Premature Hand Expressing
Being admitted to hospital at 32 weeks, before an emergency c-section at 33 weeks was not exactly part of the plan and with 2 months to go I hadn’t given considerable thought to breastfeeding yet at all. We knew that after the C-Section my daughter would be taken straight to NICU, and whilst the practicalities of that were explained to us the importance of colostrum and hand expressing was not and at the time we didn’t think (or know!) to ask.
Shaheda talked to me about hand expressing and the importance of being able to give colostrum to my baby as soon as she was born. She properly showed me how to hand express and not just talking with a diagram or a model that you then can't relate to your own boob! She continued to encourage me in the days leading up to my C Section - didnt complicate it and talked with empathy, having being in a similar position herself she knew what I was going through.
It was really motivating and I cannot emphasise enough how good this was for me mentally, physically and emotionally. It gave me focus and purpose at a time when I was feeling useless and to be frank a bit of a failure at my inability to provide for my baby whilst she was inside me.
Indeed, as we waited on the labour ward for the C Section my partner and I sat in the room, listening to my birth playlist, singing and talking and hand expressing colostrum knowing we were doing something productive for her for when she was born. This hour is such a happy memory for me!
I would have gone into the C Section and handled the whole experience completely differently, and to be frank mentally worse if it hadn’t been for Shaheda.
Shaheda has continued to help me as I have pumped to get my milk to come in to feed using a bottle, and now that Aurelia has come home advise me on how to transition properly onto breastfeeding. I never thought I would be so comfortable sending so many photos of my boobs to someone!
I honestly don't know where Aurelia or I would be if it hadn't been for Shaheda's advice and guidance.
Three months on from when she was born, I exclusively pumped for Aurelia and went on to breastfeed her until she was 10 months old, when I returned to work. And as hard as it is at times, it’s so nice to have my partner and I up at the same time in the wee hours of the morning with him feeding Aurelia whilst I pump. He and I enjoy that we are in it together, even as we bicker and argue, and laugh and chat! We have just started to put her on the breast occasionally and hoping she will get there with her latch!
