Breastfeeding after surgery

I would be concerned about how to maintain your supply post surgery. You would need to have a plan for pumping as if you go a week in the hospital without pumping you will be uncomfortable and may lose your supply, or at the very least may have trouble establishing a strong enough supply for the baby's needs. If you really want to pursue this, I think you need to start laying aside a store of breast milk to keep the baby going while you are unable to - the drugs for surgery will mean you can't use your milk, even if pumped, for a period of time. You will need pain medicine for a while post surgery, so you should explore which ones will be safe for breast feeding. I suggest you speak with a lactation consultant to get advice on how to proceed. If you don't know of one, your hospital can recommend one, or you can check out the La Leche League website to find someone near you.

I had step 1 when my twins were 11 months and were still breastfeeding, though not exclusively. Before the surgery I met with a lactation consultant for some tips and information meds while breastfeeding. I pumped in the pre-op area (the LC arranged to have a pump there). The surgery was long and I wasn't able to pump again until I was in my hospital room. After that I pumped as close to my normal schedule as possible. My babies came in only once a day and nursed during that time. I was able to keep nursing through my second surgery, though we gradually weaned during that time. So, it is possible. Other things that helped- making sure that I was in touch with the LC during my hospital stay, and making sure that all of my doctors, nurses and the nutritionist knew that I was nursing.

But, your baby will be much younger than mine were. So, definitely start pumping now to build up a freezer supply, and make sure he/she will take a bottle. Check to see if you can have a hospital grade pump available for you and if not bring your own. You may want to see if you can have the baby stay with you in the room, too. And definitely make friends with a lactation consultant, preferably one in your hospital!

I also think that the older your baby is the easier it will be... Any possibility you can delay the surgery a little longer?

I hope this helps. I couldn't find any info on this topic before my surgery and I was so nervous about it. But it all worked out in the end!

Thanks Jill and Twinstar,

Twinstar: You said you were able to pump your milk after the surgery in the hospital room. To Jill's point, weren't you on any medication at that time? Is that breastmilk safe for the baby.

I guess answers to these questions varies on a case by case basis.

Gom, yes the answers do vary for each individual situation... but there are many medications that are safe for breastfeeding. I was on pain meds, zofran and reglan after the first surgery. All were okay for breastfeeding. I did pump as soon as I could after the surgery and I can't remember if I dumped it or kept it. Either way my lactation consultant and anesthesiologist both felt that as soon as I was awake enough to pump the medications would be out of my system and it would be safe to use that milk.

There are many good (scientific, evidence-based) sources to support this and to guide which medications are safe. A lactation consultant is a good place to start. Kellymom.com also has excellent, well-researched information:
http://kellymom.com/bf/can-i-b...surgery/mom-surgery/

Most doctors don't have good information about the transfer of medications into breastmilk (I know, I'm one of them. We get almost no training on this topic). The book "Medications and Mother's Milk" by Thomas Hale summarizes effects of just about every medication on breastfeeding. Your lactation consultant probably has it but you can get it on amazon, too if needed.

The other big thing, though, is keeping up your supply. I needed extra IV fluids to stay hydrated. And there were times when I dreaded pumping- it is bad enough when you haven't just had surgery- but I knew I had to keep up my supply. Since you have a little one (who is probably too little to be freaked out by a hospital as mine were) it is probably best to keep him/her with you as much as possible to nurse which will be much better than pumping! (Assuming the meds you are on are safe.)

That said... your body goes through a lot after a big surgery, especially so soon after a pregnancy. So no matter what happens stay focused on the fact that you are doing the best you possibly can.

Gom,

It's great that you want to try to continue nursing after surgery, but it can be a pretty rough recovery. Just wanted to prepare you for some things. I didn't want to eat or drink for about a week since I was so nauseous after the surgery. I was on an IV so it was keeping me hydrated, but I felt so crummy in the hosptial that I couldn't even fathom nursing.

I have a lot of experience with keeping up my breast milk while pumping/dumping with both my kids. With my first, I did it for about a month and with my second, about 2 weeks. If I were you, this would be my plan of action:

1. start practicing giving your baby bottles now and working in some formula here and there to find one that he or she will tolerate. you need to be prepared in the event that you are unable to return to nursing.

2. build up your milk supply as much as you can right now so you don't have to supplement as much with formula while you are recovering.

3. i do not think you'll be able to maintain the every three hour pumping sessions so i would suggest doing a couple long sessions every day. your milk supply will surely decrease, but the great thing is that you can always build it back up! just make sure you don't stop entirely.

4. give yourself enough time to learn how to eat, drink, hydrate, and get off the pain meds.

5. when you feel strong enough, start increasing your pumping and/or nursing. personally, i was EXHAUSTED for the few few weeks and slept a ton every day. you need to take care of yourself and heal. this is not an easy surgery.

As for which meds are safe, opinions vary depending on who you talk to. I was never comfortable giving my babies any pain meds except ibuprofin or tylenol, but my OB said that many women are on stronger stuff than that after giving birth.

i wish you the best of luck! i was in the same boat as you and had my colon removed due to low grade dysplasia. i waited about 3 months, had another scope done, and things had gotten worse. then i had my surgery about 6 weeks after that.