Gunnedah mum 'grateful' for breastmilk donations after diagnosed with 'horrifically painful' defect

Little did she know, her saving grace would be a group of dedicated milk donor mums.

After welcoming her first born into the world, Harry who came earth side in 2012, Ms Howe was "looking forward" to the special breastfeeding bond between mum and bub.

But a "horrifically painful" discovery meant that wouldn't be the case.

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Not long after, the Gunnedah mum found out she had a congenital breast defect, which meant her body didn't produce enough breast tissue or milk ducts.

She was able to produce a small amount of milk, but it was impossible to get out.

"It developed a hard, egg-sized lump in my breast," she said.

"I couldn't get it out, I had to wait for my body to reabsorb it [milk]."

As a result, Harry was formula fed.

With a "lot of expectations" about what breastfeeding would be like, it was a "huge shock" to the new mum when she found out about the condition.

"I cried every time I fed him," she said.

"It was really hard."

Although she was never diagnosed, Ms Howe said she developed post-partum mental health issues in the aftermath, which thankfully, she was able to seek support for.

"I worked my way through it to get to a point where I was still upset, but it wasn't hugely impacting my day to day life like it was at the start," she said.

But when Ms Howe found out she was pregnant with baby number two, Matilda, who was born in 2017, she found out about milk donation.

After the idea was suggested by her midwife, Ms Howe took to mum and family Facebook pages to put the call out for donations from expecting or new mums.

"I didn't know them from a bar of soap," she said.

"But I went and met with them and had a series of questions I'd ask around medications or illnesses."

Before using any milk, Ms Howe would get it checked by a midwife or lactation consultant.

"There's an element of trust," she said.

"But most people are happy to disclose their health if you ask."

At this time, Ms Howe was feeding with both donated breast milk and formula.

But when baby number three, Benny, came around in 2021, Ms Howe said she was "determined" to feed him only donated breastmilk.

When she was about six months pregnant she started putting the call out for milk, and had a "stash of it" in her freezer by the time Benny was born.

Ms Howe said she was "so grateful" to the mothers who gave her the opportunity to nourish her babies with breast milk.

"It still gives me goosebumps," she said.

"For weeks and weeks there was one mother pumping three or four times a day, just to feed my baby.

"It was such a selfless thing to do."

Ms Howe's journey is just one story that features in the 'Breastfeeding through the first 2000 days' exhibition, which is on display at the Tamworth hospital.

The exhibition documents 48 pictures, donated from diverse women across the health district, to tell their breastfeeding story.

Spreading awareness about breast milk donations is the main reason Ms Howe got involved.

"If we talked about it a bit more, and normalised it a bit more, maybe more people would get the option to give breast milk to their baby," she said.

The exhibition, which features 48 women from across the health district, will be displayed throughout the Tamworth hospital until July.

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