Support and Dedication
Maggie Reilly
Jackson NJ USA
From: NEW BEGINNINGS, Vol. 20 No. 6, November-December 2003, pp. 215
After a marathon labor and
three hours of pushing, my son, Benjamin, emerged from the womb into
his father's hands. Alert and bright-eyed, Ben nursed within 10 minutes
of his birth. I felt fortunate to have such an easy time breastfeeding.
Although the first few weeks were a bit sleep-deprived, we settled easily
into a routine of nursing and co-sleeping. Our story was relatively
problem-free until a bizarre accident eight months later.
While taking my recyclable
items out for garbage pick up one day, I tripped and fell on a glass
bottle, which subsequently broke under my weight. The broken glass cut
my right hand deeply. I was home alone with Ben at the time. I quickly
dialed 9-1-1 with my intact hand. Shortly afterward an ambulance arrived
to take us to the hospital. The paramedics were amazing and helped me
gather Ben, my purse, and a couple of diapers and toys. My husband met
us at the hospital. Through stitches and everything, Ben was amazing.
He nursed several times in the hospital, which required a bit of help
since my right hand continued to bleed freely.
Early the next morning, I
realized two fingers on my right hand were numb. I was extremely concerned
over this development because I am a pianist. After being told by my
primary care physician that my feeling would return over time, I tried
to forget about my problem. When my stitches were removed, I was still
worried about the lack of feeling in my hand and told my doctor that
I wanted a referral to a hand specialist.
After doing some nerve tests
on my hand, my specialist determined that I had cut a nerve. Unless
I underwent surgery, I would never have feeling in my fingers again.
I immediately decided to undergo surgery. Although the decision was
easy for me, I had another problem. My nine-month-old son was almost
exclusively breastfed. Ben refused a bottle, sippy-cup, and almost all
solids. My husband was beginning to panic because the surgeon had said
I couldn't breastfeed for 24 hours after the surgery. He was afraid
that he was going to be caring for one very unhappy baby. I immediately
called my La Leche League Leader, very upset about the situation and
adamant about not giving Ben formula, and I began pumping in order to
have enough of my milk onhand to feed him when I was not available.
After a couple more stressful
days, during which I was able to pump only four ounces of milk, I received
a call for my pre-surgical consultation. I told the nurse my concern
about nursing Ben and was expecting to hear advice about giving Ben
formula. I was shocked and thankful when the nurse told me that she
was a former LLL Leader. I was thrilled when the nurse offered to call
an anesthesiologist who specialized in children and pregnant women.
The day of the surgery arrived,
and all went well. The doctor was able to reconnect my nerves during
a marathon four-hour surgery. My arm was placed in a cast for healing.
Using some creative positioning to protect my arm, I was able to hold
Ben to nurse him. I will be forever grateful to my LLL Leader for her
support and especially for the help of a former LLL Leader who was a
nurse. Because of their support and dedication I was able to nurse my
son immediately after surgery and never had to give him a drop of formula.
Last updated Tuesday, October 24, 2006 by njb.
Page last edited Sun Oct 14 09:30:17 UTC 2007.
