Allison has been married to David for 5 years. Declan will turn 3 in June. When Allison began producing an abundance of breastmilk after the birth of her son, Declan, her lactation consultant suggested she become a milk donor for Mothers’ Milk Bank of North Texas. She explains, in her own words: “Declan ate about 30 to 40 ounces, and I produced around 75 ounces. By donating, I knew what I was embarking on was huge and this gift was unlike anything in the world. This is a gift that you can’t put a price tag on. Knowing that the milk I produced could help nourish and help babies thrive is truly remarkable. I donated to Mothers’ Milk Bank of North Texas from November 2012 to September 2013. We moved to Michigan, and I continued to donate to their local milk bank from September 2013 to March 2014.”
Allison dropped off about 200-300 ounces of her milk every other weekend to her local hospital, a collection site about 15 minutes away from her home. She says, “I labeled the bags with my name/ID and how many ounces, then filled the grocery bags into an ice chest, and then I loaded that into my car.” Allison shares advice for fellow donor moms: “Figuring out a system that works for you makes the whole process really easy. I had to make a trip every two weeks because I ran out of room in our freezers. I also would go between naptimes.” And when asked about her words of wisdom regarding breastfeeding, Allison advises, “Do not give up! Seek help. Join support groups. You are not alone. I found that nursing is teamwork with mom and baby. It can be challenging in the beginning, but it gets much easier. Baby gives cues, and we have to figure out how to read those cues. Lactation consultants are awesome!”
Allison is currently preparing to become a surrogate and plans to pump and donate again. She adds, “We have moved back to DFW, so I am looking forward to donating to Mothers’ Milk Bank of North Texas again.” For more information about Mothers' Milk Bank of North Texas or on how to become a donor, please visit our website.