pumping, kangaroo care, tummy time, pumping...
pinksandbermuda
member
how are you managing all of these things?
DD eats every 2-3 hrs, and I am having a hard time keeping up with all of this, especially the pumping. The pumping is killing me! I hate it.
She BF's, takes a bottle of expressed breast milk, and then I pump afterward, since she isn't strong enough to just BF. Those activites take about an hour or more, she is a slow eater. Especially if I need to wash the bottle parts first. I would like to just cuddle her after she eats but that is awkward with the pump strapped on.
I change her before she eats and sometimes just leave her in a diaper to have some kangaroo time before and after eating. This pushes back the pumping a bit. I'm always worried about keeping her warm enough during the transition and disrupting her putting clothes back on and off. She always freaks out.
Tummy time usually gets lost in the shuffle, I'm trying to get her warmed back up or back to sleep or both. Does it count if shes on her tummy on my chest during kangaroo time?
Sometimes I just want to take a short nap or a shower or fix something to eat... but then remember I have to pump again! The pumping itself doesn't take that long, but I have to get all the parts together, sometimes I realize they need to be washed etc.
How are you guys doing it?
Me: 38 DH:36
Re: pumping, kangaroo care, tummy time, pumping...
here are a couple of pics so its not all b!tching and moaning! Her adjusted age is 38 weeks
Me: 38 DH:36
I hear ya. It's exhausting. This is only week 2 for me, and I feel like I'm going to collapse. What I have started doing is pushing the pumping a bit for (1) more sleep at night and (2) more time cuddling my girls. They also get formula. I don't do tummy time with the girls explicitly, but having them on their belly on my chest during kangaroo time kills 2 birds with one stone. They lift their heads once in awhile and that's good enough for me right now. I do kangaroo care for 30-45 minutes prior to feeding and for the same amount of time afterwards to help with digestion. I am in the NICU for 2 feedings a day and pump 2 times (once every 3 hours) while I'm there.
Best of luck! I didn't pump at all last night and I had the first full night's sleep in over a month. It totally rejuvinated my soul.
She is adorable!
I exclusively pumped for 1 year and these are the tricks I learned.
Get extra pumping supplies. I ended up having 3 full sets of everything. That way I was not washing each time. This was a life saver and I really think the nicu should tell you this right off the bat. If I had the three to begin with I would have been a much more sane person.
I also started putting the parts in a plastic baggie in the fridge between a pumping session so I didn't have to wash it between each time. A bit cold on the old girls but they warm up quickly.
These tips help a lot. Here are few more I've picked up--
-pump while you bottle feed, it saves a lot of time. Or pump one side while BFing the other
-if you LO is naked while you BF then that is Kangaroo time
-do tummy time as you can, don't freak out if you aren't getting it in all the time. She can probably only tolerate a little bit anyway and she needs to sleep at this point.
But can I ask, why are you both BFing and bottle feeding each time? Are you working with someone to help transition to full BFing?
Our precious girl, born at 27 weeks.
All of these....
But - My dr said that if you are engaging him or her during kangaroo time, then that can count as tummy time as well. They are able to lift their head and look around, you can use black and white toys - there are lots of things you can do with it.
Also - I would suggest having a TON of bottles available. I don't know how your supply is - but I have a small freezer stash - and I pump either exactly or twice as much as he needs - so I am able to freeze more than I give him. Each day I go to nurse 2x a day (we are just learning and starting to wean off the bottle) and then we follow up those times with a bottle. Other times DH gives him the bottle and I pump. He doesn't have the energy to get it all out of me! So I prep the maximum amount that we know that he can take, and we store about 5 bottles in the fridge that are prepped and ready. Then I can just drop them into a warm bath before giving them to him at room temp-ish.
I also enlist the help of my husband when he is around to do stuff. He washes and sterilizes all the bottles and pump parts one time a day (we have about 8 bottles and I have 2 sets of pump parts and 2 nipple shields), and he does the night feedings when I wake up at night to pump.
I am going to a breastfeeding support group with the LC at my hospital this next week - and we are going to work on my latch. I would LOVE to get rid of the bottle when he comes to eat with me, but I am doing it slowly and cautiously because I don't want him to get frustrated with eating. But... that is also dependent on him!!!
Also - Like one of the PPs said - I don't pump every 2-3. I will give myself a break, and then cluster pump later on in the day if I went to far apart. Medela makes these awesome wipes that are made for your flanges and stuff if you aren't washing right away. When I cluster pump I use those and leave the milk out (since it is only out for an hour) and then once I have two pumps in it, it goes in the fridge. I wipe off the flanges and throw another set of volufeeds or bottles on it and do it again. If DS is awake while I am doing this - I have this little pillow type thing called the Boppy Newborn Lounger, and he hangs out in there next to me. That is also a time that he could do tummy time. If you take your pumping to the floor, you could do tummy time at the same time. Sorry - I am a multitasking crazy person - I am actually pumping while doing this.
OH! And get yourself a pumping bra if you don't have one. Then you can follow up with the bottle AND pump - or do whatever else and pump. It has saved my sanity. I have two of them so when one is in the wash - I can use the other. It is by medela and is just a little bandeau with holes that zips up the top.
Hope this helps!!!
Wow, so much good advice, thank you. I am going to have to re-read all of this!
The LC at the hospital said to BF for 5-10 mins so she is used to it and keep practicing. But she is not getting enough from that so I have to give her the bottle. We tried to just do the breast but she always seemed hungry and didn't have the energy to keep BF'ing. I have a follow up appt to go over transitioning to just bf next week. She may start to get strong enough after her due date they think.
Great tip about the pump parts. I will have to get more of those, it is making me nuts. Also I didn't know we could put them in the fridge! They should tell us these things!
We just came back from the dr's and she had a great checkup. She's been gaining an ounce a day on average since her last visit and grown over an inch. Knowing she is doing well helps me keep up this routine. He wasn't so concerned about the tummy time (or lack thereof).
Thanks again for the help, I am going to use these tips and keep my sanity I hope.
Me: 38 DH:36
It was tough, for sure! Buy extra pump parts! I HATED washing all the stuff because it felt like I was always doing it. I invested in two spare sets of shields, etc. and stocked up on the disposable bottles from the NICU and steam cleaning bags. My primary nurses hooked me up big time:)! But that made it a little less repetitive.
Also, you must invest in a good hands free pumping bra - or two, if you don't pay attention and overflow your bottles a lot when pumping ha. That thing was my saving grace because I could eat, email, Bump, etc while I pumped!
Hang in there!!