Is 5 weeks too late to start?

Howdy all...

Just thought I would grab some peoples opinions.

DD has never been BF (personal choice which I don't wish to discuss, so if you are offended please don't read on, or make negative remarks) and my boobs are still leaking milk. Like, if I lie on one side at night - I wake up covered in milk, if I lean over the bath while bathing, i leak, if I let her cry too long - I leak!!! (I'm sure you get the picture..)

This never happened with DS, I stopped leaking after a few days - so I'm just wondering if I should be expressing this milk and giving it to her? Like, would it be worth trying? It's been 5 weeks and I still obviously have something in there, but I don't know anything really about the ways of milk, so thought I would run it past you knowledgeable folk.. ;)

Thanks in advance!!!

If you are okay to express then absolutely my love. It will be still full of all your goodies for her. If you express you will produce more milk as you know so be aware that supply may meet demand - so express as much or as little as you are comfortable with. Good luck. :hug:

Mel, there is no reason why you couldn't express and give it to her if you want to do that. Any bm is of benefit to babies, so it would be good for her. It is really up to you. The liklihood is that you won't maintain your supply just by expressing, unless you are really committed to doing it every 3 -4 hours, but while the bm is there, if you want to give her what you have, that would be just fine.

It's never too late. One of the mums in my Baby Buddies group has recently re-lactated (I think she started at about 3 or 4 mths!)
If you are not wanting to be getting into the habit of expressing then I probably wouldn't start. I would probably only express if it was really uncomfortable. Like Flowerchild said with supply and demand. The more you express the more you will produce.
But no it's not too late :)
Good luck

LOL Mel I'm so with you on the leaking - poor Bear gets his back bathed in warm milk every night! Must be doing wonders for his skin! PMSL
yeah if it's there, why the hell not! go for it :)

If you wanted to express then that's fine, it's not that expensive to buy a pump. If you only express once a day it shouldn't cause problems with increasing your supply to a ridiculous level and it would just take the edge off the leaking.

If you still leak, you could try something like Lilypadz, which are sticky breast pads that create pressure so you don't leak. That CAN affect supply in the early days, I have heard, but that isn't an issue here so go for it.

And this has just reminded me I saw an interesting thing at the chemist yesterday - they have these nipple shells, they are kind of like nursing pads, but they are hard plastic shells and they actually collect the milk that leaks! So you could keep the milk that leaks and not have to bother about expressing or building up a supply you don't want.
They were called Avent Nipple Shells....

I have those too! They're great but for use ONLY when you're leaking and to be emptied straight away because stagnant milk around your breasts is a no-no. Also they look well weird under your top and if you lean over they leak. Great idea but only if you're leaking at the time, not for constant use. I found them great when feeding because I'd collect what was leaking then use the milk for DS's food later.

Absolutely worth it! If you're leaking like that expressing should be pretty easy...and some breastmilk is always better than none.
Why not? ;)

Hehe, sounds like you've got a good supply mate. Give it a shot, it's not like breastmilk will hurt her, doesn't sound like you haven anything to lose! :D

Why not indeed Mel? ;):) It's certainly worth trying if you're comfortable with it, it will only be good for her :D If you have any particular questions about the mechanics of doing it all, then fire away..........we're all here to help, not judge :hug:

well yeah, I do have questions...lol... like.. obviously I'll need like.. a pump.... I sms'd my sister with the idea and she thinks its not worth it because you can't express for longer than three months because your supply will dry up anyway? I'm not looking to do this for all feeds, but i figure even one bottle of BM a day has got to be better than none whatsoever right?

This was my plan from the beginning, to express as long as possible with her, because I knew I couldn't BF her (then she's had all these sucking issues anyway and would have driven me bloomin barmy...) but I sorta chickened out when my milk came in and the LC at the hospital asked me what I was going to do. :redface: I didn't really like the LC she wasn't very nice, and I didn't get a good vibe, so I was too scared to say that I wouldn't have minded trying to express her feeds...

Stupid I know... :doh:

If you can express then do it!! I know ladies her on BB that express way past 3 months.

I found it easier to express with a pump, but you can just express by hand if you don't want to buy one.
In the first few weeks I found I could express quite a lot by hand in the shower. (Agh, when I think of all that went to waste! LOL! But it was purely for comfort in those early days.) You can just use your hand and express into a cup or a wide necked bottle.

I have a friend who expressed for 9 months so it can be done well past the 3 months. I think if you are prepared to give it a go then why not?

Mel hun if you want to then do.. just remember the more you pump the more supply you will get.
You can most deff do it past 3 months, my cousin has been doing it for over 1yr.

Mel, I had no idea this was what you wanted to do, I'm so sorry that LC wasn't nicer to you, and scared you off.

Right, given that you do feel that this is something you would like to do, how would you feel about rining the ABA helpline? (You don't need to be a member). I promise you they are NOT breastfeeding nazis who will give you a hard time. Rather, if you explain your situation, and that you are not BFing but would like to express for your daughter, you will likely find the counsellor to be a wealth of information. Re. how to express, when to express, how to store the milk, how to heat the milk, etc etc etc. It really is quite easy.......once you know what you're doing! (Like anything in this parenting caper :lol:). The ABA is about mum to mum support, they will make suggestions, but leave the decisions entirely up to you hun. Also, they have booklets available on relactating (which is essentially what you would be doing) and expressing.

If you don't feel comfortable doing that, then keep using us here at BB for information (and ignore your sister LOL, plenty of women express long term - yes, it's not easy, but it is doable).

When do you feel your breasts are at their fullest? In the early hours? During the morning? That would be the best time to express, as you should get a reasonable amount. Just a tip.....don't be distressed if your first attempt doesn't leave you with a heap of EBM. Expressing can be a bit of an art, and can take a little practice. But it sounds as though you have a pretty good amount of milk there, so you shouldn't have a drama :) Do you know how to hand express? If so, have a try in the shower, just to get used to handling your boobs ;) It feels a bit strange at first, but you get used to it very quickly! I will PM you a link to a site that has great info on hand expressing.

What they said hun! :hug: and like you said, even 3 mths is worth it for the benefits of all your liquid gold lovely! Good luck whatever you decide!

Oh, and just so you know, you don't have to save up a whole feed for her, if you express say 20ml, you can give that to her, and then however much formula you think she needs on top of that :)

I'll just endorse everything that Janie said. :P Def find a lactation consultant/help that you LIKE, that will make a big difference I reckon.

I wonder (just thinking aloud really), if they could help sort the sucking issues too - Si almost drove me barmy and to the point of a LC when he was born, thankfully because I'd breastfed Riv, I knew what I was aiming for, but it was still tricky - if Si was my first breastfed bub we'd have been a royal mess.

All the best whatever you decide mate.

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: I didn't really like the LC she wasn't very nice, and I didn't get a good vibe, so I was too scared to say that I wouldn't have minded trying to express her feeds... Stupid I know... :doh:

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TBH Mel she probably wouldn't have been much help, I didn't find the staff in the hospital very helpful & I wanted to b/f so for someone like yourself I think this is a completely normal reaction so NO you are not stupid.
Just wanted to 2nd what all the other ladies have said you can certainly express for longer than 3 mnths. I remember a lady appeared on Oprah who had 6 babies at once & she expressed for 6 mnths before drying up (she expressed 50 - 60 bottles a day which is why she probably dried up :lol:) Not that anyone expects you do that just that, I'm just saying it can be done.
You can hire pumps & they do make it easier IMO.There are herbs & drinks that help increase your supply if you want, as you already know these bb ladies are great & I am sure there will always be someone to answer any questions you have about this & to support you to do this.
Goodluck with whatever you decide.

Don't think you're stupid for not talking to the LC, I wouldn't have either if she wasn't nice!!!

If you are happy to express for Mehkelti then I say go for it, like the others said 3 months would be great for her. Three days is even great for her!

No offence to any LC's here, but some of the LC's I met in hospital were a bit on the Nipple-Nazi side, I found the ordinary midwives a lot better. Definitely try a pump, I have an Avent Isis electric pump which is great - it was a bit tricky to start off with though, so don't get discouraged if you can't figure it out the first time. Now that I've got the hang of it, it's easy.
:hug: look forward to hearing how you get on!

Thanks guys :)
I've decided to give it a try :) No harm in trying right? We're going to a baby shop today to buy a pump (cos if I can't get any milk out, I'm having another baby so I'll just use it from the beginning with that bub)

Thanks for the recommendation Pixie chick - any one else agree with that?

I was having a little manual squeeze before and got 6 droplets out.. woohoo..lol.. (baby steps right?) and then I did it again just before and got about the same, but this time it was the colour of regular milk, instead of a bit watery.... so that could be a positive sign yeah??

You'll probably get most out just after a shower, too.
Be a bit gentle with the pump - don't go so nuts that you end up with sore nipples!
And you may want to get some lansinoh, which helps with sore nipples, just in case.

Good luck, and good on you for having a go.

As far as pumps are concerned - what sort of bottles and teats do you currently use? It may be easiest to get the pump from the same mob, so that you can just screw a teat on and give it to Mehkelti. If you are wanting to lay in a serious milk supply then the grunty hospital pumps are the most effective - they can be hired from the ABA or from chemists (they cost over $500 to buy, so you want to be sure that the experiment is going to work first!).

kmn - yup will definitely be taking it easy.. I remember the slaughtered nipples from my brief time BFing DS... and i have Lansinoh - which incidentally - is fantastic if you have cracked heels...

ETA - I just saw your post. I have pigeon bottles for mehkelti - she couldn't work out how to suck any other teat, and that was the one we had the most success and least wastage going down the front of her top!!!! I have some Tommee tippee bottles in the fridge though cos we brought the electric steriliser... is the TT pump any good?

Will try it on the heels - never thought of that! :)

LOL Mel, did the Pigeon bottles go alright in the end hey?

Janie - yeah the pigeon bottles are good - she still stuffs around with the teat with her tongue most times, and cries like its not in her mouth - when it is :rolleyes: but she's not leaking as much as she used to, however, feeds can still take an hour... (and sometimes thats 50mls in an hour!!!!)

Maybe EBM will be more tasty for her that she'll drink it faster.. lol

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I was having a little manual squeeze before and got 6 droplets out.. woohoo..lol.. (baby steps right?) and then I did it again just before and got about the same, but this time it was the colour of regular milk, instead of a bit watery.... so that could be a positive sign yeah??

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A very positive sign!! I BF full time and I struggle to get that out! You're a born milker... I think the expressing should go really well for you :D

LOL Mel, DS hated bottles for the first 12 weeks (and yes, it was really tricky to give them to him), but the EBM bottles were much easier than the formula ones! He definitely preferred the taste ;)

I think if you're going to be expressing a fair bit, an electric pump is the way to go. I know it's more costly, but it is sooooo much easier. Sure, if you're only using once in awhile, then a manual pump does a great job, but on a daily basis? Way too much like hard work for me ;) Any Medela pump is great, and I've heard the Avent is good, but have heard mixed reviews on it.

Thanks for the tips and support guys... I'll have to see what the baby shop has to offer once DS wakes up from his nap :)

Will let you know how I go with my experiment!!!

I used a Medela mini-electric and found that really good. Best of luck hun.

You can hire electric pumps..Thats an option too.

I think it's a great idea Mel! :dance:

I expressed for Hayden for 5weeks, and I loved that he was having a bottle of my milk per day. It made me feel like I wasn't such a failure and wasting my milk.
I didn't have a very big supply from the starts so I gave up the other week, but he got some and it was better then none at all and missed out like DS1 did.

Good luck with it all.
xx

Mel, If you want I can lend you my breast pump - the only problem being I can't get to Nambour until Wednesday - if you can get to Coolum today or tomorrow or after 4pm Monday or Tuesday you can take it. Just PM me if you want it.

Wow Snow that is soooo very generous of you!! DH has given me permission to spend money on one, so we'll go looking this arvo, but if we don't find anything at bubs, I'll definitely take you up on that!!!! *mwah*

I just wanted to pop in and say good luck with the expressing Mel! :hug:

Thanks Amy :)

Well I got the swing one - can't wait to try it out - I've set myself a goal - 5mls... lol

That's great Mel, the Swing is meant to be fabulous! I'm laughing with you, but seriously, don't get too hung up on reaching goals.........just be pleasantly surprised when you get more than you expected :D

Are you cool with how to clean it and store the milk etc etc?