----- Original Message -----
Sent: Monday, February 03, 2003 7:46
AM
Subject: Re: [ozmidwifery] Info on Rhesus
negative births
Hi, my 5 month old born with severe ABO
incompatability had SBR of 480 at 24 hours of age, off to NICU immediately for
treatment which included exchange transfusion, however through out all of this
I managed to breastfeed (with 12 hour break for the transfusion and
immediately afterwards), Darcy was happy to feed although a little sleepy at
times. However staff seemed quite content to tube feed him and IV glucose
supplement feed him, so I was a little pushy with breast feeding and
turned up every 2-3 hours to do so and under the guise of wanting a cuddle
- just happened to try him on the breast! When I got him back after 5
days he soon settled into normal newborn feeding behaviour. I feel
for your friend as is so recent for me, encourage her to visit every couple of
hours and be a little authoritarian about wanting to breast feed! I am
sure if I hadn't been a midwife or an experienced mother (Darcy is number 4)
things would have been different. Those feeds were very meaningful to me in
early maternal care and protection of my sick baby. Regards Belinda Brustolin,
Darwin.
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Saturday, February 01, 2003 9:39
PM
Subject: [ozmidwifery] Info on Rhesus
negative births
A friend of mine
had her baby by C-Section this week due to problems resulting from her being
RH negative and her husband being RH positive. She was 37 weeks and the baby
has been in NICU since late last night because of severe jaundice (my guess
is that's from the operation). She has not been able to hold her baby or
breastfeed yet and has had massive headaches, poor thing but I think she is
expressing milk so that's a good sign. This is her second baby but I think
she also had a C-Section with the first.
We did talk a
lot about her birthing options before the baby was born but I am not
educated enough on Rhesus factors to know whether or not her C-Section and
the separation from her baby was indeed necessary. Does anyone know more
about this? I am not going to go and tell her now that it was not necessary
if that was the case but I would like to know for my own personal
knowledge.
Am planning on
calling her tomorrow to see how she is getting on (and how baby is getting
on). She is at the Mater Mothers Hospital in Brisbane.
Cheers,
Cas
McCullough
