Premature babies support group

hi puppyduppy!

welcome to the club. yes, it is shocking. but, dont worry, at 29 weeks, your girl should be okay.

what's your baby's weight? can she breathe on her own?
 


hi puppyduppy,
welcome to u too.... i was delivered in Mt E. the bill is sort of difficult to be estimated by the hospital coz it all depends...n private hospital count everything, even tissue paper. but is really depends on ur bb condition, the more equipment she's using the higher the charge. mine one oso stay to put on weight onli, so for 3 wks the bill is abt 11K. His 'neighbour' was 2 wks there but due to severe jauntice n UV light everyday, the bill is 12K.

Who's ur bb neonat? some are charging more ex then the other too...

Forgot to mention, u can always call the cashier at Mt E to check ur bill size. If ur neonat is a easy gg ppl, u can request to downgrade fr level to level...the cost is extremely different at each level.

let me know if u need any more info
 
Hi all, thanks for the warm welcome and replies.

Costa de sol - My girl born on 16Oct, birth weight was 1.14kg.Complications - unable to feed via bottle,everything else is ok now.

telly - for the 1st 2 days, bb had to be on oxygen,after that she can breathe on her own :>. She has finally put on weight at 1.3kg.
Irenelove -thanks for the information, sorry by neonat you mean her PD? it is Dr Siva.she is currently in Class 1.

When i saw my bb for the 1st time after delivery, i broke down and cried, cos there were all the tubes in her and she looked so fragile and small..and i couldnt do anything to make her feel more comfortable. Even Dr siva dunno wat to do when he saw be crying.

Me and hub go and see baby everyday now and talk to her, sing songs to her and carry her.
 
hi puppyduppy,

don't be upset. brace yourself up. your gal be ok. all she needs is to bottle right. hehe...tell her that mama BM is the sweetest and do cuddle and cheer her up. she be going home really soon.... :)
 
telly,

hi, dear, cld you update puppyduppy's details in the table...

puppyduppy,

we understand wat you've been thru and going thru...just take some time to settle yourself...yr mood affects yr babe as well..try to steady yourself....

are you expressing yr bm?
 
hey jane,

thanks for the encouragement.

yah everytime she has her feeds, i will tell her that mama's bmilk is the best and very precious( cos my milk supply very low, always try to squeeze the last drop out so that she can at least have some bmilk, hehe).
 
hey costa de sol,

yup im expressing bmilk now, but milk supply still very low ( after drinking all the soups that are suppose to increase the supply and taking the medicine to increase it ), so have to top up with FM. was so worried in the beginning when nurse had to top up with FM, cos the PD say its not good...felt like ive failed as a mother, cant even produce enough BM for my baby...sigh.then the nurses say dont stress myself out, no BM means no BM...no matter how much i squeeze also wont increase...FM is actually ok.So far my girl is ok taking the FM, so less stress.

Anyone also has to top up bmilk with FM?
 
hi puppyduppy,

ur baby is just in her first month..don't worry continue to express...soon the flow will be there (because BM goes accordingly to our bb needs). yes yes, tell her talk to her...convince her that bottling is all she has to do and home she goes :)

like costa say...we really understand what you are going through.

just yesterday i almost tyre burst cos my boy has to be tube feed... but thinking it over, i am now ready to go and play with my boy later with a cheerful heart (like what costa say, our mood will affects our baby).

so cheer up all mummies...yippy! and lets us continue to express our milk....
 
hi jane, your boy has not been tube fed yet?

yeah costa is right, bbs can sense their mummy's unhappiness..thats why every day when we go see her, we will be very cheerful,

im glad i joined this forum, cos the past few weeks were quite horrbile, none of my frens had premmies before so they dont understand how i feel. :>
 
puppyduppy,
try to express more often, slowly the bm supply will increase....
i oso started expressing vy late about one wk after giving birth as i was on drips wif vy strong antibiotics and was told not to express

when i started, i was vy discouraged but had to do it every three hourly and slowly the bm supply increased....

but of cse dun stress yrself if you cant express...

my bb is on bm fortified wif mct oils and nutricomp plus other "ingredients" to top up the caloric content of the baby...

maybe you can try talking to the neo nats more to find out..tis was wat i had gone thru...but soon after some time you wld be like me, gg to hospital is to talk to other parents,nurses and socialise, heh heh...

one day you wld reach my stage, when you dun even bother to talk to the doctors..heh heh...or dun bother to ask abt yr baby's weight..

At some point, everythg wld be steady....but currently, sometimes it wld be a step forward, two steps back...must be patient...
 
hi puppyduppy,

i was very happy to find this forum too (thanks to costa who lead me here..)

my boy actually was on bottle feed through last week....and you know, he was to be discharged today.... then over the last weekend he suddenly desat and doctors say he is not ready and say to give my boy one/two more weeks. hence now they are tube feeding him (to gear up for bottle feed :p).

lets us encourage each other on....like what costa say, steady and everything will be ok.
 
hi ladies... lots of reading to do today!

hey telly, my boy stayed 8 weeks in NICU & 3 weeks in SCN. thanks for the updating effort!

jane, it takes alot to take the "bad" news that bb will need to stay awhile more. kudos to u too!

hi puppyduppy, welcome! welcome!
ur princess is oredi doing a FANTASTIC job! not worry urself too much abt BM. it takes time to establish the supply. no doubt harder for us cos no bb to help stimulate thru latching. do express as religiously as costa. with supplements added, ur princess will be well nurished.
 
hey jane,

quite discouraging cos its been almost 1 month and MS still so low...

apologies but am trying to read up previous post but got quite lost....your boy had to be tube fed now? previously he was bottle fed?
 
Hi jane, ignore my last post..very blur..thought i didnt post the previous one :p

hi costa, in the beginning i had bad engorgement cos i didnt express till my 3rd day...was quite depressed and almost had depression....after the 3 days i force myself to express although is was soo painful, the nurse help me to squeeze the milk out..nearly fainted from the pain! after that it got abit better... my girl is taking some vitamins with her milk now, plus the FM.like you we go there to chit chat with the nurses, never talk to doc anymore..feel that the nurses can give me more information about bb as they are the ones that are taking care of her.

hey yvonne, thanks for the welcome. yah am expressing every 3 hours religiously..its become routine already ;>
 
Jane, dont worry..your boy will be out of hospital soon and you can enjoy taking care of him.:> at least you know tat your boy is in good hands in the hospita, he will be well taken care of :>
 
puppyduppy,

gd that you r expressing 3 hourly, you wld find that it helps in the long run to establish the supply...

the pain you noe from the nurse squeezing is terrible, i kena before and tears came out of my eyes...and the nurse just said "i noe its vy painful, but darling its for your own good"

for the fact that so soon you talk to nurses already shows tt you got good progress liao, for me, it took me a long time not to be so eager to talk to doctors....
 
hey costa,

hopefully the MS will increase

yah the nurse also say the same thing to me...she say "im sorry i have to inflict pain on you,but its for the good of your bb"

on the night i delivered i talked to the nurses already, no choice...i had no choice but to talk to the doctors as the PD and gynea visited me daily...

how's your boy? sorry if you have to repeat yourself, cos im still lost after reading the previous posts...
 
hi yvonnne,

ya, early morning already pour my heart out to costa keke...

really was damn low yesterday at the ward when i suddenly realised my boy is with tube...i actually cried on the spot because i don't understand how could it be...

but well, as costa and my husband and all the encouragement, i just 'glue' myself up and tell myself... perhaps its better let my boy system all fully develop then bring him home.

pubbyduppy - my boy is on total BM plus they fortify the milk. but not with FM... hehe went through the 'painful squezze' session too. but soon you will be on the way to have lots of supply of BM for your bb...

tonight shall go play with my boy :) cheer him up. if only he can eat fried kway tiao...keke
 
puppyduppy,

my bb is still in kkh.....after four plus months..he had his own set of pblems....dun worry abt yr kiddo...she wld do well on her own..

every bb is different, i guess my kiddo is taking a slightly longer time...as he cant feed well..

jane and i are regulars at kkh....we see each other often..heh heh...hope we dun hv to see each other (tts why our bbs graduate..
happy.gif
)
 
puppyduppy

you see, i will bypass costa boy ward before i can reach my boy ward...

ya ya....really hope soon both our boys would graduate and then i will meet up with costa outside Taka or where with our boys for tea or coffee...
 
puppyduppy,
my neonat is oso Dr Siva. then u dun hav to worry coz he handled lots of preemies already. he's very steady, so if he dun mentioned anything, means ur bb is ok. if there's anything he'll tell u. last time i was wondering y my bb has to take so little milk initially, then he asked me to patient coz their intestine is small n not able to cope. n his bill is reasonable.. so dun worry too much.

i was like u initially, very lost n suffer a lot w BF.. but after 1 wk then the supply become steady n i manage to fully BF till now (almost 7 mths). did u get a good pump? use a good one w help.

n share w u a good news. Dr Siva allows bb to discharge at abt 1.9kg if there's no other prob. mine discharge 3 wks after in NICU at weight 1.98kg. how's ur bb weight now? how many weeks stay in NICU already?

The Mt E NICU nurses...mostly r good, got 1 or 2 not so good. we can talk more on email abt the nurses there
happy.gif
not good to critic ppl at public forum

stay steady.. i oso face all the problem u faced. i didn't cry during 1st few days, but when i discharged, i cried. and at home, every morning Dr Siva called to report his development, sometimes he didn't gain any weight on the day i oso cry...same here, non of my fren hav preemies n worsen is my family didn't seems wan to face tis reality. they keep avoiding me n even warn me dun tell anyone abt my case... i was so sad n feel helpless. u'll pass thro the stage one day. the good thing abt u , jane n some other mums here are u all came to tis forum on time n can share each other experience.. when during my time, i didn't know tis forum n was alone in the dark

wat we need is really encouraging fr each other!! we face a tougher experience rite after delivery...keep it up
 
hi irenelovej

yes...we should encourage each other. after all, our baby have a different begining.

let's us march on! and one must always belief and have faith. the sun will shine after the rain...
 
Hi irenelovej,

thanks for all the encouragement...

my gynea said that Dr Siva is very good...bb is in safe hands...feel better that you also say he is good :>

im using the Avent manual pump now...i also have the Medela electic pump..very kiasu..bought both..but i find the Avent one much better and not so painful...although hands very tired..but much better...

my baby weight is now 1.3kg..in the beginning she lost some weight..was so sad...but Dr siva said it was ok...now slowly putting on weight....she has been in NICU for 4 weeks already...

nurses was telling me that bb has to reach 2kg before discharge..also qutie scared that if bb discharge at such a low weight...will it be more difficult to take care? ( ok we chat more on email about the nurses...really curious to know more)

Costa, i read that premmies are fighters...your bb will be out of hospital soon :>
 
<table border=1><tr><td> Nick</TD><TD>Baby's DOB</TD><TD>Gender</TD><TD>Birth Wt</TD><TD>Born in
Week</TD><TD>Complications</TD><TD>In hospital for </TD></TR><TR><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD> </TD></TR><TR><TD>yvonne (voncm)</TD><TD>24-Aug-05</TD><TD>Boy</TD><TD>1.48kg</TD><TD>29</TD><TD>PDA, CLD, slight GER</TD><TD>NICU-8 weeks
SCN-3 weeks </TD></TR><TR><TD>telly</TD><TD>16-Mar-06</TD><TD>Girl</TD><TD>1.136kg</TD><TD>34</TD><TD>Inguinal Hernia - Had surgery</TD><TD>KK NICU-2 weeks
SCN-4 weeks </TD></TR><TR><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD> </TD></TR><TR><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD> </TD></TR><TR><TD>stressed</TD><TD>31-May-06</TD><TD>Girl</TD><TD>1.89kg</TD><TD>33</TD><TD>Weak lungs</TD><TD> </TD></TR><TR><TD>costa</TD><TD>22-Jun-06</TD><TD>Boy</TD><TD>0.75kg</TD><TD>24</TD><TD>ROP, CLD, GER</TD><TD> </TD></TR><TR><TD>jane (neoah)</TD><TD>12-Aug-06</TD><TD>Boy</TD><TD>0.985kg</TD><TD>26</TD><TD>CLD witg GER</TD><TD>NICU-2 mths
SCN-1 mth </TD></TR><TR><TD>jolene (joleoh)</TD><TD>08-Oct-06</TD><TD>Boy</TD><TD>1.645kg</TD><TD>30</TD><TD>Breathlessness when bottlefed</TD><TD> </TD></TR><TR><TD>irenelovej</TD><TD></TD><TD>Boy</TD><TD>1.6kg</TD><TD>34</TD><TD></TD><TD>Mt E - 3 weeks </TD></TR><TR><TD>puppyduppy</TD><TD>16-Oct-06</TD><TD>Girl</TD><TD>1.14kg</TD><TD>29</TD><TD></TD><TD>Mt E </TD></TR><TR><TD></td></tr></table>
 
that's the table again!

puppyduppy, seems like your baby is growing well. good for you!

about your milk supply - don't worry. it'll come. another thing you can do is to massage your breasts before each session. that's what i did diligently. i had to squeeze and squash and twiddle my breasts before each pumping session.

but, should your milk supply really dont want to come, no choice lah. like the nurses say, no milk means no milk.

about taking care of a small baby - this is your first one, right? if it's your first one, it'll be so much easier cos you dont have any points for comparison. when your baby goes home, what you need is tonnes of patience. especially when she wakes up only about 217 times throughout the night!
 
Hi Puppyduppy,

I also had to give both BM and FM in the beginning as my supply was low. But I religiously pump every 3 hours, ate Feenugreek, drank mother's milk tea, drown myself with papaya soup... I started pumping 6 hours after I birth btw.

Slowly but surely, my ss was increasing. 3 months after I birth, I engage a malay massage lady. She's real good. She massage my breasts. With every massage, my ss went up and up coz she gets rid of all the lumps for you.

My nipples also been pinched by the LCs before. Damn painful. Cry like nobody's business. I went 2 sessions I gave up. I think my massage lady does a better job. Less painful.

I want to tell u to get better rest but I know it's impossible to do so coz u have to pump every 3 hours. I did that too even in the wee hours of the night.

So I give u hugs instead. <<hugz>>
 
hi puppyduppy,
i initially use avent hand pump. it's good but tiring, so i bought medela PIS, n milkmsupply increased due to pumping both side simultaneously. u can try the pump at NICU when u go visit ur baby. i agree w stressed, we hav to get rid if the lumps, so do some hot compress n massage ur breast while pumping. it helps.

Dr Siva is not a very detail PD, but he is v experience in neonat. so to him everything is not big deal (unless there's really big deal). when i delivered, i told him my bb so small, eat so little, he said: it's ok, it's ok.... n his estimate on the duration to stay nicu is quite accurate.

ur bb is doing very well. at 1.3kg n he dare to downgrade to level 1 means she's steady already (w/out drip i think??). very soon she'll pick up weight fast n Dr w give milk nfortifier to increase the calorie intake.... dun worry.

if u wan to share abt ur experience w the nursaes, feel free to mail me
 
Jane,
Yup, we will see each other outside...with our boi bois......how was yr visit to your boi yterday?

Puppyduppy,
Yes, pumping three hourly is the only way..my frens tell me that tis is the best advice that they can have and it actually works..its hard work but you wld reap the rewards soon....

telly is right, massage your breasts,,,if you are using one hand to pump, the other hand is free...so try to massage and squeeze and more drops wld come out and then it stimulates the brain to want to produce more.....its just a demand and supply thing...

manual pump is good oso but if you have to pump three hourly you may be very tired....why dun try the electric one..? thats wat the nurses told me...the manual one wld be too taxing for you...

i m using the pump in style...at first oso chew kena kar (hand like leg)..then later or rather recently then managed to pump two sides together...

puppyduppy,
u are right, preemies are fighters and they wld be...my boi is okay except drinking slowly...anytime fit for discharge, its just that i rather he finish more of the tests before discharge as it wld be a hassle to bring him to hosp for checks

the nurses have told me that preemies are like chilli padis..small but hot..heh heh....our battle has just begun....
happy.gif
 
Hey telly - thanks for updating my profile in the table :> .yah its my 1st baby, thats why so worried on handling a small and fragile baby. I do massage my breasts before i pump, still low MS. hopefully it will increase soon.

Hi stressed - thanks for the hugs.Nurses say its good to also give some FM cos then my bbs weight can increase, seems that BM quite diluted so bb cant put on that much weight. hmm....

Hey irenelovej - yup i used the pump at the NICU, but MS even lower than when i use Avent, dunno why. My bb dont have drip anymore, now hoping that her weight will pick up soon.

Does your bbs get red in the face sometimes, cos sometimes my bb has that " i wanna poo poo " look on her face, then she makes a funny face and goes all red....1st time i saw i was so scared, wondering what is happening.
 
Costa,
i am trying to use the electic one, but i always feel that the milk supply is even lower than when i use the manual one. myabe my boobs are not use to it..haha..will keep trying..cos my forearms are super muscular now from all that pumping. dont want it to get too big :p

True, i rather they do all the tests they need for bb before bringing bb home. you see your boy everyday? have you started working?
 
puppyduppy,

my frens say the same they use manual and they can produce bette...

on the other hand...cld it be the funnel is not suitable?

earlier on when i was using the standard funnel,it was vy painful until one nicu mum told me that i cld be using the wrong size and later i managed to get the correct size

but then again, reading fm one website, if you use too big a funnel, it cld cause less milk to be produced..so do some trial and error and see which suits you...

me went back to work liao loh....about two months liao....the longest period of time that i hv been away fm work...cant stay too long as i dun have regulated maternity leave...

i try to see my boi almost everyday now..after work...unless some wkends when i got smthing on then i dun go
 
Costa,

i feel that the electic pump cannot control the speed only the suction strength thus less MS, for manual i can pump faster to get more milk.didnt know can change the funnel size...hmm...

how many months maternity leave did you have?it must be tiring travelling to see your boy after work...

im planning to take no pay leave after my maternity leave ends, hopefully my company will allow it...everything is quite uncertain now as i would like to take care of bb when she comes home for at least 1-2 months..but still not too sure when she is coming back.
 
hi pubbyduppy,

hehe.... costa - i did not know can chose the funnel size too. i thought its only one standard size. i am using the single mandela mini electric pump.

costa - last evening went to play with my boy. the SLT recommend give my boy a very special teat (extra mini hole) and let him try to bottle. hope can train his patience and teach him to co-ordinate better when bottling.... (cos my boy suck too fast and cannot swallow then de-sat). hope this teat works :))

puppyduppy - my boy BM was only fortify ... no FM was added. thou they put in the MCT oil plus protein...

cheers to everyone with a good day ahead.
 
puppyduppy.
guess alot depends on which pump you are used to..my frens oso use manual and they are doing vy well oso...even bf for abt six months or more...

maternity leave huh? mine not fixed...already spent abt half of tis year on leave...hv to dpd on other pple to cover for me and mine is a sales job..cant take too long leave...no income...

tiring? i guess so...but my office is in town so not so bad...

hmm. rdg when yr bb can come back...maybe ask the neo nat..some babies make it home before their edd....or when they reach abt 2 kg

jane,

zao an..you can choose the funnel size....there is 24 and so on until 30 i think..when i use the standard one, its painful..but when i used it recently again (i brot the wrong size to work), it seems okay but not as comfortable as the one i am using....

the one they give wif the mini electric is standard size...i bot mine fm medula agent at united square..

guess, they wld trial and error till they find one teat that fits....in the meantime dun nd to buy till yr boi is going home and they tell you which one is good...

yeah...hv a good day ahead..
 
hi costa,

oh i see. i got mine from the agent at united square too... hehe, actaully i just anyhow use, so long can pump out about 180 ml of milk per session i am happy hahahaha!! i never compare how much i should be having...keke...

oh ok... ya, the nurse told me that the SLT say will trial and error...but they are starting with this mini teat...

hope our boy boy today both got good surprise for us :)
 
Jane,

180ml of milk per session is vy good liao loh...
i onli pump 3 times per day...once in morning, once during lunch and once after work...

did you buy a special fridge for your bm?

tink kk still has alot of my milk which they will help me to keep for awhile after my boi goes home..but was tinking of buying a fridge at home..

the one my hb bot is like more for hotel use and does not have a vy big freezer compartment....so not much use...

me going to kkh after work,2mr will go there during lunch as the doc wants to talk to me about my boi's mri done last wk..vy scared....
 
Hi,

I was using the mini Electric for like 4.5 months before my galfriend lend me her PIS. I used to have very sore nipples but after using the PIS, it's much better.

I used lactina before too and the lactina for me produces more milk. I think it's because the suction is very strong. Strangely, it gave me no sore nipples too despite the strong sucking.

For me when I pump, I do the 10-10-10 method ie. power pump. Pump 10 mins, rest 10 mins, and pump another 10 mins. I can get 110ml from doing this. If I pump a straight 20 mins, I get only 80ml. The reason for the increase is that there will be second let down.

Maybe u gals can try...
happy.gif
 
stressed,

thanks for the advice..that means you pump both sides for 10 minutes, rest and then pump again..let me try that at home over the wkends when i got more time..

the hosp pump is quite good, suction is strong and yet gentle and really comfortable to use...
 
Yes Costa. Pump 10 nmins both sides then rest 10 mins, then pump both sides again for another 10 mins.

I hope it works for you
happy.gif
 
stressed,

thanks, will try your method...at work, i use the mini elect as i am too lazy to carry the pis everywhere i go...at home, then i use the pis...
 
hi stressed and costa...

my breast very kelian one. due to my rush in time...(sometime i pump only 15-20 mins continuousely) switching in between breast...i can get about 2 bottles each time (per 4 hourly pump now).

hi costa. have fun with your boi later...how come so late (one week) then they update you on the MRI scan? don't worry, the scan result be ok...
 
oh costa,

hehe...cos thot that day my boy gg to discharged. so we bought a new fridge (two door) for about $300 and put it at my mum house... ya, a fridge is necessary for our BM definitely...

right now, i am using my house fridge (3 door) freezer for the milk i pumping at home... then nowadays i try to pump at the hospital fresh for my boy too...

yup, the nurse mention to me that they will keep my BM for one month after my boy discharge...
 
stressed,

think i will try you method for my next pump..thanks. hopefully will increse the supply.

costa,
be strong, the mri results will be ok.
 
puppyduppy,
thanks, i hope the mri results okay

jane,
actually, the pictures taken during the mri are out and it basically shows the same as wat was shown previously...

last wk,two docs spoke to me but basically they are not in charge..so to get a more detailed answer, the team doc spoke to the radiologist and will be able to give me a better and clearer answer tomorrow...

tink i need to get a new fridge but dun noe wat to do wif the bar fridge......the bm is piling up...
 
hi costa.

to be frank...now i am 'throwing' away those BM @ my home fridge that is more than 2 week old... one thing is not enough space. another is i feel that it is not good for my boy to drink too 'old' BM...afterall, the BM is suppose to cater to their uptodate needs (whats the point of giving them those old BM :p)

but of course..i have to be sure that i can upkeep the stock and have enough express out to replace those i throw away...

don't worry about the MRI then..so long your boy is stable is ok :) its good to have a detailed briefing by the doc (rather like know as if don't know like that)...

nowadays fridge are very cheap... go audio house. i bought mine at mustafa...
 
seems like buying a new fridge for BM is very common.

i also bought one. actually, i wanted to get a small 2-door fridge for my BM (for my mom's house). but my husband insisted on getting the hotel bar-fridge type despite my insistence. so, it can only store about 20-25 of the glass bottles at one go. some more, the cooling capability is not that great lah. my BM which have lots of fats cannot get frozen in there.

when my daughter was discharged, i could only bring back 30 bottles or so. and more than 80 that were stored by the hospital had to be discarded. by the last week of my daughter's stay, the hospital was telling me not to bring any more milk cos the hospital has too much already.

DESPITE this, my stock at home was depleted and just 2 weeks ago, i realised i may just have to resort to FM cos i was not producing enough for my daughter's consumption.

i got into panic mode and started drinking ANMUM twice a day, drinking lots of water, eating lots more and massaging and using warm compress and now, i have a bit of surplus already. whew!

so, dont worry, mommies. supply can increase!
 



Back
Top