012 - Breastfeeding at 60yrs old, Experiencing Milk Let-Down after a 25wk Miscarriage, Receiving Donor Milk, and more with Barb Higgins More Milk, Please! - A Baby-Feeding Stories Podcast

Today, I am really honored to interview an incredible woman, Barb Higgins. I've known Barb since I was in 4th grade and ran track and field with the local Parks and Rec community. In high school, she was my cross-country coach, and she led us to win our local Division, then State, and then The New England Championship. I have such incredible memories with this woman.

Barb is now 60 and on the show today because she gave birth to her fourth child at 57.

In today's episode, Barb shares about her four pregnancies, starting with the miscarriage of baby Gordy at 25 weeks and the surprise milk let-down experience she had afterward.

She also shares what it was like to breastfeed in public with her second, Gracie, and then what it was like to get caught on a day trip without a breast pump while nursing her third, Molly. And having Jack, her  IVF baby after menopause.

Note: If you don't know Barb's story, Barb has lost two children. In addition to the miscarriage of baby Gordy, she also lost her daughter Molly at age 13. We don't go into the details of Molly's death in the podcast, but you can learn more about her at the MollyB Foundation: https://mollybfoundation.org/ or by reading Barb's book, Motherland: https://amzn.to/3vEIg5N

She also shares:

* 8mins - 25-week miscarriage of baby Gordy
* 13:30 - Gracie's Birth & Latching
* 15:25 - Breastfeeding Gracie in public
* 17:15 - The Difficulty of Pumping and What Worked
* 17:45 - Co-sleeping & 'Self-Serve' Breastfeeding at night
* 19:45 - Natural Weaning - Being Pregnant with Molly, Gracie no longer liked the taste
* 20:05 - Molly's Birth & Initial Latching
* 22:15 -Forgetting the breast pump on a trip from NH to Connecticut
* 25:20 - Advocate, Advocate, Advocate - Your Boobs, Your Baby!
* 28:10 - Jack's Story as an IVF Baby after menopause
* 37:00 - Developing Preeclampsia at 35 weeks
* 41:00 - Suction challenges with a 35 wk old
* 42:39 - When a nurse tells Barb she's too old to breastfeed
* 43:25 - The baby-feeding regime (Breastfeed, Bottle, Then Pump)
* 47:00 - The Ridiculousness of the 'Failure to Thrive' label when Jack was slow to gain weight
* 48:00 - Advocating for yourself in the hospital
* 50:00mins - Nurse provides game-changing support on breastfeeding
* 50:30 - Getting donated breastmilk
* 52:30 - Spilt milk story and the frustration
* 54:20 - Still breastfeeding at 2.5yrs old
* 56:00 - A culture that thinks it's okay to tell women what to do
* 57:30 - Introduction of Book, Motherland
* 60:00 - What Child-loss feels like daily
* 61:15 - Postpartum Anger after Jack
* 64:15 - Always listen to your instincts
* 65:30 - Rapid Fire Round

Recommendations:

* The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding: https://amzn.to/3U3qGm0
* Human Milk for Human Babies - FB Group
* NH Breastfeeding Moms - FB Group

You can find Barb on Facebook and Instagram:

* FB: https://www.facebook.com/barb.higgins.96
* Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/barb_444/
* Website: https://athousandtinysteps.com/