26th August 2010
Today I woke up at 6.30am to do milk and then phoned the hospital to see how Esther and William were doing. William had a blood transfusion over night as his Haemoglobin had been really low. He managed all his time off CPAP and was only on from 12am – 6am. Well done William! He gained 55 grams overnight so now weighs 1745g which is 3lbs 8ozs. He is still feeding every 2 hours and is up to 26mls for each feed because of his new weight.
Esther gained weight too and is now 3lbs 3ozs or 1475g. She is tolerating her 2 hourly feeds and is up to 22mls per feed in accordance with her weight. She did 7 and a half hours off CPAP and had a good gas.
Today David and I stayed home until 2pm to sort out the house. I was reassured through my phone call that this would be okay and confident that the babies would be fine as Louise was caring for them. Got quite a bit done at home but still have much to do over the coming days.
At 2pm we arrived at the hospital to catch up with our babies through Louise. They have both had a good morning on their Lo Flo oxygen. William was in air for much of the time and Esther was fluctuating between 0.05 and 0.12. They both need a whiff more oxygen when they are being handled. Esther was working hard on her breathing so Louise thought she might not make her 8 hours today. What we don’t want is for her to work so hard that she uses too much energy and does not gain weight.
The best part of today was William having his first go at breastfeeding! I was a bit shocked when Louise first suggested it and I felt terrified. Absolutley panic stricken that I would not know what to do. I became self conscious and worried. Nervous. I asked for a screen to shield me from other people in the room in case I did it wrong!
But … I got William out and put him to the breast and it just felt like the most natural but magical thing in the world. Not that he really did very much. It was the way he looked at me and the warm feeling of his breath on my chest more than anything that made my heart miss a beat with love and adoration for this tiny perfect baby boy that is mine! He did lick around the nipple and had a bit of a nibble and suck but nothing much at all before falling asleep. And I just held him and watched him sleep and it was perfect and I was filled with love for him. Our beautiful baby boy! Such a clever little thing. A clever, sleepy thing!
I can’t wait to get back to the hospital tomorrow and try the feeding again!
http://www.preemie-l.org/bfaq.html
http://www.bliss.org.uk/page.asp?section=580§ionTitle=Breastfeeding+your+premature+baby
The paragraph about you breastfeeding William has brought tears to my eyes. You have described breastfeeding so well and the feelings it brings.