Hellobee Boards

I was going to suggest a straw cup too. My younger one refused bottles but took straw cups of milk in a pinch. She will probably eat a little more at meals and eventually give in and drink from a cup.

I’m sorry you are going through that- it sounds really painful!! You can get enough calories through a liquid diet though, just focus on calorie and nutrient dense stuff when you can. Just no straws for you!

@JennyPenny: I had this experience too when my LO (now big) was about 11mos. I had BAD norovirus for 4 days. My supply took a hit by days 4/5 but, it wasn't as if it was *gone* and there was no noticeable change in the first couple days.

@justjules: at ten months, I would totally explain the situation to my kiddo- “mama has to have special medicine that will make her milk yucky and mama won’t be able to give you mama milk again until <whenever>. If you get thirsty, you can have a bottle or a special cup of water or milk.” I’d recite this to prep your LO several times. I’d expect to pump and dump until you can nurse again. Worst case even if you don’t produce milk, you can let her nurse after it’s safe again and she will likely naturally give up if you really do dry up.

I think you’ll be ok! Just nurse when you can and pump if the anesthesia is a problem for that. I had a crazy intestinal blockage right before my son was 6m and ended up in the hospital for 4 days. I couldn’t eat anything for about 48 hours and during the first 24 I got dehydrated too. I didn’t lose any supply right away, it did take a hit for about a day or so but was never zero and came back quickly once I was better (I was pumping so could see the output).
It was kind of a mess at home (without me) because I only had about 3 bottles frozen as I SAH with him (and he didn’t eat solids yet). I had to dump some of my pumping and he was NOT into the formula taste even though he did bottles ok. But eventually he did eat some that was mixed together. I think it had to be confusing because it was also the first time he’d been away from me, but kids forget as soon as life goes back to normal! Good luck!

She will be fine. Seriously. I'd give her a hardy meal (yogurt, applesauce and cereal) and not stress. She'll be fine, your supply will be fine.. It may dip temporarily, but she'll get enough and it'll bounce back.

@justjules: I do too! My LO never took a bottle. I had to take a 12 hour trip and he was fine. Annoyed, but fine. I would have DH mix breastmilk with apple sauce and rice cereal and give him yogurt for my peace of mind. If you can nurse right after you're only looking at 4-6 hours, which should be easier.

I had surgery and an overnight hospital stay when DD was 2 months old. I nursed her around 7 am before leaving. I left pumped milk and some formula too. I knew I wouldn’t be able to see her and she preferred to not take a bottle (she still doesn’t like it). My MIL kept her. She flat out refused to eat for 6 hours. She didn’t fuss and napped like normal. Then finally she got hungry enough and drank a bottle. She didn’t fight the rest of them while I was away. I used a hand pump while I was gone and my supply was fine. I was away for about 30 hours.