When I first got Abigail home and I had to feed her over night via her gtube the idea really scared me. I thought to myself "Can I really do this?" Well the truth is, it's not really that big of a deal. It took me 2 nights to really master the pump. The hardest part is honestly getting up in the middle of the night to fill the feeding bag. I have to say a big THANK YOU to my husband Dan for taking over that job. I did learn that it is best to have Abby in front snap-up clothing when using the gtube. The tubing fits nicely between the snaps and it is easy to get to the gtube if needed. My advice to preemie moms is to invested in snap up (not zip up) PJs. In the winter when I had Abby in a sleep sack we cut a small whole so the gtube tubing could come out and that worked well too.
Make sure you keep the area around the gtube dry. We always keep gauze around the house for when we need it. Gauze is great to use to clean around it.
And just a heads up to parents- As Abigail got stronger we noticed that she started to pull and play with the gtube tubing. We now always keep an eye on her. It seems that she was close a few times to actually pulling it out.
If you have any questions about feeding tubes and pumps please let me know. I would be happy to answer any questions. Don't be stressed if you have to use one. I was honestly very scared at first, but like I said it's really no big deal. If you can work a cell phone, you can work a feeding pump. Below are some pictures of the supplies we use. I hope it gives you a visual. I had no idea what things looked like before I got them. Hope it helps!
This is the pump we have. It's very easy to use.
This is the pump bag. The formula goes right into the bag. The pump has a long tube that runs from the bottom. The tube goes right into Abigail's gtube on her belly.
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