Tales of an Exclusively Pumping Mom

"Breastmilk is best for babies up to 2 years."

We've all heard this especially after a formula milk commercial. I never really paid attention to this ad, not until I became pregnant and eventually gave birth that I truly appreciated the phrase.

I've always thought that I would breastfeed my child and for me this is simply the best choice. Aside from making sure that my baby gets the best milk, there is also the environment factor. With our culture now where health is becoming people's priority, there is also the expectation that moms should breastfeed their babies. Before giving birth, I read about breastfeeding online and expected to BF my baby upon birth. Little did I know that there are other plans for me.

4 hours after Yui's birth, she was diagnosed with congenital pneumonia and had to be put in the incubator with respirator, pulse oximeter, IV and other tubes that a mother wouldn't even dream of seeing in her child. So there goes dream of rooming in my baby and BF her right after birth. She stayed at the hospital for 7 more days after I was discharged and while she was there I pumped my gut out until I was able to get some milk. My milk came in at around the 4th day after labor, just in time when Yui was able to drink milk already (she didn't have anything for 3 days since they were still monitoring her). While Yui was in the hospital, I was pumping at home and every morning my mom would bring the frozen pumped breastmilk to the hospital so they could give it to Yui. Daddy bunny and I would then go there at night to visit our precious little girl and also to bring in more milk.

When we were finally able to bring Yui home, I was excited. I was excited to finally BF my baby! But then the problem started. We couldn't get a latch and apparently Yui now prefers the bottle after taking it in the hospital. Of course who would let her baby cry her heart out trying to get a latch? I did what I could do that time which is to give her the milk through the bottle. Of course, I was still giving her my pumped milk. So in a way, I was still giving her my milk. We tried to get a direct feeding for the next days until one day she was able to latch. I was so happy!!! Unfortunately, my happiness was cut short as we weren't able to repeat that no matter how I tried. I guess I was bordering on post-partum depression that time since I felt "incompetent". I was just so grateful of the support that daddy bunny, my mom and my mommy friends gave me during that time. I went from being really sad that my efforts are not paying off to accepting the fact that it just wouldn't happen. I guess I wasn't trying hard enough or that subconsciously I knew there was other way.

While all this baby blues were happening, I was still slaving myself with the pump. I really wanted to give Yui the best milk so I pumped. And I pumped. And I pumped. My only worry at the beginning was that my milk will not increase and I wouldn't produce enough milk to sustain her demand. I know that the baby's suckling is the best at emptying the breast and increasing the mommy's milk supply so I was worried. I seeked the help of my friends, Ivy and Mai :) and asked for guidance. They were so helpful and Ivy even lent her Chicco pump and Mai her Medela pump since I'm just a poor girl. LOL! I also seeked the support of other moms in GT. That's where I first heard of the term Exclusively Pumping... (I just realized na ang haba pala ng intro ko hahaha!!!)

I didn't know that what I was doing had a proper term pala and so I googled Exclusively Pumping breastmilk and was surprised with the tons of information I found. Before this, all I could see were articles about breastfeeding and bottle-feeding, where breastfeeding means direct nursing and bottle-feeding means formula feeding. There was no "bottle feeding breastmilk". Apparently, there are moms out there that are the same as me... Those who want to give the best to their children and for the same reasons that I had or simply because they chose to, they opted to exclusively pump (EP)

Some people, especially medical practitioners don't really raise EP'ing as an option to mothers who can't nurse their child. They immediately force formula feeding. Not that I'm against formula (in fact, I was mixed feeding until about 2 weeks ago), but I believe that EP'ing should be the next option to direct BF'ing. After reading articles and other moms' experiences about EP'ing and weighing the pros and cons, I was more convinced that this is my calling.

Of course I know the risks or cons of EP'ing. The first one is increasing the milk supply. There are lots of tips from mommies who successfully EP'ed for their child and I tried all that I can to increase my supply. It is true that I need to work harder at this since I'm relying on the pump and not my baby's suckling. I was drinking malunggay-infested soup everyday. And I mean EVERY SINGLE DAY. I was taking Natalac 2x a day, drinking 2-3 glasses of Anmum Lacta and eating oatmeal just to up the supply. The other important step is to have a strict pumping schedule where you should pump between 2-3 hours (8-10x a day) to simulate the baby's feeding schedule. While I was establishing my supply, we were mixed feeding. Yui took around 4oz of formula a day but majority of her milk is breastmilk (around 80%). As of this writing though, I'm happy to say that she's exclusively drinking breastmilk (since about 2 weeks ago) and that I have approximately 70oz of BM in the freezer. So I guess all that malunggay paid off.

With EP, skeptics say that you lose the bonding between mother and child. To this I disagree. Although unconventional, I can attest that one can still bond with her child even if you're not directly nursing. One added bonus of EP'ing is that the daddy and other caregivers (like the grandma) can also bond with the baby because they too can feed the baby. This setup works for us and I'm happy that daddy bunny is happy because he can share in the feeding experience.

There are other factors that make this setup work or not work for a parent. I'm just sharing my experiences so that whoever has problems with breastfeeding in the future, they would know that there is another option for them. Two months into this, I would say that I didn't regret our choice. It's just a win-win situation for our family. And I'm happy that Yui can still get all the nutrition and antibodies that breastmilk gives, albeit unconventionally.