Be Inspired: Mom of Octuplets Plans to Breastfeed
There has been much controversy about the California mom who gave birth to octuplets on 26 January 2009. Despite people’s opinions on the moral issues surrounding her having so many babies at once, I am hugely inspired by her commitment to breastfeed them all. Any mom who has breastfed her own baby knows that it takes commitment and dedication in the beginning to nurse your child. You have to ensure you’re eating right and drinking enough and it can often feel like you’re home bound in a chair focusing solely on the baby’s needs. Multiply that by eight newborns and she really has taken on a tremendous challenge.
She already has six other children so with all likelyhood has some experience breastfeeding. Some are questioning whether is is physically possible to tandem nurse all eight babies. As this has never been attempted before, no one knows for sure. Full-term newborns nurse on average between eight and twelve times a day and consume about two to three ounces of breastmilk per feeding. The needs of premature babies and multiples is different but for the sake of averages we will assume the octuplets will gain weight rapidly and catch up with full-term babies. To satisfy all eight babies the mother would need to produce about two gallons of breast milk a day. Some lactation consultants have said that although it is possible to make this much milk in a day, it will be hugely taxing on the mother’s body. Producing breast milk is a simple case of supply and demand. The more the babies need, the more her body can produce. The mother needs to get enough rest and to eat healthily and drink plenty of water.
Feeding all eight babies at her breast may be nearly impossible as there simply aren’t enough hours in the day to keep each baby latched and fully fed. There is a chance she will have to supplement either with her own pumped breast milk or formula. Although I am a huge believer that breast milk is the best option for your baby, sometimes it is simply impossible to produce enough. With my son, I had a low milk supply, and gave him every drop of breast milk I could, but had to make up the difference with formula. This was an agonizing compromise for me but in the end I knew he simply couldn’t survive on what I had to offer him. I made this decision under the watchful eye of a lactation consultant and a pediatrician. I am happy to say that once he started solids, I was able to reduce the supplement and since he turned one year old we have been exclusively breastfeeding. To learn more about my experience look at My Story.
My blog this week is to encourage moms out there that no matter what your circumstance, you can breastfeed your baby. Here is a mom with eight newborn preemies and she is determined to breastfeed them. Know that every drop of mother’s milk you give your child is worth it and the nursing relationship you foster with your child will later grow to become about something far more than just the milk. I hope this mother’s story will inspire you to do whatever you can to breastfeed your baby no matter what the odds.
Resources:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7852623.stm
http://parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/28/how-do-you-breastfeed-octuplets/?hp
http://blacktating.blogspot.com/2009/01/mom-of-octuplets-plans-to-breastfeed.html
