No parent ever thinks they will be a NICU parent, and that was the furthest thing from my mind when I became pregnant with my second child. Severe life-threatening complications for us both resulted in the birth of our son 12 weeks early. While I was producing milk soon after he was born, I was unable to give it to him because of the strong medications I needed for my recovery. As a result, we were reliant on the kindness of donors to hold us through until my milk was safe for our son to consume. I was blessed to be able to produce what my son needed as soon as I was able to feed him, as many NICU moms struggle to produce. I later learned from my NICU mom friend that the stress of the birth and environment caused her to produce only once out of two a day, not enough for her child. The NICU environment is stressful and foreign. Not being able to hold your baby and bond naturally makes producing milk difficult for many NICU moms. I was fortunate I was able to produce enough, but that is not normal in that environment. Seeing firsthand how important donor milk is for NICU babies, such as my son, I am more than happy to donate our surplus to help other moms when they are unable to fill that need. ❤️
