pumping/expressing advice

clare82

hi ladies,
wasnt sure where to post this so i said id start a new thread.
im looking for advice regarding pumping/expressing etc.
ive bought a medela swing and ive only tried it once but got 2ounces fairly easily so im thinking of expressing a bit to stock up for the future. so id like to know whats the best way to start off...
once you start expressing...are you then in a situation where you have to do it every day due to leaks etc?
or should i start with an ounce or too and gradually up it? freezing what i dont use etc
or do you just pump once every so often if you have an occasion or whatever where you need to give a bottle and then just suffer any leakage the following day?
baby is four months so id like to have a system in place where i can pump some so daddy can feed her a bottle in the evening etc.
im dying to go get some driving lessons but cant leave her yet!
other q...when did you or when will you leave baby for an hour or so?

grarf

Hi Clare82
I started pumping when my little girl was about six weeks old, and daddy then gives her the bottle most evenings. She took it no problem. What we didn't fed ended up in the freezer, and it's slowly taking over! we've got a good stash in there now, which is great. I never had any leakage - I pumped about 120 ml for the first few months, that's now down to about 90 - 110 ml per day. My girl is now 5 months old. I found it handy to establish a pumping routine, and to stay in the swing of things.

As for your second question, I started leaving herself in the creche at the gym for an hour while I do a class. First time I did it was about three weeks ago, and it worked perfectly. I felt more back to normal because I could go and work out, and she had fun in there (actually she keeps falling asleep just before I come to collect her!).

Hello Lady!

Can I jump in on this and ask, if you want to express mainly and only give an actual feed once a day, how often do you need to express to keep supply up? (I'm trying to combine feed, but it's not going to plan and I honestly just can't find the time to nurse and my life would be much easier if I would bottle feed them breast milk so I'm just wondering how realistic it is that I will be able to get at least enough to give them both one bottle of breast milk each day?).

Thanks

wmpdd3

I used to give one bottle at 11pm every night. I could only manage 2 oz per boob max.

I used formula for one feed one or 2 nights and pumped instead. This gave me a float, then if I missed a night of pumping I had a fall back plan.

I tried to pick a time that I wouldn't want to leave the house and that was far away enough from a feed so I'd have built up the feed, so I picked 7:30pm. Last B/F was 5pm. 1st in the morning was about 5 am. I think he was about 3 months by the time I got this sorted.

clareames

i am due my baby in 3 - 4 weeks... i am looking at buying a breast pump and hopefully get at it sooner rather than later after baby is born as i dont think i will feel too comfortable actually breast feeding ALL the time... should i wait or should i be prepared and have it got? im looking at medela mini electric and its a secondhand one. Im sure if its all washed out and sterilised then it should be ok? they are so expensive to buy new. Hubby thinks I should just bottle feed formula and it be handier but and not to be a tight ass, breast milk is however free and it does give better long term health to the baby... I was always hell bent on feeding but getting neared to D-Day I am kinda chickening out... sounds silly also someone told me not to combination feed until baby is at least 3 weeks old but even if i do BF a couple of feeds a day, is it bad to give formula at other feed times? Thanks

wmpdd3

There will be pumps that you can see working in the hospital, hopefully you wont need to use them just after baby is born like I did, but its a good place to see the different ones working.

You might not need one until baby is about 6 weeks, thats when your supply will be set up and you can start messing around with it! OK so you wont send OH off for one, but you can always buy online when baby is 6 weeks.

Highly recommend an electric one, the manual only worked for me when I had been feeding for months and all I had to do was put boob into pump for milk to come out.

I'd def recommend second hand, its all sterilizable. I had an avent / tommee tippee and medulla, all donated to me and I passed them on after, the motors all dies in them after 3 years use though, still work fine as a manual. So ask about the amount of use the pump got, I used mine solidly for 2 x 12 month stints.

Even if you think that you will use formula you will be busting with milk if you miss a feed so will still need a pump or to manual express. And sure when its int he bottle, you may as well freeze it for a night out!

Also if you have a few drinks you may need to pump and dump.

clare82

thanks for that garf, ill buy some freeze bags tomorrow and start off slow and see how we go.

@clareames- can i ask what is making you feel anxious about breastfeeding?

clareames

I really dont know! a friend said her little fella used to be fed up to 12 times a day when she was BFing and another said, its such hard work why put yourself through all that... THEN i have a mother in law who in most ways is great but she be in on top of me all the time and she would nearly be fixing my boob into the baby's mouth... I would hate that!!! I suppose ill know how i feel when baby actually comes along.... Plus I am dying for a bulmers and what do i do then if i am not pumping!!! I really want to give baby the best possible start that I can... "SIGH"

liliq

Unless it's a sealed unit (ie hospital grade), then second hand pumps aren't suitable especially for pumping for newborns.

You can have a drink while Breastfeeding, though maybe wait a couple weeks! But after that a drink or two is no problem.

In the long run, breastfeeding is a lot less work. Pumping is double jobbing- you've all the inconvenience of artificial feeding by having to sterilise etc, and lose a lot of the benefits of directly breastfeeding.
If you're not entirely comfortable, or it's a bit of an unknown (which it is for most people before they actually breastfeed), then a support group before baby arrives might demystify it a bit?

grarf

Hello Lady, I'm not sure how often you need to nurse/express to keep up supply to be honest... I'm afraid I can't help there, but isn't it a case of supply meets demand? Would it depend on how old your little one is, and how long you've been breastfeeding for? I dunno...
When you say you can't find the time to nurse, how long does your baby feed for at each feed? Mine never went longer than 20 minutes, and is now at about 8 minutes per feed, with usually about 2.5 hours between feeds. every baby's different though, I know a little boy who's a day younger than my girl, also 5 months, and he goes for four hours between feeds and feeds for 4 mins max

clare82

@HelloLady- this might help http://kellymom.com/bf/pumpingmoms/pumping/milkcalc/

@clareames- everyones breastfeeding story is different, just because one friend may have had a hard time with latching on or sore nipples doesnt mean you will...theres every chance you will be one of those people for whom it all goes really easy for. im four months breastfeeding now and despite a painfull start (2 weeks of raw nipples) im delighted i stuck with it. your friend is right about the number of feeds but thats only until about week 6 or so and you may find that you love that time chilling out in the sofa with your baby. my advice is to succumb to it..follow baby and shut off the outside world for the first 2 months and if its painful..persevere as it gets easier. and you will be able to have a bottle of bulmers....;)