Starting Soon!

Great news that you will be starting soon! It does feel wonderful to have your body do what it was meant to do. :-)

Hello bbyfaith, I COMPLETELY understand what you mean. Being on the protocol while waiting, waiting and more waiting was definitely my way of participating in a process that was so seemingly out of my control. Good luck to you, and have faith in yourself - at the very least you will be starting a process that will help you and your new baby bond!!!! Anyways - I have been nursing my son since he was 5 months (at pickup) and he is 13 months now and we are still going strong - if I can help in any way please just ask! Good luck! Karyn

Teendoc and Karyn Thanks for the support ladies!!! I have been on the protocol for two weeks now and have seen some changes...exciting!!! There is little info out there about what "changes" happen and how quickly...can either of you remember when you started feeling pain in your breasts? Fullness? Growth? And how much should I expect? And when? LOL I know its like 100 questions, but I feel so clueless! Anyways, TIA!!!

bbyfaith it's so good to hear of others who want to do this!! Congratulations on starting! I didn't realize I'd need to start so soon. I assumed if we were matched in the last trimester, I should start then. Good to know. Good luck!

knewengland ~ Please check out asklenore dot com It has all sorts of info RE adoptive BF and a message board with some really great people willing to answer questions! I'm following the regular Newman-Golfarb protocol. You should start asap, if you feel that you can handle it emotionally, after all it takes a bio-mom 9 months to prep her "girls" to bf! It has empowered me so much in this process, I highly recommend it!!!! At least I know I'm doing all I can to possibly bf my baby! Good luck, and keep in touch! I'd LOVE to hear from someone going through it with me!

I started getting really busty early on. It didn't take very long at all. What took a while was getting milk after I started pumping. :eyebrows:

Hi, I'm probably a month late for this discussion, but I just started--dom and pumping--on Sept. 26th. This is my second time--I nursed my daughter til she self-weaned at 11 months and then I pumped for another month. I never did the protocol per se, just pumping, dom, and some herbs. But I was on the bc pill for medical reasons prior to my daughter's birth, so I've been worried that I wouldn't produce much milk this time since I have not been on the bc pill in a long time, so I couldn't go off it to the the effect. I only had two weeks to prepare before my daughter's birth, but I had milk by then and had enough 1-2 months later that I was able to stop supplementing with formula. So everyone's body is different--unfortunately there is no way of knowing how your body will respond until you try. It is miraculous though, when you feel like your body is so broken, and then the milk flows... (I don't want to misrepresent myself--so I'll confess that I have not tried to get pregnant, but I have many health problems--including gynecological--and as a lesbian it made more sense to adopt than try to get pregnant.) Sadly the reason I started pumping/dom on the 26th was because a baby that was supposed to be ours was born. We were matched that day. We flew to Chicago a couple days later, and met the birthmom and cared for the baby in NICU, and then bm changed her mind. This was the second time for us in a month--first time we had custody when the bm changed her mind... Really, really awful. But with the dom and pumping I started to have a few drops and an electrical sensation in my breasts on October 1st--the day the birthmom changed her mind. This time I decided to keep going. Maybe the right baby is waiting for me to make milk... Anyway, it's been a few weeks, and I'm getting a couple tablespoons, I'd say, each time I pump. But I'm a bit of a cow... I love that you are feeling empowered, bbyfaith, by this process. I am just feeling sad.

Kerry ~ I am so sorry for your loss, sweetie. I can't even imagine how that feels. I am glad that you're determined to keep going with the pumping though, knowing that you'll be fully ready when YOUR baby finds you!! It IS so empowering as a woman to have a broken body...by whatever means its "broken"...work finally. Even though I'm not pumping yet, and don't have milk, my body has responded the way its supposed to, and that is awesome!! Anyways, heres to supporting eachother through this process. We're definetly the minority, and its great to know there are others out there!!!