Know Anyone Who Needs Breastmilk?

I would suggest to freeze it. It is good for up to 6 months. You never know when you may need it. I ended up have some stored away...good thing because when my daughter was 2 1/2 months I was hospitalized with my gallbladder and pancreatitis. I was on narcotics so I did not breastfeed, but I pumped and dumped. My daughter was able to make it through with my "banked" milk without having a drop of formula.

You should ask the NICU if they know of a donor bank. I know there are donor banks out there, I just don't know if we have one in Utah.

If no one responds and wants it I know there is at least one organization that takes breastmilk donations and sends them to Africa. I don't know what it's called though, unfortunately. You could probably Google it.

H.,

I highly suggest asking the nurses at the hospital if there are any other preemies that need it. Like in your son's case. That would be really helpful. I met a mom when I was pregnant with my first (she just turned 7) that was pumping for her preemie twins and another set of preemie twins. It was lifesaving for that other mom. And the hospital welcomed her ample supply!

V.

I also suggest Milkshare, but if you message me I may know of a situation that could be what you're looking for.
Hope your baby comes home soon! ;)

you can feeze it. I think its good for upto 6 months.

There are several organizations that will take your milk to help other mothers. I am surprised the NICU nurses have not told you. If you do an internet search for donate breastmilk I am sure you can find a place near you. I donated my milk to a group that helped Mom's on WIC. I am sorry I don't remember the name, but I found them online. They will need you to have some blood work first since it is body fluids, but I think anyone would want that.

Instead of giving it away, have you considered freezing it that way you have stock available when milk production either slows down or stops? Another idea would be to become registered that way you can donate it thru the hospital or a milk bank for those in need. They would have more info on how to do this if this is the route you decide on.
Good Luck!

As the mother of 2 recipients of donated breast milk, I would highly recommend the Mother's Milk Bank located in Denver.

http://bestcareforme.com/index.php/component/option,com_f...

They are absolutely wonderful, and make sure the exchange of milk is safe for both the donor and the recipients. They may even help you arrange for transport. Also, they can help you decide if donating is the right decision for you, or if you should or can store up more for your little one.

Thank you for your generosity.

Hi H. - the hospital will know of a breastmilk bank associated with the hospital - btw - they pasteurize and freeze the milk before distributing it for liability reasons.

You might also consider freezing it in breastmilk baggies or better yet glass bottles in portion appropriate sizes. Once your baby comes home, your supply will quickly regulate to just what your baby requires - unless of course you are doing a lot of additional pumping which I can't imagine doing "just for fun". Congratulations on the newest member of your family!

Please check out the Mother's Milk Bank at bestfedbabies.org. They collect milk from mothers who have enough and give it to babies who's mothers are not making enough, especially babies who need breastmilk for health reasons. They especially need milk from mothers of preemies! Our son was early and we used milk from the milk bank until my milk came in. After I had enough, I started donating.

Freeze it. There may come a time when you can't be there and your baby will need a bottle.

I might. I know of a woman who has a special needs baby who isn't expected to live much longer. She has defied all odds and for some reason (not sure) the mom stopped pumping and she is either running out of milk or has already. I know the baby had lots of problems with formula so I'm not sure what she is eating right now. Goat's milk maybe? I'll respond again when I find out for sure if she needs some. Thanks!

I didn't ready any of your other responses so you may have already heard this but you can donate it to the hopital for the babys that need it (babys born addicted to crack have FAS). This way you know its going to a baby that really needs it and knowing that you can help is wonderful.

Another option to check out is the International Breast Milk Project. I've known a few people who've done this, and I think it's a great, great thing.
What a wonderful heart you have! I wish you the best of luck with it all!!
http://www.breastmilkproject.org/

I don't need any breastmilk (my milk is doing fine, too) but I just wanted to tell you how wonderful what you're offering is. Breastmilk is perfect for babies and gives them an advantage that formula can't. What a gift to share your abundance with another. What a remarkable woman you are :)

What a special mom you are to donate this life-source! Thank you.

The breastmilk project (www.breastmilkproject.org) donates your extra milk to infants in Africa affected by HIV/AIDS malnourishment and other disease. Might be an option if you don't have takers more locally. Make sure you freeze lots of your breastmilk for your our use, so you can get a break and someone else can handle a few feedings, but good for you for wanting to help another mom breastfeed!

H.,

Another option besides giving your milk away would be to donate it to a milk bank. They are usually ran by hospitals, so you can check with the hospital your baby is at or La Leche League near you. Its great that you want to help other babies and moms! I hope you get to bring your daughter home soon :)

V.

Honey, keep your milk in the freezer. You'll come up on a time where you will be able to use it. If you have to go to an appt where it'd be better not to have her--say, something like court, some sort of interview, or maybe you just go shopping on your own and take longer than planned, the milk in the freezer can be used by daddy, grandparents, or a sitter.

I'm sure you can also contact your local Le Leche League person and ask them what to do with your extra supply.

Believe it or not, there is a breast milk bank somewhere in Denver. They take frozen breast milk. I don't know where it is, but I'm sure someone at the hospital could tell you.

That's very generous of you. There is a milk bank in Denver that will accept your donations. They do sell it, but only to cover their shipping and processing costs(they screen donating moms for diseases and pasteurize the milk, I believe.)
And you can freeze your milk. You have no idea how wonderful it is to have a freezer full of milk! Once my son started to sleep until 8, I'd wake up at 6 am full and uncomfortable and leaking, so I got up and pumped. I had a freezer full of milk in no time. I could leave the baby home with his daddy!!! Then DS hit 3 1/2 months and wanted to nurse every hour. I was trying to follow the doctor's advice and not start solids until 4 months, but I couldn't keep up. So i started giving him bottles of frozen milk. He had the whole freezer emptied in a week!
You never know when you'll need it again, so if you don't want to go through the milk bank, consider saving it up!

You are very generous to consider donating your milk but I would suggest pumping and freezing the milk until your own baby will take your breastmilk from a bottle. Breastmilk can keep in a deepfreeze for 5 months. Your early milk is filled with TONS of awesome antibodies that will continue to benefit your baby down the road. In fact, your early milk is filled with the most good stuff for your baby. Consider saving it for your little girl.

Another option is to see if there's a milk bank at the hospital there. Just like blood banks, some hospitals store mother's milk, and mother's milk for premie babies is especially needed.

H.,
I produced alot of milk with both my children as well. I was on medication that would not allow me to "share" milk. Something great you can do for you child is to "bank" the excess. You can freeze your extra milk, so when your baby comes home your husband can help with the feedings. Or when you are ready to wean this child, you will have a backup supply. Some women dry up earlier than they want, and this backup could help you to keep your child on your milk longer.
I am not against sharing your milk, but there could be alot of complications in sharing your milk with other children.
Good luck,
C.

Why don't you just freeze it and save it for your own baby? Or feed him the breast milk in a bottle? You can freeze your milk in those special bags for up to six months I believe.

You can donate it to children in Africa. Here's a website for breastmilk donation: http://www.breastmilkproject.org/

H.,
I was recently reading a friend of a friend's blog and I saw this request:

Got milk???
As many of you know, our little niece Gracie was born with the same heart condition as our sweet Ryker (HLHS). Gracie has been home for nearly two months, and just really is doing pretty well. We have a bit of a problem: she needs breast milk. Many of you Moms know that with a lot of stress, there can be a loss of milk. This has happened and Gracie does not do well at all with formula. She has a hard time swallowing the milk and they are trying so hard to switch her feeds to oral feeds. Many of you may also know the added benefit for heart babies and the immunities that breast milk offers. So although it may be weird to you, it is critical for Gracie to have breast milk. They are trying to get a prescription for it and get milk from a milk bank but it takes time and really costs quite a bit of money. So please help if you can!!!!
*You can e-mail me at ____@____.com*

Hope this will work out!

check out www.milkshare.com
I donated some of my milk on there and it was a really neat experience!
What a blessing you are to be willing to donate your special milk.
S.

Please consider donating to the Mother's Milk Bank at Presbyterian/St. Luke's hospital! After my twins were born prematurely and then died, I had breastmilk stored up and they were thrilled to have it. Especially since you have a premature baby--they really want the premie milk!

milkshare.com does donations only. No money can change hands, from what I understand.

I wanted to donate myself, but things got complicated with allergies & oversupply. How awesome that you can and are willing to donate! What a tremendous gift to give someone. :)

From what I could find out, most hospital based programs do charge people. I understand that they need to cover their expenses and all, but I get how you'd like to help someone why maybe can't afford to do it on their own. Milkshare was my favorite of the organizations I found that don't charge for the milk.

Hope you get to bring your littlest one home soon!