Accepting the feeding tube

When I called the hospital for an update this morning, I found out Gesina's feeding amounts overnight were horrible. A low of 0 ml and 5 ml at two different feeding times. I was so not happy; had the nurses given up because the feeding tube is just easier? I know they have a 1 hour rule; meaning Gesina has to eat within one hour and whatever she's taken is it. They don't allow snacking or long sleep/feeds as they say it's a bad habit that is not good for anyone. So I wondered if they tried for an hour or not tried at all?

Now that I have gone through the day with Gesina, I get the importance of the feeding tube. Much like the nurse who fed her 5 ml, I seemingly fed Gesina with the bottle for 1 hour only to discover that she took a whopping... NOTHING! She just sucked loudly on the bottle but didn't create the actual suction to eat! Unbelievable... She has also been awake all day fussing and looking around so I assume she'll sleep through her next feeding resulting in another 0 ml in the books for bottle feeding. I don't know why she is doing this but with the feeding tube, we have time to figure it out. I brought in a different bottle because it has a shape that is more natural (like she were nursing) but she is not actually eating with it either. So the good news is she isn't doing her "bottles are horrible, quit torturing me" routine but instead looks contented with a bottle. This is a positive association with bottles and feeding. But now she has a new trick where she isn't actually using the mechanics necessary to eat. She is quite the mystery. I will say having spent from 2:30 to midnight with her awake and fussy, I'm exhausted. I'm not sure how I'm going to handle her on my own! I did get to put the feeding tube in and they are going to have me do it again in the morning. This is taking some of the fear away but she definitely doesn't like it. I'm hoping I only have to do it once a month which is how often you need to put one in, unless she pulls it out. At the end of the day, I'm getting used to the idea and seeing the advantages. She is 7 weeks today, not much longer and she'll be switching to solid foods so I will accept the feeding tube as gracefully as I can.