The Milk Trail - Part 2: The Good Cow

Yes, let me continue my Milk Trail... (no, not done yet *stern*look*)

So you see, as you've read before in The Milk Trail: Part 1 - I was milk-less when we were discharged from the hospital when Isaac was 3 days old. It started to become very stressful as Isaac was crying the entire day and demanding feeds at every hour coz he was getting zilch from me milkless breasts.

Furthermore being a novice at latching him on, think my methodology wasn't too good, and so I had sore nipples. And as he was demanding feeds so often - the sore nipples got worse. It got so bad that the nipple on the right breast started to bleed. So I had to stop letting him latch onto that breast (coz if babies drink blood, they'd get stomach upset from indigestion).

As I was telling you in The Milk Trail - Part 1 - by night time of Day 3, my mum and the confinement lady persuaded me to pump to see how much milk I had and I had none. Sighz. And you know what? We pumped until - my left breast nipple also bleed. So hubbs went to Holland V's 24 hour Cold Storage to buy formula milk to feed starving Isaac. And I had two bleeding nipples.

On Day 4, in the day time, think the milk started to come in. I wasn't really aware of it. Coz I didn't know how it felt like - I mean, I've never experienced it before, right? So when the confinement lady kept asking me all day:"Do you have engorged breasts?" - I replied:"No, I don't think so." Coz I really didn't think so. Though to tell the truth, I had an inkling that the milk was coming in. But I was somehow reluctant to tell her. I had this insanely paranoid thought that she wanted me to pump it out and hence prevent me from latching Isaac on and feeding him. Silly me. Hormonal imbalances, I suppose ;p

By midnight of Day 4, my breasts were so engorged that they were rock hard. And I'd forgotten that I had two bleeding nipples - so I couldn't latch Isaac on to feed. I tell you, engorgement really hurts!!! It was soooo painful. The confinement lady put some towels in hot water, and placed the towels on my breasts. This encouraged the milk to flow, and we simply let the milk dribble out and waste away, just so that we can drain the breasts to provide me with some relieve from the pain of engorgement. Wah, very heartpain to see the milk go to waste...

So, first I had no milk, then I had 'too much' milk!

Though, since then, when we tell some people about our experience of engorgement, it seems that engorgement is a blessing. For it means that I have milk. Some people have apparently never experienced engorgement before - coz they either don't have milk, or have very little milk.

I'd previously thought that this would be a long post, coz at that time when we were going through that period of time, everything was so much more dramatic. Now, it seems like... no big deal. What's a little pain if one can have milk?

On Monday, we brought Isaac to the paediatrician's. He wasn't due for his first 6-in-1 vaccination shot yet, but we'd wanted to bring him to the doc as people have commented that he still looked a little yellow.

The paed took one look at him, and said:" Oh, he's not too yellow - I wouldn't worry about it. Look, he's as yellow as me!" she said, as she placed her forearm next to Isaac's face. She was right - she was as yellow as he was, in fact, think she was more yellow. hahaha.

She asked about his poo colour ("mustard yellow"), frequency of poo ("4 or 5 times a day") and colour of his pee ("clear to light yellow"). Then she declared:" With Isaac at 7 weeks old now, at 5.67kg and 59cm, he'd doing very well, I wouldn't worry about the jaundice. In fact, with the state of his poo and pee - I'd say Mummy is a Good Cow! Stamp and certified! Good Cow!"

hahahhaa... :) I'm a GOOD COW!!! yay!!!

Hope to remain a good cow for at least 6 more months... *grinz*

Wish me luck! and MILK!!! ;p