you
need to rent them as they cost over a $1000. In the Seattle area they run
$1-$2 per day. When you get the pump, start pumping on both sides at the
same time. This gives the best hormonal response. You need to work up to
pumping for 10-20 minutes but you might want to start out slowly, especially
if you are fair skinned. use bag balm if you get sore or blistered.
Eventually your nipples will toughen up!
It is probably best to allow yourself 2-3 months of pumping before you
expect the baby to arrive, but if you don't have that much time,it's OK!!
Just pump in the time you have and then let the baby continue stimulating
your milk supply. I have considered not pumping much at all the next time
I adopt because the baby really stimulates so much better(indeed, that is exactly what I did!)
It is best to pump every 2-3 hours during the day. Some people get up in
the night to pump but it probably isn't necessary. If you work, you need to
pump at least 2 times during the eight hour day. I used to do it just before
going in, then at lunch, then during my afternoon break. I just took the
pump to work (it had a carrying case) and went in the bathroom (it was
private.) I pumped 20 minutes at lunch and 10 during my break. I think a lot
of people wondered what I was up to, but it worked!
you can take a drug called Reglan (and others if you can find the info....)
if you can find a doctor to prescribe it -I found that most MDs discouraged
me from trying to nurse and didn't want to prescribe the drug so I never
took it. There are also herbal remedies but I can't remember the names
right now. My second time around I did try using hormones just to see what would happen. It was a nightmare of side effects and less milk then pumping alone produced, though I only did it for one month or so. Apparently results vary quite a bit between individuals, though, so it may work for others. My baby did not come when expected anyway so all the effort was wasted in the end, but it was a good learning experience.
There is something you need to get called a supplimental feeder. It is a
wonderful invention that allows you to suppliment with formula while you
are breastfeeding(and building up your supply of milk.) It is a sort of
flat bottle that hangs around your neck and has a tiny tube going to each of
your nipples. You use very soft tape(the baby doesn't even notice it) to
secure the tubes to your breasts. It is called paper tape and can be bought
from your pharmacy(by the way, I used the Lact-Aide the 2nd time around and it does not use any tape and works soooo much better.)
As your baby sucks she stimulates you to produce
milk(it really is simply a supply and demand sort of thing), receives
whatever breast milk you have, and also receives the formula that she
needs. It takes a bit of practice to get the hang of this but it works so
well, it is indespensible. I actually used the supplimenter the entire time
I nursed my baby, except when she just wanted to nurse for comfort. I
produced a fair supply of milk ( 1-2 oz.) but not enough to go without
formula. This did not change the fact that my breastfeeding experience was
very successful. My daughter and I loved it and I will certainly do it
again. I started out thinking that I was going to produce plenty of milk and
would not have to suppliment - that was very important to me. But when I
had my daughter nursing at my breast, I realized that the really important
part was having our own special intimate time together. As time went on and
I realized I wasn't going to be able to stop supplimenting, I was a bit
disappointed (but, surprisingly, more because of the inconvience of
supplimenting.) I had never lactated before, although as far as I know, I
am fertile. But even with the small amount of breast milk my daughter had, I
could tell it was good for her. She had the yellow BM's and never had any
tummy problems or colds, flus etc., the entire time I breastfed her. She
looked wonderfully healthy.
She was only 6 weeks old when I adopted her but I am convinced that age
really has nothing to do with it. She was clueless about nursing and had no
sucking muscles developed (no different at age 6 months or even a year!) you
just have to be persistant and patient. I put her to the breast at every
feeding, even in China(I always got a positive response from the chinese
people.) First I squeezed the supplimenter bottle so she could taste the
formula, and then I put the nipple in her mouth. She hollared and carried on
and sometimes turned purple with rage but I made the decision that
breastfeeding was the best thing for her and I made her do it(one of many
such decisions we make as parents...) As soon as she figured it out she
LOVED it and didn't want to take a bottle at all!! I did continue to squeeze
the bottle gently for at least a couple weeks to encourage her and give her
muscles time to develop.
There is a great book out called "Breastfeeding the Adopted Baby." I highly
recommend it.
OK, now for my current procedure. I received my son on very short notice and
did not have time to try to induce again. However, he was already 16 months
old and I figured I would just let him nurse for comfort and he would get
whatever milk he induced! This has worked well, although he does not nurse
enough to bring in any milk. But he is so happy about nursing(he did nurse
his birth mother as well), that I think it is very positive. It has also
helped some in the bonding process between us. I highly recommend it, even
in the absence of milk.
Please feel free to contact me if you have more questions.
~Donna
