Breastfeeding a premature baby may seem like a mountain to navigate right now, but it is possible, and the very best thing you can do for your baby.

Why Mother’s Milk

Mother’s milk is liquid gold for babies, especially preemies. If your baby was premature your body is making milk specifically designed for her. Research shows that pre-term milk is higher in:

- Calories
- Fats
- Proteins
- White blood cells
- Immunoglobulins
- Zinc
- Calcium
- Phosphorus
These nutrients are exactly what your baby needs more of!
Science says breastfed preemies:
- Become smarter kids
- See better
- Have less infection
- Go home sooner
- Breath better
- Have healthier skin
- Build better bones
- Have less risk of reflux
- Have less risk of developing necrotizing enterocolitis (a severe inflammatory bowel condition)

Breastfeeding Benefits for Mothers of Preemies

- Oxytocin and prolactin, hormones produced by a breastfeeding mother’s body help to relax mom by giving her a sense of calmness and well-being. This is nature’s natural “sleeping pill.”
- Helps mother feel connected.
- Helps mom get to know her baby by keeping her involved in baby’s daily care.
- Promotes mother’s health.

When

The age at which each preemie will be able to feed at the breast is different from baby to baby. If that time is not now, have faith. The time when your baby will transition from drinking your pumped breast milk to feeding at the breast will come. Until then, realize you can still provide the best thing for your baby – your breast milk!

Whether your baby is able to nurse directly from the breast or not, the next few days are crucial. Milk must be taken from the breast to stimulate them to make more. This is a simple case of supply and demand. Your milk production will adapt to how much your baby is taking or how much you are pumping. Pumping might seem odd right now, but it will make it possible for you and your baby to benefit from a long nursing relationship in the future.

How

When it comes to pumping it is important that you:

- Pick the right pump – a hospital grade double collection system
- Consult a lactation specialist and a LLL Leader
- Get comfortable. Prepare your surroundings. Whether you are pumping in a private pumping room or in the NICU next to your baby, you will need a comfy chair, a table, containers for the milk, and healthy snacks and fluids for you.
- Prepare yourself mentally and emotionally. Relax before you start.
During the first few days you may only be able to pump a small amount of colostrum at a time, it’s extremely important that your baby receive your colostrum. Colostrum is rich in:
- Nutrients
- Antibodies
- Infection fighters

After a few days your milk will become much more plentiful.

The doctors, nurses, lactation consultants and LLL Leaders are there to help you and your baby. They will help you with how often to pump and how to store your pumped milk. Ask lots of questions and make your desires for giving your baby breast milk known.

If your baby is able to feed directly from the breast right off the bat, or if you have been pumping and baby is now ready to feed directly, that is splendid. Breastfeeding is a learned process whether you are breastfeeding a premature baby or a full-term baby.

The first nursing sessions may be uncomfortable or difficult, that’s OK; keep working at it, be patient, and surround yourself with people who will support you.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Emmy_Bill

I apologize for any inconvenience.
Bec

An article in Sydney Morning Herald entitled “Doctors push the limits to save fragile lives” does just that. This article starts out by claiming that Nicole Davis, a 26 weeker and the focus of the piece, “is likely to come through the ordeal unscathed, growing up as a normal child with no physical or developmental consequences from her rocky debut.” This is a blatant untruth, sitting here right now I could name a dozen children born at older gestations who are currently experiencing “physical or developmental consequences” as a result of their premature birth.

The article states, correctly, that a baby born at 26 weeks has an 85% survival rate, unfortunately it then goes on to say that this statistic means that “…babies such as Nicole [are] securely in the category of those destined to live.” Interesting, considering an 85% survival rate means that 15% of babies born at this gestation will unfortunately die.

This article does nothing to present the truth–that being born at 26 weeks offers a vast array of problems and complications. Some of which are quite severe, others which may not present themselves until several years down the track and a variety in between. It paints such a pretty picture of prematurity but is, in point of fact, in correct and blatantly misleading. Is it little wonder that many pregnancy and parenting forums have members who want their babies born at merely 26 – 28 weeks because they believe their child will be just fine?

All in all I’m disappointed at such sloppy journalism and can’t help but wonder what Dr Lui of the Royal Hospital for Women in Randwick, interviewed for this piece, thinks of it.

When where you first diagnosed with PE?

Kyla Officially–probably the day I was admitted to hospital on the 14th May, 2007. At about 24 weeks I was concerned about lack of movement/kicks with bubs. I told my DH my concerns when I couldn’t handle the stress myself anymore (he was having terrible stress problems at work and was put on stress leave). He rang my OB who wanted to see me, he did an ultrasound and bubs showed very small for gestation. So I was sent urgently to an imaging place where a more thorough scan was performed. Bubs measured bigger there than my OB got but was still tiny 2-3 weeks smaller than gestational age. The possible reason was brought up as being potential Downs Syndrome as we’d had a very high risk of Downs in the nuchal translucency tests/scan (1:117). I was then to be monitored more frequently. At my next OB appt my blood pressure was up a bit, so I had to do a urine test which showed protein, my OB then sent me to QML Pathology to do a test there, and said he’d call me if there was a problem. I waited anxiously all weekend (it was a friday afternoon), and heard nothing so started to relax. Ron was checking my BP at home and I was told to take it easy. That Sunday was Mothers Day and we spent it with my mum at the markets. By the monday I still hadn’t heard anything so thought I was all good, then I got a phone call that my OB wanted to see me that day. I went in, the midwife took my BP – it was 160/100, so I saw the OB who admitted me straight to NWPH which was about 2 doors down the road. I wasn’t allowed to go home, I had to go straight to hospital. As soon as I was admitted and had obs done I was given my first steroid injection.

Helen I was always a risk for PE ..I had early high BP diagnosis and dodgy kidneys anyway and an anterior placenta and my age at the time 36 I was diagnosed at 25 weeks and 3 days but believe i was pre eclamptic at 24 weeks.

Lucy I was first diagnosed the day after Davis was born. Prior to this, they weren’t too sure what was causing him to be so small.

What was the first sign that you recall experiencing?

Kyla Looking back now I’d say the first sign of the PE was probably bubs lack of movement. Then I would have said my increasing BP, which was kind of funny, because at my 20 week scan I was apparently on my way to having an 8 pound baby. And at the time my BP was very low – to the point my OB told me I probably shouldn’t be driving and to be careful walking across the road!

Helen First sign was headaches and then swelling. as well as home monitered high BP readings. I had a decline from 19 weeks onwards.

Lucy When I went for my 20 week appointment (and Davis was still a healthy size) my blood pressure was above what it normally is. It was 120/80 which is considered normal but was high for me. They weren’t too concerned about this because it wasn’t ‘abnormal’.

Aside from the premature birth of your child, what was the most serious complication that occurred due to your PE?

Kyla A couple of days after bubs was born, and I’d been up and moving around etc I started getting this awful back pain – it was nearly unbearable! I mentioned it to my OB when he came to see me – I was a private patient in a public hospital so didn’t see any of the public hospital’s docs and very few nurses too! He ordered blood tests when he saw the pain I was in and my body’s reflex action. It showed I was still having problems with my kidney and liver function. I ended up being in hospital for 8 days after my emergency c-section and came home on BP medication for approx 6 months after bubs was born. I’ve still shown liver function problems since then, although it’s quite minor so not sure if that’s a remaining problem from the PE or not.

Helen The most serious complication I had was HELLP and I crashed a few times in theatre ending up in ASCU for 5 days I think…

Lucy The really high blood pressure that occurred the day after Davis was born. Was put on medication and had a prolonged stay in hospital and got very severe headaches which stopped me from seeing my boy.

What you need to know and stay aware of whilst pregnant or planning to be;

Who is at risk?

• This is your first pregnancy
• You are having a subsequent baby with a new partner
• Have a family history of Pre-eclampsia/ Eclampsia or HELLP Syndromev
• You are over 35
• You already suffer from high blood pressure or kidney disease
• Have diabetes or lupus
• You are carrying multiples (twins, triplets or more)
• You have suffered from Pre-eclampsia/ Eclampsia/ HELLP Syndrome before

Signs and Symptoms of Pre-eclampsia

• High Blood Pressure
• Protein in Urine
• Swelling of Face, Hands and Feet
• Headache
• Visual Disturbances

If you suspect any of these signs and symptoms and/or are in a high risk category for Pre-eclampsia then you need to discuss this with your obstetrician and have regular blood pressure checks and urine checks for protein throughout your pregnancy. Further information can be found via our website http://www.aapec.org.au.

Pre-eclampsia Questions and Answers

What is Pre-eclampsia?
Pre-eclampsia is the most common serious medical disorder of human pregnancy, usually arising in the 2nd half of pregnancy and sometimes even after delivery. In the mother it can cause several problems of which she may be unaware. These can include high blood pressure, leakage of protein in the urine, thinning of blood and liver dysfunction. Occasionally Pre-eclampsia can lead to convulsions, a complication called Eclampsia. When a pregnancy is complicated by Pre-eclampsia the baby may grow slowly and suffer from harmful oxygen deficiency. The only cure for Pre-eclampsia is delivery of the baby, if this occurs early in the pregnancy this may result in the birth of a very premature infant.

How common and dangerous is it?
Pre-eclampsia affects one in ten pregnancies, with 1% of pregnancies resulting in severe Pre-eclampsia. These serious cases represent a serious threat to the health of both mother and baby with the death of some 200 Australian babies each year and some 50,000 mothers dying annually worldwide as a result of Eclampsia and subsequent complications. Dangerous complications such as eclampsia convulsions, cerebral haemorrhage (stroke), pulmonary oedema (fluid on lungs from heart failure), kidney failure, liver damage and thinning of the blood can occur but fortunately in rare cases.

What causes Pre-eclampsia?
The precise cause is unknown; however genetic factors are probably involved. There is good evidence that the placenta is centrally involved in the development of Pre-eclampsia.

How do you test or screen for Pre- eclampsia?
Pre- eclampsia is best detected by routine screening tests, such as urine checks for protein and blood pressure checks.

aapec_ribbon_tn What: Pre-eclampsia Awareness Week
When: 24-30 August 2009
To Purchase: Pre-eclampsia Awareness Ribbons, books or book marks or our latest edition of ‘Pre-Eclampsia – The Australian Experience’ please visit http://www.aapec.org.au/

We are requesting all metropolitan and regional media outlets help us raise awareness of this condition. “By informing woman of the signs and symptoms of Pre-eclampsia we can give them the power to protect themselves and the lives of their precious unborn babies”.

Ronan was born at 27 weeks gestation, where you given a reason for his early arrival?
At the time it was “one of those things”. We believed that i had gone into spontaneous labour which resulted in my membranes rupturing. Through the pregnancy with my 2nd son Tristan last year they came to the conclusion after many blood tests and research that Ronan’s early birth was a result of placental abruption.

What would you say was the hardest part of his 110 day stay in hospital?
Going backwards and forwards emotionally. We were positive each day that we visited but to leave one day where he was going 2 steps forward to the next day going 4 steps back was hard. We also thought he was never going to get off oxygen but he proved us wrong as he came home without oxygen.

How did you cope being back at work so soon (two weeks) after Ronan’s birth?
I actually rang and asked if i could come back. Everyone deals with premature birth so differently but for me it was about normalising life as much as possible to deal with the long journey. It was emotional enough that i just couldn’t sit at the hospital everyday, i needed to keep going.

LAP’s now in it’s third year and doing fantastically well, what prompted you to start it?
A year after Ronan came home i wanted to talk to other parents. Being on “normal” parenting forums just didn’t feel like it was satisfying my need for support and understanding of having a child who was delayed. With most of the information at the time being overseas based more information was needed to be available to families in Australia, especially birth stories and hope. I had been online using forums for 12 years and knew how they ran so with my forum knowledge i decided to create L’il Aussie Prems.

Ronan’s speech is delayed and he experiences sensory intergration issues, how has that impacted your daily life? Especially since the birth of your second son Tristan?
We have been attending early intevention for going on 2 years now and has really calmed down sensory wise. Tristan thankfully is easy going (like Ronan) as he comes along and stays in the pram whilst i run around with Ronan for an hr in his early intervention sessions. When i was in the last stages of my pregnancy it was really hard because Ronan was ALWAYS on the go. It’s hard enough having a toddler to run around after let alone one that sensory seeks constantly, can’t sit still, can’t concentrate but ever since Tristan has come along he has really grown and settled down. His speech is ongoing and he is really starting to try and communicate now. Six months ago he would bring his cup to me and short of shove it in my hand because he wanted a drink whereas now he actually asks for milk, juice or water.

We hear a lot about the negative side of parenting a premmie, but what, in your experience, has been the best thing that’s come out of your experience with preterm birth?
Realising that no matter what challenges are brought before you your child is trying their hardest. You learn to be more accepting of others experiences, you learn to listen and really appreciate what parenting is about no matter how hard it may seem at the time.

If you could impart one piece of wisdom to new premmie parents, what would you say?
Take each step slowly. It is not a race and let your child progress in their own time. Talking to other parents of premmies helps because they have been on their own unique journey and you will find most will have the same feelings as you have which is comforting to know you are not alone.

Mirror Games
Erin loved mirrors–still does actually. Some of her best friends live in them. Here are some things you can do with your child:

• Make funny faces.
• Shake different body parts.
• Make simple sounds.
• Do actions–shake your head, nod or clap your hands.

Hide and seek
Babies love to find things, usually things you’d prefer they didn’t. Using a selection of containers and face washers/flannels you can encourage this love without having your dirty sock collection revealed to your mother in law.

Sit with your baby on the floor and take his/her favorite toy and hide it under a washer or container. Ask baby “Where is it?” and wait for them to find it. Try things like hiding a toy that makes noise, or put the toys inside a pillow case so that your child has to put his/her arm inside to find them.

Ball play
Balls are such a simple toy which you can have a lot of fun with. You can roll, throw or even bounce it.

Balloons and bubbles
Babies and kids love bubbles, with little effort from you, your child can have a lot of fun! Sit with your baby and blow some, wait for them to start to settle and then practice popping them saying “POP” each time you do. Balloons are similar, blow one up and allow it to deflate, letting your child feel the air coming out, or blow it up and release it!

Musical instruments
Instruments are always a huge hit in this house. The more noise they make the better, much to my dismay at times. Introduce simply instruments like xylophones or shakers. Take turns at making music by playing “Stop and go!”, where you shake or bang on “go!” and suddenly stop on “stop!”

These are just a few ideas of fun things you can do with your child to help his or her development. Really though, the most important thing to remember is that these “baby days” are short lived, you don’t want to look back on them and only remember how hard you pushed your child to achieve their milestones