Wet nursing and donating milk

Like I posted in the other thread I'd gladly have donated the 6l of frozen breastmilk I had to tip down the sink when I weaned the gremlins, I cried my eyes out coz I had worked so hard to get it and it was such a waste!

I'd have no issues giving my babies donated breast milk if I couldn't feed them/express for them myself.

But like I said in the other thread, I don't think I could wet nurse or have my babies wet nursed, it kinda weirds me out coz breastfeeding is such a bonding thing.

I think they're all great ideas

i KNOW that they are good ideas, but it still weirds me out.

When my Mum had me she also fed twins. I am not sure if she wet nursed or if she expressed for them. I will have to ask her!

She has mentioned it to me several times, so I think it gives her quite a nice feeling to know she helped 2 other babies that were sick by donating/feeding them breastmilk!

I think the milk banks are a great idea, especially for very sick babies or for babies that have Mothers to ill to feed after child birth.

My MIL had a lot of milk when she was in hospital (back in those days you stayed for a couple of weeks) and after feeding her baby the nurse would come and help her express to give her milk to other babies. 

I think that's a nice idea and I'd have no issues giving EBM from someone else to my baby if I couldn't BF but I agree with others that I'm not sure I'd feel comfortable having someone else actually nurse my baby.  In fact we have a friend from church (an older lady) that calls cuddling nursing and it weirded me out everytime she asked if she could nurse my baby even though I know she only meant that she wanted to hold her.

I think I could have a new career as a wet nurse.  I'm still lactating (a whole year after I stopped BFing).

 

ETA: I wouldn't mind nursing someone elses baby, just not so keen on letting someone else nurse mine - double standards aye

Edited by MrsMojo

I'm totally for milk banks here in NZ. Especially if it were comparable to formula in terms of price. I'd have happily chosen BM over formula with Ella if it had been an option.
Plus, I had SO much milk myself that I often wound up having to chuck it out (teeny-tiny freezer). It seemed like such a waste, I would have loved to donate it.
I'm the same as most when it comes to someone else feeding my babies though, I think I would feel a bit excluded if I couldn't feed them myself.

Hehe Jo, whenever Ella used to cry as a baby, my MIL used to say "Oh I wish I could just plug her in and feed her" It gave me the creeps so badly, I always wanted to snatch Ella back and keep her away from her just in case she tried!

LMAO at your MIL Mel an PMSL at you Jo!

Cuppatea is right, donated milk in the States/Australia goes thru a screening process much the same as the one used to screen donated blood and then it is pasteurised. I'm not sure what the cost is, or even if there is a cost to the parents or if it's subsidised or funded. I can imagine in the States its User Pays coz everything is but for some reason I have a feeling it's a different system in Australia. I read a couple of articles on the Australian set up but it was a while ago and I am now officially brain dead from lack of sleep.

When my mum had me (nearly 27 years ago now), she had me in Oz and those were the days when you stayed in hospital for 7 days after the birth (my mum left after 5 thou as we came to NZ when I was 7 days old). When my mum was feeding me on one side the nurses were expressing the other side to give to the premmie babies in the neonates. If I could I would so do that. Not sure about wet nursing thou.

Parents Who would have em

I am with Jo, would happily donate my milk but the idea of letting my baby have someone elses....hmmmmm....not so sure.

However, we feed them cows milk - thats a totally different species! Sheesh, its making me think about it now!