On the topic of mothers pumping their milk long-term for their babies, Jay
wrote, " I have worked with several women who ... were very able and
comfortably able to pump plenty of milk for their little ones."  I agree
that this is often an option when a mom cannot breastfeed for any reason -
whether it is for a prem/sick baby or whether she herself was perhaps a
victim of sexual abuse and cannot bear to have the baby at the breast.  I
think that the most important point in these cases is that the baby has
his/her own mother's milk, and that the method of delivery is secondary.

On a similar thread, I am looking for case-histories or anecdotal reports of
long-term pumping or expressing - specifically if mothers were able to
exclusively feed their babies on their own expressed breastmilk for the
first 4 - 6 months of life.  I am interested in this as a possibility for
HIV+ mothers, living in very poor circumstances, who may be able to express
and heat-treat their own milk for their babies rather than using
formula/cow's milk/goat's milk or maize-meal porridge with added
vitamins/minerals.  In different circumstances I have worked with one mother
who pumped for prem twins for three months, another who pumped for a
singleton for three months, and another who pumped for her baby for
four-and-a-half months.  The possibility of expressing on a long-term basis
is often dismissed as being impossible, but I *know* that it can be done!  I
just need more stories to "prove" it!  Can anyone help??

Pamela Morrison IBCLC, Zimbabwe
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