Is it too late to breastfeed my preemie?
DS was born at 32 weeks, and right around his due date, the doctors started thickening his bottles. He was aspirating and having apneas/bradys, and the nectar-thick feeds stopped them completely. Prior to that I had been trying to BF 1-2 times per day for a total of 15-20 minutes each time. After the thickening, I scaled way back.
DS is now 3 months adjusted (5 months next week!) and on Monday, the swallow study showed that he isn't aspirating any more. So, we can now feed him regular breastmilk and formula. I'm so tired of pumping, and while DS was in the NICU, my motivation to stick with it was that I'd eventually be able to breastfeed him and cut back on the pumping. We've tried nursing for 10 min at a time a few times per week, but that's it.
Has anyone tried switching from almost exclusively pumping to breastfeeding this late? I'm wondering if it's possible, and worth the trouble if he's already almost 5 months old. I will probably pump until he's at least 6 months (actual).
Any thoughts?
Re: Is it too late to breastfeed my preemie?
Brady Phoenix, 8.29.09
Claire Zoe, 10.26.10
I switched over way earlier, so I can't speak from experience about switching later on, but just wanted to encourage you to try. There's no harm in trying - if he doesn't take to it, then you can keep pumping.
BFing has been one of my fav things about being a mom, and I've actually enjoyed this second half of it (6 mo.+) more than the first half. I originally set a goal for just 6 mo. (since I was going back to work then), but went full time through 1 year and am still nursing 3 times a day now. I think it's definitely worth taking a stab at it; pumping sucks plus it can get harder to keep up with them with time, so you'll have a better shot at giving him bm for a longer period of time if you're able to bf. GL!
It's never too late! Like the other girls said, it's going to take a lot of work, but it can be done. The help of a shield will help if your LO will not go to breast on his own. Also, inlist the help of your LC.
GL!!
Definitely hire a good LC. I'm weening DD off the bottle now (started at 7-8 weeks actual). It's a lot of work and really hard because I still have to pump. I have good days and bad days, but it is so wonderful to just feed them. I love the time that she is on the breast.
Good luck!