Preemie, breastfeeding & staff attitudes.

[Celesse]

My amazing little sister is breastfeeding her preemie. He was born at 26 weeks and is now 38 weeks adjusted. He's never had a bottle, but like many babies born so early was initially tube fed. He latches on well and feeds well.

Over the weekend she has started rooming in preparation for going home. The feeding tube is out and for the first time baby is taking from the breast for all his feeds. He has also stopped his fortifiers. But he's been feeding hourly at night, though going longer during the day and has lost 2oz in the past 4 days.

Staff are now putting pressure on my sister to bottle feed, or at least introduce a bottle, not only due to the weight loss but also the frequency of feeds. They want him going 3 hours between feeds. At least one nurse has told her that the baby should learn to "cry for his feeds". They have also told her that she holds him too much.

My sister is wanting to exclusively breastfeed and doesn't want to give the baby any bottles at all.

Does anyone have any words of advice, or just of encouragement I can pass on?

 

[Reidfidleir]

I can totally empathize. My little guy was a 36 weeker so not as early, but was hospitalized for jaundice after he was born. Due to him losing weight and Not latching well and causing me injury they did feed him some formula while there but I just kept pumping and pumping every two hours. So he did take bottles of my breastmilk. It also helped me to heal a bit too.
I also hated how hospitals tend to push the formula, but it's not completely evil.
After we went home they asked me to put a quarter teaspoon of powder formula in the pumped breast milk to help with weight gain. And it did help, and eventually between 6-8 weeks he weaned off the nipple shields as well and we've been find ever since! I EBF until 6 months, and now he is still Bfing before bed once a day.
She can get through this! Have her ask the nurses specific questions though. If they are concerned with weight loss can she pump and just add a little powder to it? At least for a couple bottles? There's no such thing as holding your newborn too much! And they don't need to "learn to cry for their feeds" They do that naturally!!! For goodness sake! How old is that woman?!
Have her feed on demand as much as that baby wants! They should feed every 2-3 hours anyway.