#milksharing

[earthmamaof2-blog]

There isn't much milk in this bag. It's approximately 45 Oz actually. But I am so excited that I am giving it to a mama who needs it. Something I've always wanted to do was be able to donate milk, because there was a time when I needed some for evan and a dear mama gave me some of hers for him. When we come together and help one another through their struggles, life is that much sweeter. #breastfeeding #humanmilkforhumanbabies #milksharing #feedallthebabies #madewithlove

[im-green-but-im-wise]

Just sent out 367oz (32 pounds or almost 3 gallons) of breastmilk to be made into human milk fortifier for babies in need.

[beautifulmadhouse]

What are your thoughts on milk sharing? Found this awesome image of Momma Jen & Ebony nursing each other's babes. Photo cred Mallory Talty~ I had a dear friend of mine donate her extra breastmilk to me when my second set of twins were little and I needed to run off to doula at a birth. Forever grateful. #breastfeeding #milksharing #carriagehousebirth #doulas #holisticparenting

[lapetitemoi]

So, 2 nights ago, Lucas had his last gulp of donor breast milk... I never ever thought we would be able to make it this far in providing him the biologically normal food for babies/children. I just wanted to share our family's informal milksharing story with all of you, and say a HUGE THANK YOU to all of his milky mommas and their families for your kindness and donations. --- When I found out I was pregnant, I knew I would breastfeed. My mother had breastfed me, and my husband’s mother breastfed him. I knew of the benefits, and more importantly, I knew it was the natural choice. I was all for natural “attachment parenting”- I wanted to give birth all naturally, cloth diaper, babywear, leave my son intact, and generally give my son the best start in life. I didn’t buy bottles, and since I was going to be a stay-at-home mom, I laughed at the idea of dropping $200 on a breast pump. Of course, parenting is not as simple as we anticipate. Sometimes life throws us a curve ball, as I found out. With the help of my amazing doula, I was able to give birth to my son Lucas all-naturally on September 15, 2011. However, I immediately began struggling with breastfeeding. After 3 weeks of nursing exclusively (through bloodied nipples and nonstop tears/meltdowns), another 3.5 weeks of pumping exclusively (still painful), and countless tries to remedy the pain I was feeling, my doula and I came to the conclusion that I had Raynaud’s Phenomenon of the nipples. Even though I had dealt with this condition in my hands and feet for all my life, I was still shocked that it could affect my breastfeeding relationship. And on top of all this, I was struggling with severe postpartum depression. My son was 7 weeks old when he got his first bottle of organic formula- and I mourned the loss of the nursing relationship I so longed for. Although I was still giving my son 6-12 ounces of breast milk per day from my own frozen stash, I knew that wouldn’t last for very long. The nearest breastmilk bank was 4.5 hours away, required a prescription from an OB/pediatrician, gave precedence to severely ill/premature babies, and costed $3 an ounce (not including shipping). So on my doula’s urging, I decided to check out two informal milk-sharing sites called Human Milk 4 Human Babies (HM4HB) and Eats on Feets (EoF). I nervously contacted two mothers in my city who were offering up their extra breastmilk, completely free, out of the goodness of their hearts. My own heart bruised from my own feelings of regret, I prayed they would not judge my inability to continue nursing/pumping. Not only that, but many people I had talked to about casual milksharing seemed very wary of the idea- how do you know that this milk is safe, that the mothers aren’t sick or doing drugs? Instead of judgment, I found kindness from these donor milk moms who were just trying to help out, who had the same belief as me- breast milk is the normal, natural, perfect food for our babies. In fact, one of these first two moms is now a very close friend, and pumped for my son for about 7 months! At 6 months old, Lucas stopped needing any supplementary formula. I got to know these milky mommas, saw them pumping and/or feeding their children, and many of them offered up copies of their blood work and medical history. One of them was an elementary school friend of mine, another went to school with my husband since they were just kids, a third was my sister-in-law’s high school buddy, and even the wife of one of my husband's co-workers shared her milk with my son. My son's last donor has also become a dear friend, as we set aside one weekend per month for an entire year in order to drive 4.5 hours north to pick up the milk she had so carefully pumped and stored for my son. All of these mommas did it out of generosity, not for profit (which both HM4HB and EoF strictly prohibit), trusting that their breast milk would help another baby not just survive, but thrive! Through their donations, I have made 16 amazing momma friends from all over California, and even two from Oregon and Colorado. I never thought that I wouldn’t be able to breastfeed my son. However, I am so thankful that I have made friends with so many selfless women. Every new donor momma that I met, I took a photo of them with my son. At 2 years, 2 weeks, and 2 days old, my son had his last bottle of donor breast milk, and I look back on these sweet photos with love in my heart. I hope to share them with my son when he gets older and can understand this gift. Casual milksharing has not only given my son the best start in nutrition for over 2 years, but also added 16 wonderful mothers, their children, and their loved ones to my family- something breast milk banks will not and cannot ever provide. ---

[lapetitemoi]

Blog Carnival - Call for Submissions!

World Milksharing Week is proud to invite families, friends, allies, health professionals, researchers, advocates, and the general public to participate in World Milksharing Week 2013 Blog Carnival...

Please join us by writing about one of the following topics: 1. The Hows and Whys of Milksharing 2. Partners, Relatives, and Friends 3. Milksharing Logistics 4. Diversity in Milksharing 5. History of Milksharing 6. Informed Milksharing, Milk Banks, Health Care Professionals, and Breastfeeding Support 7. A Party and You’re Invited- A Celebration of Milksharing