Posted by My OB said WHAT?!?.
Feb
7
Posted by My OB said WHAT?!?.
“…In Some Cultures, They Don’t Even Breastfeed For The First 24 Hours, So You’re Still Ahead Of The Game!”
“You don’t need to pump, you need to rest. In some cultures, they don’t even breastfeed for the first 24 hours, so you’re still ahead of the game!” – Postpartum nurse to mother who had repeatedly requested a breast pump so she could express milk for her 6-hour-old baby who was in the NICU for observation.
There are 30 comments to this post.
Jessica had this to say,
Feb 7, 2012 @ 6:40 pm (Quote)
Grrr, new phone, still getting used to the screen!
They think the rice water is more nutritious than mother’s milk. Since we know that colustrum is the best thing for newborns you need to get off your duff and get the pump. It takes 20 minutes to pump; mom is sure to rest after.
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Stephanie had this to say,
Feb 7, 2012 @ 6:46 pm (Quote)
This isn’t mine but this is what happened to me. I had a crash c section and while I was out they put my baby in the nicu because he wouldn’t take any formula. He was there for 6 days and they didn’t bring me a pump for 2 days. There’s was nothing wrong with my baby except that he would t drink formula. I’m still pissed about the way the hospital treated my baby.
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Alyson Miers had this to say,
Feb 7, 2012 @ 7:15 pm (Quote)
What is that I don’t even.
Nurse Numbskull, no one asked for your knowledge of comparative anthropology. The mama wants to provide colostrum for her baby in the NICU. Why not just find her a damn breast pump?
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Goodness, nursie-poo you are working in the *wrong* department! With your respect for the breastfeeding practices of other cultures, you need to switch over to pediatrics so when I come in with my nursing toddler/preschooler you can remind the doc that some cultures nurse till much later than we do here!
Or… you *could* follow practices that are actually *proven* to be healthier for nursing babies/toddlers/preschoolers instead of just whatever the ‘in’ culture next door is doing… or at the very least just respect my choice for myself and my child and bring me a pump.
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PetraStrider had this to say,
Feb 7, 2012 @ 7:45 pm (Quote)
The same thing was said to me. My baby ate only a little bit her first day and I was concerned (ok frantic) for her health. But a breast pump was brought to me as soon as I requested one.
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This statment is true. I just finished reading the book “Rediscovering Birth” by Shelia Kitzinger. She studied the birth pratices of differnt cultures, and (can’t remember which ones, but there was more than one) actually believe that colostrum is bad for the baby, so the baby either doesn’t nurse at all until the milk comes in, or is nursed by other women, or is given something else to eat.
However…. We know the benefits of nursing asap, and as much colostrum as possible should be given to that baby, especially if it is stuggling. I would have howled like a crazy person if a nurse had denied me a pump. Most likely she was just too lazy to go get it. I would have filed a complaint and asked for a new nurse. Jerk.
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Ashley had this to say,
Feb 7, 2012 @ 9:08 pm (Quote)
Omg! Something similar was said toe as I was *begging* for a pump for 24 hours after my baby was born and in the nicu. I am sure that this contributed not only to my continuing supply issues but also developing Rusty Pipe Syndrome ( which one of the causes is engorgement, hmmm was told there was no correlation there– grrr!) Needless to say next time I will have a pump bedside before I deliver just I’m case.
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When my newborn had to be re-hospitalized, I brought my own pump. If there’s any chance a new mom is going to need a pump, it’s worth picking up a nice manual pump prior to delivery and just bringing it to the hospital. We used an Avent Isis, and it was just perfect.
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Ashley had this to say,
Feb 8, 2012 @ 4:28 am (Quote)
Agreed Jane, unfortunately most people never anticipate the possibility of having a baby in the nicu, I know I never did. I also know that they can be very particular on accepting milk from hospital grade pumps. It is still worth it to take a pump with you just in case.
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At first I thought this might be an attempt to comfort a mom/baby duo that was having trouble establishing nursing. Sigh. I suppose it was intended to be comforting, but just bring in a G.D. pump! Shouldn’t it be standard?
Of course, I know a L&D nurse who nursed for 6
-8 months and then just switched to formula. Not a work issue, just figured she’d done it long enough.
I thought it was bad enough I had to ask for a nursing pillow after my c-section. Really, between an iv jammed into my hand, a cut open belly, drugs (general, not spinal),somewhat flat nipples, and a very impatient newborn, why would a first time mom have trouble arranging regular pillows?
But making a mom ask for a pump more then once is stupid. And how many moms rest while a baby is in the nicu? At least if she’s pumped, she’s done something to care for her baby and she may be a bit calmer.
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Well I want to know the the school of nursing was reclassified under Humanities and Social Studies rather than staying under the science and medicine umbrella! Are you out of pumps? Do you not know where the pumps are? What is the problem that you are dodging the request? Just go get the damn pump and keep your editorials to yourself!
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This is my submission, from the birth of my cousin’s son. I had stayed with her after the birth to help her with nursing and whatever else. We knew ahead of time that her baby would be taken to the NICU for observation because she was right at 36/37 weeks (depending on whose dates you used). She and her husband were told several times that it was just a precaution and as long as baby was doing well, he would be released from the NICU after 4 hours. She also was under the impression that she would be able to go to the NICU to nurse during that time. She had a planned c/s because she was having complications, and she requested a pump before they brought her to the OR so that she would have it ASAP in case she did need it. She also discussed with the staff ahead of time that she wished to EBF, and they agreed to not give baby a bottle unless his blood sugar was below a certain threshold.
As soon as family was allowed to see her after the birth, we went to her room. A nurse came in to tell my cousin and her husband that their baby was doing just fine, and “we went ahead and gave him a bottle of formula.” My cousin asked how low his blood sugar was because she was concerned. It was above the cutoff that they had given her earlier.
Several hours passed, during which my cousin was brought to the NICU once for about 10 minutes to see her baby. She continued to ask for a pump, and all the nurses kept blowing her off, telling her that her baby was going to be released any minute anyway, so it didn’t matter. After 6 hours, she asked again and the nurse spouted this gem.
Around the same time, my cousin’s husband went to the NICU to see what was going on and he was told that they had decided that they were going to keep the baby overnight at least. A neonatologist came back to my cousin’s room to talk to them about it. Their reason? “Well, we had to prod him too much to take the bottle, so we can’t release him from the NICU until he’s taking the bottle well.”
A pump finally showed up but they did insist on keeping baby overnight and bottle-feeding him in the NICU. My cousin requested a lactation consultant several times and was again blown off. The same nurse who gave her the above cultural lesson told her, “Oh, we’re all breastfeeding experts here!” I’m still amazed that I didn’t smack her.
The LC wasn’t particularly helpful either and just gave her a different kind of bottle. Baby never latched well and she tried EPing for a bit but I think it got to be too much. I had to go home (to another state) after a week, and she really didn’t have much support otherwise. 
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Details Reply:
February 8th, 2012 at 10:09 am (Quote)
I’m so sorry. Mom had every right to park herself in the NICU and breastfeed in front of the world. I understand why she didn’t do that, but she needs to send a letter. Jane just wrote up a beautiful one on another thread.
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Michelle Reply:
February 8th, 2012 at 1:54 pm (Quote)
OMG, that is so awful! I would have had a conniption fit over such blatant undermining of not only the breastfeeding relationship, but her entire role as mother.
This is why I was so happy with the hospital where my daughter was in the NICU after her homebirth. Not only did the hospital bring me a breastpump before I even thought to ask for it, they had me in the NICU feeding her straight from the breast before I had a chance to pump more than an ounce or so. The nurses even called me on my room phone every time she fussed so that I could come down and nurse, and they didn’t mind when I resorted to simply sleeping in a chair in her room. They even let me unhook all of her monitors whenever I was in there with her.
I suppose it’s lucky I didn’t have a c-section, so I was able to walk to the NICU on my own. I can’t imagine being dependent on the L&D nurses to wheel me down there every couple of hours. No guarantee I wouldn’t have ended up in the same situation as your cousin.
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Maggie had this to say,
Feb 8, 2012 @ 2:01 pm (Quote)
The more I read about breast feeding support (or lack there of) on here the more grateful I feel that the hospital where I gave birth to DD was for the most part fantastic and encouraging. Every room had a breast pump. Every room. Everyone is repeatedly offered LC help. They also sponsor a support BF group led by childbirth educators, midwives and LC’s. They also even have it set up with a local movie theater to one day a week show a first run movie for $4 exclusively for BFing mothers. Even though I struggled and never really produced enough and never got a good latch, I was surrounded by support. I’m sorry your cousin had to fight for something so basic.
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My son was sent to the NICU soon after he was born also. But after the doctor and nurse took care of me i was sent to recover. When i was told about the room, what to expect and how to get to the NICU. The nurse contuined to explain about the breast pump. My confusion was that i had never heard about a breast pump before and was nervous about using it.
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Jennifer had this to say,
Feb 8, 2012 @ 9:10 pm (Quote)
Unfortunately, there is a whole body of research that demonstrates how many medical professionals are undereducated, misinformed, and inadequately trained when it comes to breastfeeding. This includes everything from nurses to general practitioners to OBs. Even the medical textbooks they learn and reference from are often flawed. It’s of real concern, since women look to medical professionals for breastfeeding advice. The only ones I would trust are lactation consultants and breastfeeding counselors, but even then I would take questionable advice like this with skepticism and request a second opinion.
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Jenny Islander had this to say,
Feb 9, 2012 @ 9:10 am (Quote)
Yes, and in some cultures they used to put buffalo poop on umbilical cord stumps in the belief that it would accelerate healing. Your point?
I have all of two anthro classes to my credit and I am willing to bet that’s two more than you have, pal.
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That’s right, American and a few other “Western” cultures (and those they’ve negatively influenced). Most “cultures” pop the babe right on there within a couple of minutes.
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Rachel Reply:
February 7th, 2012 at 6:29 pm Rachel(Quote)
just what I was thinking
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