About Me

My photo
Last year I turned the big 3.0 and got married - I thought that was my milestone year. As it turns out, 2009 quickly overshadowed 2008 when my husband and I found out we were pregnant. I'm going to be experiencing everything for the first time as a woman and an expectant mother which is why I'm calling this my year of firsts. I'm senior editor for Marie Claire South Africa.

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

The formula feed

Took Maya to the paediatrician for her two month check up...
Dr Slowatek told me that Maya needs to gain more weight as she was a bit behind on the growth curve. Gosh! And I thought she was eating well but I'd always wondered why she was constantly hungry. My breasts were even starting to take strain but I thought that was normal. Anyway, it's because she sleeps so well he says - which is unusual for a two month old. Maya sometimes sleeps through the night and mostly only wakes up round 3am and then again at about 6am after having fallen asleep at about 8.30pm. So when she wakes up, she makes up for it. Hence the fact that I'm not able to produce enough milk at the rate she needs it.
So he recommended some natural remedies which weren't available at two chemists I went to. Travelling with a baby is not easy -- you can't just hop out of the car and run in to a store... oh no! You have to make sure you park near shop, unclip baby, lock car, cross the street, calm baby as she starts to get a little fussy, wait your turn at the store...
So I took option B which is to feed formula - doctor suggested alternating between breast milk and formula throughout the day to give my body a chance to produce and store more milk for the next feed.

So it was quite a sad occasion to break my exclusive breastfeeding trend. And I'm not even one of those purists moms who believe in natural natural natural, but I do admit that I shed a tear as Maya guzzled that bottle down - every last bit of the 100ml of formula and promptly feel asleep after a big loud burp at 8pm. The next time she woke up was 5.45am!

1 comment:

  1. Just wanted to add that you need not feel bad about Maya drinking formula to the last drop. I say this because she did the same with your expressed milk when you went to the movies that time! Your sentiments are psychological because you can't visualize your breast's contents and watch how much Maya has had. Happy feeding times.

    ReplyDelete