Dumping my breast milk~ Help

[nemosmum]

ok so I have had a severe allergic reaction and have been prescriped high doses of Prednisone and phenergen

I have gotten conflicting advice from three different doctors I spoke too, two say its fine for me to continue bfing and one saying she didnt know but suggested I dump my milk to be safe

I have noticed dd be grizzly/crying alot and she has also increased her day sleeps from one to two

so i rang the hotline for meds and bfing and they have adviced me to dump my bm

so two questions.....

1. expressing? ive only ever done it a couple of times 3 yrs ago when feeding my son with a manual pump*I no longer have a pump*
so how do I go about expressing???
in the shower?

2. dealing with DD?
I have been trying to limit feeds while on the meds shes used to having 6 feeds a day I had cut her back to 3-4 but she is tantruming and having really bad hissy fits
whether this is only due to me saying no milk or the phenergen is anyones guess

shes never had a bottle and cant have cows milk due to an intolerance...should I just try her on soy???

Oi Vey! this is doing my head in

oh and btw DD is 12mths old.......and no I dont want to wean her LMAO ive heard that more than once since this whole fiasco has occured!!!

HELP

[Manxie]

Hi

I'm no expert but my thoughts are

Dumping-maybe hire a breast pump. contact the ABA they hire them out or even try your local chemist. Or yes you could express manually.

Re what to give your dd as a substitute try soy or maybe just replace it with water. If she is getting sufficient calcium from other sources then she dosent really "need" the milk from that point of view.

Poor you and poor dd.:hugs:

[the_queen]

oh gawd! :hugs: I dunno - how long are you going to be on the prednisone and phenergan for? I'd call the ABA but they'd probably say to call the BF and meds hotline - so if they have said pump and dump, that's what I'd do I think.

You're an ABA member aren't you? You can rent a double electric pump, you'll feel like a milking cow but oh well :laughing: Basically just pump when you would normally feed, and then dispose of the milk - whether you just pour it down the drain, or feed it to the cats, or pour it on the houseplants, I've heard of people soaking their feet in it or washing their hair in it too.

As for the darling girl - I'd try her on rice milk, or goats milk, both are more similar to breastmilk than cows (rice milk tastes a bit like breastmilk, and goats milk is more like breastmilk in terms of composition) and try in a sippy cup with a straw? Or even just drinks of it from a regular cup? Maybe make a big deal out of both kids sitting up at the table to have a big drink, a few times per day, so DS can have juice/milk/whatever, and DD can have a cup of goats/rice milk. You could try a bottle with a sippy attachment, I have Avent bottles leftover from when my girl was a baby, and I use them for The Boy for water/juice but with a sipper teat thing.

:hugs: far out, what a stressful time for you :hugs: I guess the other option would be to look at whether it's really vitally necessary for you to take the drugs, and whether there are any alternatives that would go better with breastfeeding. You could also look at dosage, and try to find out how long the medication is in your system for, so feed her only at times when it's almost out of your system - ie just before taking the meds.


:hugs:

[nemosmum]

thanks girls

re: the meds they are a must im afraid ive been covered (about 60% of my body) in a hideous rash that makes me want to peel my skin off for almost two weeks, I havent had a gd night sleep since this thing invaded my body!

I was on lower doses but the rash just got worse and I started to swell up with fluid retention and it also started effecting my breathing :crying:

Ive been on the heavier dosage since yesterday lunch time and finally the itch has subsided and the swelling is decreasing....now just to figure out what the hell im allergic too!!!

I will try hand expressing in the shower....and would you believe I am not a member of ABA:eek:

I am hoping to be off the prednisone in two days and then I can hopefully lower the dosage of phenergen
if worst comes to worse i can rent a pump I guess

re: dd....geez louise I am not looking forward to the next few days shes not going to like ti one lil bit!
a sippy cup???? I think im going to need a bottle lol with an extra big teat hahahaahahaha to simulate as close as possible hahahaha

wish me luck girls....

xx

[nemosmum]

Footnote~ when I told the doctor I was bfing *dd was on my lap* she looked at me and said "who are you bfing? not her?"

I said "yes Im bfing my 12mth old, who did you think I meant?"

LMAO:rolleyes:

[the_queen]

grrrrr bloody doctors :mad:


I thought it must be pretty bad for you to be on those drugs - you poor thing, sounds bloody awful!! :hugs:

So best case scenario, in 2 days you're off the prednisone and on a lower dose of the phenergan, so you've got 2 days where you need to pump and dump. After that, you could just feed her before you have the phenergan (just like alcohol, if you're going to have a drink, feed first then straight away have your drink, so that by next feedtime, your milk is as alcohol-free as possible)

I would advise you to rent a pump :yes: Because being that she's a boobaholic like that, you might get mastitis if you're not draining the breasts properly. And you don't need that on top of everything else :hugs:


:hugs: Good luck matey :hugs:

[nemosmum]

thanks queen


I did a crappy job of hand expressing last night before offering DD diluted soy milk in a bottle *shes never had a bottle before*

when she saw the bottle she got all excited and happily gulped some down *so I was cheering* BUT then she just let it all dribble out of her toothy grinned mouth
she thought it was hilarious and laughed all the way to bed on an empty stomach!!!

she woke twice last night for a dream feed only to be confronted with a bottle of water....not happy jan
but we made it thru the night and I have now found the culprit to my allergy

I went to bed last night almost rash free *thankyou nasty med at least your working* and woke about two hours later covered in the rash.....Im thinking im now allergic to the sensitive washing powder I use

and as all our sheets/blankets are washed in the stuff I ended up sleeping inside my sons sleeping bag LMAO he needs a bigger bag to fit his mummy in!

but at least I can now hopefully avoid these dramas and get off the meds and back to providing my lil bubba with what she needs I felt terrible denying her she acted like she was a junkie coming off a big high it was scary!
she was rolling/thrashing around on the floor crying and when i tried to cuddle her she would just hti my boobs and throw herself around

I relented and gave her some milk this morning as my last phenergen was at 8pm last night and I havent had the prednisone yet today....awww what a relief for my poor sore breasts
and DD was in heaven lol im back in the good books:kiss:

[Oscar's mum]

I've heard of people soaking their feet in it or washing their hair in it too.


What a strange person to do that :laughing:

[shed]

I have a pump here, if only you lived closer. I think you used to live closer but then you moved? I can't remember.

When you get off the meds I advise building a little stash and putting it right at the bottom of the deep freeze.

[the_queen]

What a strange person to do that :laughing:

I know :laughing: Bloody hippies!!! :laughing:

[4babycinos]

I just wanted to help with your allergy. 12mths after I had ds I all of a sudden started having these red blotchy rashes come up everywhere which were absolutely driving me insane with how itchy it was. In the end I had an allergy test and found out I was allergic to nickel, cobalt, dust mites, yeast and dogs - which doesnt help I have 2 :rolleyes:.

Anyways I was on Prednisolone tablets, Diprosone cream (I would advise you get a prescription for, really helps with the itching) and telfast (phenergan made me too drowsy to function). As hard as it is dont scratch - the more you scratch the more histamines you release which makes you more itchy, dont have hot showers, change your bodywash/soap to something like QV, from the chemist, and see if you can get a referal to an allergy specialist for a prick test to see what your allergic to. The prednisolone will get rid of the rash but if you cant figure out what your allergic to it will just come back. I had 4 doses in 6mths before I had the rash under control (which was from head to foot)

I never in my life had problems with my skin until I had ds. Its amazing how having a child can change your body....

I hope that helps

[nemosmum]

mummalisciousto3~ thanks heaps for taking the time to post its very much appreciated
and wow i feel your pain! the rash is insane!


I have been to RPA allergy clinic about two yrs ago with my son and we were both prick tested * i actually went their last month also and had my DD tested* after a 5mth wait list!

anyway yeah I am allergic to dust mites, pollens and grasses and now it seems to be washing powder as well

I am rash free this morning and have lowered my dose of both drugs so will hope for the best...I go back and see my doc on monday

I cant blame the kids lol I have had allergies all my life...was born covered in eczema so looks like they will probably blame me for their allergies LOL
DS is allergic to dairy, dustmites and pollens
DD has a tiny 1x1 reaction to cashew and peanuts and an intollerance to dairy

Oi Vey! its all on!



Shed......I know what you say makes complete sense but im a lazy bugger and cant even think of expressing adn organizing a stash....so much easier to let the lil minx take her fill LOL

wish me luck this is the last I see of this hideous flesh devouring monster :D