We always talk about the benefits of breastfeeding, because it is true that he has them and we always talk about the generosity of mothers who become breast milk donors, because it is true, that it is a gesture that shows their great heart.
Today precisely We talked to one of those mothers, a breast milk donor, He told us his own experience, something that may encourage you to be part of the lives of children who need your generosity.
Do you dare to know what a mother donating breast milk feels? The only essential you already know what it is: Be a nursing mother, be healthy and want to help To a family, to a baby.
Lorena was in a Facebook group to support breastfeeding in which one day, the issue of donating breast milk came up. That was the touch she needed to get to investigate on her own where there was a breast milk bank in Madrid, the city where she lived at that time and what requirements had to be met to be a donor of breast milk. and I said why not?
At that time, in 2014, Lorena found the regional milk bank of the 12 de Octubre Hospital, and there she was informed by the doctors and nurses who told her about the process.
They do a blood test that confirms that you are healthy, fill out a health questionnaire answering questions about pregnancies that you have had, types of birth, illness, age of the children, ...
"... you sign a confidentiality document and that you know it is a donation and you can't ask for anything in return."
Once you have accepted and filled out the form, the milk bank provides the donor mother with everything necessary for her
"... they explain to you that part of the milk that mothers donate can be used for their studies and research with her.""Comfortably at home, you take the milk (breast pump, bottles, sterilization bags, the extractor, a little ice cream, some ice plates to avoid breaking the cold chain) and some identifying labels."
"To me that seems great to me since without studies I cannot advance in research, sometimes I was also offered to participate in a separate study that they were also carrying out, almost all related to the lifestyle and eating habits of donors."
A very rewarding effort
Lorena and the other donor moms, of course, are also given a brochure explaining how the extraction should be done, With previous hand washing, the hair collected and after finishing the extraction, the container is placed in the freezer with its corresponding identification label.
Currently they do not have a collection service and the donor mother herself has to take the milk to the hospital, but specifically when Lorena was a donor mother, they paid her an hour of parking or if she called the milk bank, they went out to the door and gave her bottles empty as well as picking up the full ones she had prepared.
His milk fed a specific number of children, around ten, as he could see when he was later shown the statistics and records kept in the milk bank.
Why the milk of each donor mother goes to a child, the milks do not mix but are organized individually. Each baby is receiving from a single donor mother while available. Milk once it enters the breast milk bank, is pasteurized and stored cold until it is used to feed a baby who needs it.
A relationship that doesn't end
Lorena's baby was weaned with 20 months and she spent nine months taking her milk every two weeks to the hospital, she could carry, she estimates, just over 3 liters in all that time.
“I know of some moms who have been donors with children 2 and 3 years old, have been able to spend more than a year donating”
There is no maximum time to be a donor of milk, it is usual for many mothers to consider donation when their babies start with complementary feeding.
It is important to note that the endowment of the milk bank of the Hospital October 12 has been able to be achieved, as Lorena told us, thanks to the work and donation that the Aladina Foundation made specifically for the breast milk bank.
Despite the time that has passed, the relationship does not end and remains very tender for everyone. A few months ago there was a meeting in the center
“There was a snack and the kids were given a cap that said“ brother of milk ”, I loved it.”
There was time to read the winning stories of the contest that had been organized on the topic of donating milk, having “milk brothers” and why mothers need to donate.
the milk of each donor mother goes to a child **, the milks do not mix but are organized individually.“When I stopped donating, they gave me a book for me, a story called“ Brother of Milk ”and a letter of thanks. What if I would repeat? Yes of course! I consider it so important, so necessary and so little publicized. I have not taken milk from my son, as some mothers who do not fully know about breastfeeding think, I have made the effort to produce more for someone who needed it. "
Thank you so much for telling us your Lorena experience, for your time and especially for your generosity. Surely there are many more experiences like yours but we hope above all, that other mothers who have met her after reading it, are encouraged to participate as well. There is a child in a hospital who is in need of having a "milk brother" as soon as possible. Wouldn't it be lovely if it were thanks to you?
- To find the nearest Breast Milk Bank and with which you could collaborate: //www.aeblh.org/tu-banco/
Photos | iStockphoto
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