I Did It

I did it! I did it!

I worked 36 hours between Friday evening and Monday morning. And I slept during the days. And I can honestly say that my baby boy consumed nothing but breast milk the entire time! Now this may not seem like a big deal to many people, but when you are dealing with supply issues, this a big enough victory to make me cry tears of happiness. I worked my ass off for that milk! I literally pumped every hour for several days to try to rebuild my supply and everything. And last night at work, I was actually able to pump 4 ounces at a time, which is double what it was earlier in the week!

I still have my appointment with the Breastfeeding Medicine doc on Wednesday. There is a chance Zach has a mild tongue tie that has been causing a painful latch and could be the reason my supply came in so strong and then dropped off. When he nurses, he literally mashes my nipples into a crease that is blanched white from the pressure. His frenulum may be preventing him from latching deeply enough and that is what the result is. If so, they can fix it by snipping it. They say this is no more painful for the baby than a standard immunization, so I don't feel so cruel. And if it will stabilize his ability to nurse and reap the lifelong benefits of that, then it is worth it to me.

On to other boob news: I have had to pump very, very often. I was getting fed up. I already had my Medela Pump in Style, which is pretty much the pump of choice for working moms. I was looking for something to allow me to pump hands-free. They make bras for that, but have you ever tried to find those things in a 38G or H??? So I pretty much said "screw it" and took the plunge and bought the Medela Freestyle. It has adapters that allow it to connect to any standard nursing bra, has a rechargeable battery, a timer, is programmable for your favorite pumping pattern, and more. It feels so much different than the Pump in Style that I have to keep checking to make sure it is working. You can barely feel it. John asked me what I planned to do with the other pump,which has only been in use for 6 weeks and was pretty pricey. Well I set up a little station for me in my bedroom for when Evan is out and about and I need a quiet, private spot. I was able to use the Freestyle bag to set up a nursing bag for work, complete with the new pump, the cooler bag for milk, and another little bag with the parts for the Medela Symphony they have at work. This way, I don't have to pack and unpack a bag every day before I leave the house. I hated doing that this week. It was just a matter of time before I forgot something. And I plan to use the Freestyle for times when I need to be mobile, either around the house or in transit. We are actually taking a road trip in July and I get to try this new plan out. This may seem like overkill on the pumps, but I am prepared now for every pumping need I could have, which is a pretty big deal when you have to work so hard to keep your supply up like I do.