Quick question... in order to avoid painful nipple issues... is there any great debate against just feeding EBM from a bottle all the time? That way the baby is getting the BM it needs, and the mum avoids all the nipple issues that come with BF.
No. However as OP have said before expressing is a total PITA XD And nipple issues can me worked thru, they last up to 8 weeks MAX and then generally there are no problems after your nipples have toughened up and become used to the little vaccuums ^^;
Also, with the right care you are able to avoid things like cracked nipples.

MantaRay & Kaz! Thanks... I always assumed BF was faster because when DS pulls away I'm shooting streams XD Obviously it's just initial let down tho.