Induced Lactacion for my baby

Induced Lactation for My Baby

As an old Indonesian proverbs says “Tak ada hasil yang mengkhianati perjuangan” (your hard work will never disappoint you), I think this proverbs really describe the success of induced lactation program that I did for my baby.
The result is really amazing, I’m really proud and I can’t believe that I did it. I really did it!
My story began when my husband and I received a really good news, we are expecting a baby less than 5 weeks. I know you might be wondering, how did I get a baby in that short amount of time? I’m not even pregnant at that time!
Someone can be a mother without being pregnant, same goes with me. My precious baby was not grown inside my womb, he was a gift from God.

This gift was grown inside another woman’s womb. This woman, Gaby (not a real name) was someone I know from my hometown. Yes, Gaby is the biological mother of my precious baby. At first, Gaby said that she will take care of her baby, but God has another plan for us. When the baby was only 28 weeks old, Gaby was expecting another baby. Since taking care two babies at the same time was rather difficult, she was thinking of me as she knew that I really want a baby. Therefor she let me taking care of the baby, and I help Gaby by taking care of her during the pregnancy and post-pregnancy. We girls have each other back!

While waiting for the baby, I started to buy all kind of baby essentials/supplies. I was really excited and I want the best for my baby, we often checking the nutrition information in the food packaging every time we want to buy formula milk. I ignore the fact that I don’t have to buy expensive and unnecessary things, since we can use it for long term out of my excitement.

I was really enjoying the feeling of becoming a mom, I forget that my husband and I had a holiday plan with my family and friends at my church. I was in a sticky situation, I don’t think I can go because I will be super busy taking care of Gaby and the baby, but I feel bad to cancel the plan with them. We then decided to just tell the truth and tell them we can’t join the holiday this time.
Surprisingly, they were happy for me and being really supportive about my decision and even recommend me some great and competent doctors that can help me.
Back at home, I was in deep thinking about the breastfeeding process. I have so many questions that came to my mind. Would I be okay? Can I really breastfeed my baby? Will it come naturally? I was trying to look it up on the internet, but not many people talking about it and only a few blogger discussed this problem. With that, I decided to just go to the expert so they can answer my questions. I called one doctor and made an appointment.

Monday evening. November 26th, 2016.

While waiting for my turn in the lobby, someone came to me and introduced himself as Oka the doctor that I’m about to see. He ask me to come and let my husband dealing with the registration.
In our first meeting he answers all of the questions that I have in mind about how I get to breastfeed my baby when I’m not the one who carry the baby.
Thankfully, we can make that possible by doing an induced lactation, a program that can help me and other women out there who want to breastfeed their baby, without being pregnant. I was even more excited when the doctor told me how useful the breast-milk for baby, and how this process will make the mother and the baby having a great click and become even closer.
After the consultation, my husband and I agree to join the program and do the induced lactation.
Theoretically, we need to do this program 6 months before the baby is born, but we are willing to try. If it’s not success, the doctor us an advice to go for another option, get a donor milk/breast milk for our baby rather than giving him formula milk.
In the beginning of this program, I need to consume contraception pills (1/day), and Domperidone 3 pills after meal for a day. According to doctor Oka, this pills will help me to build a hormones and conditioning my body as if I’m pregnant. Before we leave, doctor Oka set another appointment in 10 days.
After a week consuming the pills, I feel that pills really works. There some changes on my body. My need for sex is decreasing, I have huge appetite, I always want to eat, pimples are all over my face and back, my breast getting bigger, and widen and darkened areola. At that time, I was thinking to buy new bra with size that 2 times bigger, but my best friend said that I need even bigger size. I end up buying new bras size 40.

Day 12 (December 3rd, 2016)

I supposed to meet doctor Oka 10 days after our first meeting, but we need to postpone the meeting since he need to take care of something. On Saturday morning, two days later we finally met. On this step, we will learn how to massage the breast and relaktasi massage. These technic was usually deliver by doctor Oka’s wife, she was busy then so doctor Oka himself taught me and my husband how to do that. The technic for breast massage was simple and I can do it myself, as for the relaktasi massage, it can only be done by my partner. For me, this relaktasi massage quite similar with acupuncture, because after the massage, it feels so refreshing. It maybe because of the scented oil that we use (the use of baby oil is not recommended because it quite hot).
While we were learning the massage technic, I was really amaze and shed a tears. While having my breast massaged, something like sticky textured liquid was coming out of my breast. Doctor Oka said that it was the breast milk, maybe the colostrum, I wasn’t sure myself because I forgot to ask doctor Oka. I was super happy. I’m speechless.

After massage session over, doctor told me to do the massage every 4 hours/day. I need to discipline myself and committed to myself. My husband will help me with the relaktation massage every day.

December 6th, 2016

Ten days before the due date, there was no signal of contraction, our baby didn’t show any signs of coming out at all. I started to feel panic and one of my friends suggest me to go to the hospital and see if everything is fine. It was chaos. The doctor recommended by my friend was sick, they sent me to another hospital in Teuku Umar, and I was late for 8 minutes, the appointment was supposed to be at 1 o’clock in the afternoon. The doctor was not receiving patients, because he need to prepare for a surgery. One of the nurses ask me to come again at 7pm. Later on the evening, I came by again, and the doctor checked Gaby’s condition. The doctor told me that my baby lost his heartbeat for two times and suggesting do c section the next day.

December 7th, 2016

While waiting for the c section time, I was trying to look for another option from different doctor, since Gaby never done it before and was scared. The next morning, Gaby and I check on her condition one more time, and this other doctor tell us to do the c section soon, because there’s no more water in the womb, it was broke already.

At exactly 11:30 WITA, our beautiful baby came the world. He was 3kg, and 50cm long. We named him Bara that means ‘been saving by God’. However, 3 hours after he was born, Bara need to stay in the NICU room for further check, because the lack of oxygen. By 15:00 WITA. We finally can see our baby and stay in the same room together.
Since I don’t have the breast milk yet, I ask doctor Oka about the breast milk donor and get the milk give it to Bara right away.

December 10th, 2016

After three days, we finally back at home. Following doctor Oka suggestion, I learn how to give Bara breast milk using Supplemental Nursing System (SNS) to stimulate my breast milk, and start pumping my breast every 2 hour. I got help from a friend, but to be quite honest, it was a bit troublesome to me. Bara sometimes pull the SNS string when I try to feed him. So I give up on the SNS and start feeding the breast milk to Bara using a little spoon.
My pumping shows no result until the fourth day. By December 14th, I finally get 10ml of my own breast milk (I already finished my contraception for 1 period). I was really happy and ask doctor Oka if I can give it to Bara already, and he said yes! I was shaking when I feed Bara at that time because I was super happy, and that makes me wanted to pump more milk.

Doctor Oka was actually telling me to give it a go and start to directly breastfeed my baby. And honestly speaking, I was struggling with that. While breastfeeding my baby, my areola got scratched, and Bara was crying a lot because he didn’t get enough milk.
It was really painful, sometimes I can’t hold it and try feeding Bara using a little spoon again.
There are 2 possible reasons on how my areola got scratched. It was either caused by Bara’s tongue tie or lip tie. I went to doctor and ask what happens, and the doctor said Bara’s tongue tie was normal, but the placement was a bit off. Since everything was okay, I started to breastfeed Bara again, and whenever it hurts, I try to give myself a peep talk “I get this beautiful boy without experiencing a painful labor process, the pain that I feel for breastfeeding Bara was nothing on that”
A week has passed, I try to consume fenugreek tea and eat any kinds of food that can help me to produce more milk, such as beans, vegetables, etc. The result was amazing, I got 30ml breast milk.

I keep learning and trying to find the best way to breastfeeding Bara and pumped my breast milk regularly.
When Bara was 1 month old, I got used to the breastfeeding process. But I was really sad because Bara only gain 500gr weight in a month. Doctors said that it was normal for baby to get back to his original weight after a month, in some other cases, babies can gain 800gr in a month. I was not expecting that, looking back at the amount of milk that Bara consumed, I believe that he at least gain 800gr.
I came to doctor Oka and pour my heart to him, I was feeling down and questioning myself whether my milk was an issue. Doctor Oka asked me to take Bara and checked on his tongue tie the next day.

Doctor Oka was correct, Bara had tongue tie and tip tie. I wasn’t really sure if it was level 3 or 4. This tongue tie and tip tie affected the breastfeeding activity and doctor Oka suggested to cut off the part that causing the problem. I almost fainted, I told my husband to be with Bara, because I can’t handle seeing Bara going through that painful process. Listening to him crying, really breaks my heart and I didn’t realize that I was crying already.
After that, doctor Oka told me to breastfeeding Bara, I was still in shock and shaking because Bara didn’t stop crying. I shush him and whispering to his ear saying that this is the best for us. He wont feel pain again and become healthier.
Not only taking care of the tongue tie and the tip tie, doctor Oka also told me to give Bara a hind milk so he can gain more weight.

To get a hindmilk, I need to pump my breast for 5 minutes to get rid of the formilk. After getting out of the formilk, I started to breastfeed Bara normally. I didn’t want to throw away the formilk that I just pumped, so I decided to keep it in case someone might need it.
1 month later, the 2 months old Bara gained 1,5kg. I thank God and was so amaze by that. It also happened for the next month. By March 2017, Bara was 6,4kg and 59cm height. I’m so grateful that Bara growing healthy up until now.
Hopefully I can still breastfeeding him until he’s 2 years old.
Looking back at my journey, I’m so thankful that I was surrounded by amazing people like Rita and Qhaqha who were always there for me. I want to thank doctor Oka Dharmawan IBCLC MARS, Adit’s family for donating their breast milk, Rumah ASI Bali, and for those that I cant mentioned one by one.
Although I was scared that the program might failed, but glory to God that I can get the breast milk on a month during the program. It was all God grace. I want to tell other moms that we can make it! Don’t ever give up on give the best for your baby and remember this:
“While breastfeeding may not seem the right choice for every parents, it is THE BEST choice for every baby”.

Written by: Chasya
Translated by: Desi Situmorang.