Our Preemie's Miracle Machines!

My introduction into motherhood was stark and without warning. ... The year was 1979. He arrived 13 weeks too soon, with no chance of survival. ... The internet did not exist, then. We found ourselves in a medical maelstrom: trying to help save the life of our three-month-premature baby at a time when little could be done for his stage of development. His zero chance of survival, at birth, was soon upgraded to a 10% chance - two days later - when the doctors learned their new patient would be immediately receiving shipments of mother's milk - both fresh and frozen - 7 mornings a week. This elixir of life would become an awesome secret weapon in our son's arsenal of bacteria fighting tools. ...  But soon more 'help' than we could have ever imagined would arrive to assist us in our fight to keep our son alive!

Manual milk expression began in earnest, the afternoon of his birth. It was a tedious and sometimes messy labour of love, to be sure. It was also an experience of ignorance as I began to question the nurse what to do, how to do it and would I explode, somehow? (We had just begun prenatal classes, the week prior.) ... She helped me with the basics and reassured me that I was not at risk of exploding! ...  Warm cloths would help release the pressure and the milk, the creamy, nutrient rich food my body was producing immediately after his birth. We were  part of a grandiose team effort.... From the beginning, milk production was able to keep pace with the dietary needs of our three pound two ounce preemie, whose weight  had dropped to two pounds twelve ounces, days later. It was easy to give him what he needed, though collecting it was sometimes a challenge. ... Using a hand held plastic 'horn' like tool, I collected, dutifully, round the clock and stored the milk in the fridge for immediate use; the freezer, for any excess. (Human milk's 'shelf' life was poor.) While in hospital our son grew one ounce per day.

Arriving home two months later, our son would begin to gain valuable ounces. His nutritional demands, though, began to outpace my ability to accommodate his burgeoning weight status. (Formula supplementation was added as needed) Though he was now home, more relaxed, in a less fretful state and in a more stress free environment, he still could not get the 'knack' of nursing. The 'latching' technique was unfamiliar to him. He had grown used to feeding the easy way, using the bottle with its familiar rubber nipple. Whenever I tried introducing him to the 'nursing technique', he would struggle to latch on. It was not good. If he wasn't able to feed directly from me, easily, then I simply continued as before: collecting and storing the milk in bottles - as I had for the past two months while he lay in hospital. ...

The curse of all premature babies, especially male preemies, was the bacterial army invading their digestive tract, slowly destroying the linings of this vast food delivery network. .(Mom's milk was the key to battling these internal diseases, I learned only two years ago.) ... I contacted the La Leche League, in 1979, an organization for nursing moms, for advice...It was here that I would discover the existence of two miracle machines that would literally change our lives overnight! The complete feeding routine would be facilitated in two dramatic ways. ...One machine would literally empty the milk ducts in record time while the other machine would facilitate the nursing technique for our son, as I held him close. ... Results were immediate and incredible!. Teaching him on my own would have proved a lengthy trial and futile, at best, frustrating him further and reducing milk production to perilous levels. These new methods were simple to use and produced excellent results, each and every time. ...We rented these miracle machines for as long as was needed. ... (Perfection never looked so good!) ...  Gaining weight was critical to our son's health and strength. ...  Since his sucking reflex was still immature and underdeveloped, the one machine, rented for him, helped our baby gain valuable 'work' experience. By 4 months of age, he was able to nurse on his own, a remarkable learning accomplishment, considering the feeding struggles he had endured. ... Partnering with a machine, I had never heard of, to help teach our son how to breastfeed succeeded beyond our wildest dreams. ... The more frequently he nursed, the more milk was produced and the stronger he became. Life settled into a wonderful routine.

Our first-born was nearly five months old when the milk supply dried up. A second preemie was on his way. Though our second child would 'attempt' to assert his independence by 5 months gestation, he remained sequestered, with medical intervention, until birth, arriving one month early. Since I was a poor candidate for pregnancy, we did not wait. Our third child was born nearly two years later, 6 weeks early. ...

Our dogged determination to do what was necessary for our first born preemie and the lengths we went to help him survive, helped pave the way for our sons' own focused learning journeys, in years to come. We did what we had to do! Freedom never tasted so good!