Good news: We only had to wait about 5 minutes before the nurse called us in. Last time we waited over an hour and a half.
Bad news: Some lady in the waiting room asked if I was there for me, or for Caroline. It's a children's hospital. BURN!!!
Good news: Caroline is almost two pounds up from when we first were referred to the GI! The doctor said she had even exceeded their expectations for her weight gain.
Bad news: I still have to keep waking her to feed and forcing as many ounces as I can into her poor little belly. I am freaking exhausted and haven't slept more than a couple hours at a time in weeks. Also, I am permanently bruised from my pump. You're welcome for that mental image if you know me in real life.
Good news: The nutritionist gave me new, higher-calorie recipes for her bottles so that I can skip a nighttime feeding.
Bad news: I'm not allowed to add more nursing sessions in place of pumping sessions. I asked if I could, and the doctor told me that she considered my nursing sessions to be "comfort only", since Caroline's reflux is so severe that literally everything comes back up unless it's pumped, thickened with rice cereal, and bottle-fed to her.
Seriously? It sucked a lot to hear that. I worked insanely hard at breastfeeding for many weeks because I thought it was best for her. Turns out it doesn't even count towards her nutrition in the doctor's eyes.
So I guess that's pretty much it for nursing. I'm sad about it, but I'm trying to look at it this way: at this point, my desire to nurse is really just selfish. It's easier and more convenient than pumping, and I enjoy that closeness with her. But it's obviously NOT what is best for her. So, I just have to pump for as long as I can to give her as much breastmilk as I can... and beyond that, it'll be formula. I definitely want to reach at least six months (just two more), and then I'll reevaluate after I meet that goal.
And honestly, I am just happy that her issues are this easily solved, and that she's doing so well. So I guess that's the best news of all. [:)]
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4 comments:
from one twenty-something-new-mom-how-in-the-world-did-i-get-in-this-position to another, you sound like an awesome mom!! truly.
2 pounds!?! So awesome. Well done Mama!
You're a stronger woman than I! I desperately wanted to breastfeed my son, but we had trouble from the very beginning. I kept at it for the same selfish reasons, but after struggling with it for two months, pumping to maintain/increase my supply, and trying to wean him from the formula I finally made the decision to exclusively formula feed. It was a hard decision, but one I had to make to preserve my sanity (and get some sleep!)You should be proud of yourself - I think you've done very well!
Boo for the bad parts and yay for the good parts! Caroline sounds like a superstar. Hooray!
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