Have been thinking of you, and glad to hear things are going ok. Great work with the expressing, your milk will be helping your little girl grow big and strong.
It is such a spin when your world is turned upside down when your little girl arrived so quickly and all in such of a hurry.
I found that I went through the "baby blues" as such a few times, and it is really important to have those times to yourself to have a cry and let it all out.
If you are worried about your supply maybe looks at ways to boost your supply, as you will be short on time I wouldn't worry about the Lactation cookies atm, unless Nanna cane make some up for you, but you can go for Fenugreek, Blessed Thistle, Milo and Aktavite are also great boosters and will also give you some energy, along with drinking lots of water. I went onto Motilium as it is hard work expressing all the time, I completely understand that part of what you are going through, because my DD wasn't anywhere near as early as Miss Heidi, but the getting up all hours of the night to hook up to the pump can be very tiring, I had alarms on my mobile phone to wake me up to express, a double electric pump is most certainly the way to go, it is a lot quicker and easier, you will really notice the difference.
I know it is hard, but for now don't worry about the amounts you are getting with each express, you will be easily covering what Heidi needs, just keep goin every 2-3 hours during the day for 20min or so and at night try not to go more than 5 hours between expressing sessions, and at most one large gap between. I know it is going to be hard work and I really wish I had the wealth of information that I have gathered from BB and the ABA when I was going through it all.
I hope things went smoothly with her central line today, and if it didn't happen it will in time, she is doing very well, and such a clever little girl to be doing so much breathing on her own, the girls are always stronger in NICU, they are just that bit further developed than the boys
One thing that might help DS is a few pictures of the NICU, ie entry doors, washing hands, Heidi's crib etc, so that he can look at them and you can sort of tell a story as you show him the photos, a bit like reading a book, that way he can become more familiar with the NICU, without it being all new with each visit.
Definitely the photos etc laminated and put on her isolette are a lovely idea, we have all of DD's and they are also a lovely keepsake. She also had a Panda given to her by DH he search the city for 4 hours finding the right one, and the Panda is symbolic of goodluck on the birth of a new baby and he was her protector, it was nice to know that he was always there watching her
Take care hun and I have you in my thoughts daily xxoo
It was wonderful to read that little Heidi is doing so well breathing with minimal assistance at her gestation is amazing! She has already overcome one of the major hurdles on the NICU journey & to receive an excellent ECG result, I know, is such a huge weight off your shoulders.
I cried when I read that you had your first kangaroo cuddles. Such a special moment for so soon after her birth and it is so important for your milk production and her development. It was 18 days before DS was aloud out for our first kangaroo cuddle. It felt like a lifetime.
Expressing can be difficult task sometimes. If you feel that your supply is beginning to decrease, try to increase your fluid intake of both water & milk. If you're not a milk drinker, try adding aktavite to it (so called old wives tale). If you find you are really struggling, your GP can prescribe something to increase your supply. It was something that I really didn't want to do but it was more important for me to be able to supply DS with as much EBM as possible and for as long as possible.
Hoping the NICU journey for you, your family and your beautiful girl is a smooth one. Sending lots of healthy and growing vibes her way. Remember, staying positive is a very good thing but it is also ok to have a cry.
Just wanted to pop in and say what an amazing little girl you've got there, and wish you all the best for the months ahead. Sounds like she is one tough little cookie. You are doing a great job of staying positive. Keep coming back to keep us updated on Heidi's progress and to let us know how you're doing too.
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xxoo
breathing with minimal assistance at her gestation is amazing! She has already overcome one of the major hurdles on the NICU journey & to receive an excellent ECG result, I know, is such a huge weight off your shoulders.
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