thread: Expressing Breast Milk

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  1. #1
    BellyBelly Member

    May 2008
    1,110

    The sterilizing is not something you have to do every time - just rinse your pump with cold water and put it in the fridge. Then once a day give it a hot wash and a sterilize if you want to.

    Distract yourself with a book or CD or something - a watched bottle never fills!

    Do you have the correctly sized snozzle for your nipple - you can get bigger snozzle-bits for bigger nipples.

    Lactation consultants are found at some hospitals and maternal and child health centres. There are also some in private practise, who will come to you for a fee. The ABA helpline might also be useful.

    On the bright side, the pumping (even it it doesn't make much come out), will add to your milk supply.

  2. #2
    Registered User

    Apr 2007
    Perth, Australia
    744

    I had to express when my DS was born 6 weeks prem, I found that once my milk came in I was getting quite a large amount in the early days, using the hospital's machine. I bought a Medulla Swing when I had to leave my DS in the SCN and I was d/c home. It was around this time we also began to BF. DS had nasograstric feeds for the first week. So I would BF one side and express from the others. I would get anything from 60ml in the morning to 10 mls by the evening. After DS came home I continued with this regime for a short while, but had a reasonal supply in the freezer, so I started to ween myself from it. I still occasionally express, but after a dismal attempt a few weeks back I started to feel expressing was not working anymore. The suck of my DS is so much stronger than the machine. On Wed morning I chucked a hissy fit as DS was being unsettled and between him and my cat I was not getting much sleep, I left him in bed with DH (DS prompltly went to sleep) I got up to express and managed to get about 120ml.
    I think the time before, where I had low supply was becasue I wasn't drinking enough water. I have since made an effort to increase my water intake. I have also found I don't get as much milk from expressing as to what I'm sure DS is getting from BF.
    Also your bub is still quite small so you probably don't have a large supply yet.

    I wash my bottles and pump in hot soapy water and sterilise ever day or so.

    I recommend you express with every feed, cool it all in the fridge before combining them, then freeze. You may only get 1 feed per day, but you will slowly build up a supply.