A bit of background

My breastfeeding story.

When my first daughter, E, was born in 2004 I had no problems with breastfeeding- well apart for sore nipples and a couple of cases of mastitis.

I had all the usual engorgement issues when my milk came in, leaking, spraying, in fact a total abundance of milk. I remember once E came off and the milk literally sprayed all over the place.

I used to leak from one side while feeding from the other and E put on loads of weight. I’ll never forget the midwife commenting that I must have gold top milk.

Since I was 16 I have always suffered from Itp- a blood condition that means I’m always tired and have low resistance.

I never imagined the problems I would have any problems breastfeeding my second child when she was born on November 1^st 2007. Having said that I did have a problematic pregnancy with morning sickeness (same with E), low heamaglobin, spd and high triple test result.

I remember having a chat with the midwife on the labour ward about donating milk and the midwife said I could donate to the local hospital. I honestly thought I’d have an abundance like last time and really wanted to donate. We did all the right things, she was delivered onto me and she fed almost straight away.

She was a fantastic baby that first day- she was born 5.08am weighing 8lb 8oz and she slept most of the day while I had 2 transfusions. At tea time we went to the post natal ward where S slept. Perfectly normal behaviour for a newborn baby. I fed her every 3 or 4 hours and we were discharged the following day. My haemoglobin was still low at 7.9 but it had been about 8 during my second trimester so I wasn’t too worried.

My labour had lasted 7 hrs and I had managed it on gas and air so I felt fantastic. Empowered in fact. I had colostrum those first few days and within about 5 days the colostrum had changed to milk- I know that as I hand expressed just to check J. I didn’t get the fullness that I’d had first time but S was feeding well I thought and she seemed happy and content.