Oh yes, if stopping breastfeeding isn’t hard enough, there is another complication that could arise that you may not have even thought of. I know I hadn’t and I also know that nobody had ever told me about it.
On March 13th 2023, I had gotten up after a hard night of up and down with Mr Moo crying. I had somehow managed to pull myself together, talked myself into getting dressed and put myself in work mode.
My day was planned I had headed into the office with Mr Moo in his basket and my plan was to let him chill while I worked and got involved in a film production that was taking place in the office that morning.
I had given myself a pep talk, entering the office full of the joys of spring. I had a great hour of productivity, greeting the client and spending time with my incredible team until Mr Moo got hungry.
I fed my little guy a bottle of Aptamil, to which he threw up everywhere and proceeded to intensely scream for 5 hours solid. Needless to say, I left the office and spent the next 5 hours trying endlessly to figure out what was wrong, calling doctors, speaking to friends and crying A LOT.
I made the decision to take Mr Moo to the hospital; he had developed what I can only describe as hives on his belly, back and legs.
1am the next morning, we finally get seen by the doctors. I was distorted and honestly, Mr Moo had cried the whole time. I was living in my worst nightmare.
After he had been examined, the doctor checked his poop, his skin and his rash. He said, “It's a milk intolerance, he needs prescription milk.”
‘Formula’, I now read that word very very differently. It made my baby so poorly and I felt horrified that I didn’t continue to feed him breastmilk. Why didn’t I start again, you may ask. For the time period between this event and us making the decision to stop, I simply can’t describe the pain I experienced trying to reduce the milk from my boobs and the thought of going through that again was just in comprehendible.
After leaving the hospital with a small tub of prescription milk, I started my research phase ‘again’. I was shocked to find that this is a common problem with babies moving from breast milk to formula, although not heavily spoken about or recognised. A lot of Mums suggest, in hindsight, that their babies probably suffered without being medically diagnosed.
If you are reading this wondering if your baby may have an intolerance, I am no expert but I can share my baby's symptoms.
On reflection:
Very unsettled from the day we switched to formula
Sick much more than usual
Dry irritated skin
Really smelly poops
Green poops
Crying constantly
Crunching legs up to the tummy and keeping them there
NO sleep
One thing I now know is, that you enter into parenthood knowing not a great deal about the teeny human you are about to be responsible for and love unconditionally. Even after several months, you still know very little about the twists, turns and stages they bring to you.
But the support, friends and knowledge you have will help and comfort you immensely. If you think something is not right then you are probably correct.
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