Help-Expressing

Hi there

I am looking for some practical advice!

How can you incorporate expressing with breast feeding? I'd like to try it 50/50 so that I can get a break and so my husband is involved but I don't know how it fits in with breastfeeding and I can't find anything helpful.

Does a baby just drink from one breast in one feed - so do you express from the other straight afterwards?

How much should you express for a newborn baby for each feed?

How often should you express?

Any helpful tips? Any advice much appreciated.

Thank you.

new2this wrote: Hi there I am looking for some practical advice! How can you incorporate expressing with breast feeding? I'd like to try it 50/50 so that I can get a break and so my husband is involved but I don't know how it fits in with breastfeeding and I can't find anything helpful. Does a baby just drink from one breast in one feed - so do you express from the other straight afterwards? How much should you express for a newborn baby for each feed? How often should you express? Any helpful tips? Any advice much appreciated. Thank you.

Hi new2this,
I started expressing when baby was a week old (roughly).. would get about 150mls, baby would take about half that - 100mls. HOWEVER, after watching a friend go through horrid BFing (latching) issues due to Expressed Bottle Milk feeding I would strongly suggest you delay giving your baby a bottle, till 4-6 weeks (as commonly suggested) and until BFing is fully established.

For the first 6 weeks I had too much milk to handle so could express at any time. By 8 weeks my supply had well and truly settled. Now as my DD is 9mths I can generally only express once a day where I get around 100mls. (this is simply because I don't express on a regular basis. BFing is supply & demand, so if your baby feeds more/you express more, your body will essentially supply more.)

In terms of when to express, generally straight after baby has fed. You don't have to 'offer' both breasts to baby, nor does baby have to take both breasts. But if baby does that's totally fine too. Just express when you can (letting baby feed first). You'll soon find when the best times are for you. But please, please don't get hung up on how much you express, if it is only a small amount, that is in NO WAY an indication of your supply. Baby is the BEST expressor, not the pump! In saying that, you can express small amounts and amalgamate the lot (always make sure they are at the same temperature though, so cool in fridge in seperate lots then put into one).

I am assuming you haven't had bubs yet? I just want to add that I too thought seriously of doing 50/50 BFing & Expressing, but in all honesty I found it (still do) so much easier to on the whole BF. I do remember saying that by 6mths I would be expressing fulltime (hard to think of actually doing that now!) I also had plans of DH being apart of the feeding process, but it is what we as mothers are for. I found the Le Leche League
fantastic for helping me come to love BFing. I still do express for when I work once a week, but on the whole part I couldn't bear to give up our BFing relationship for bottle feeding (just yet anyway )

Anyway, I apologise for going on a little, I hope atleast a little will help you. Good luck with everything!

Edited by Mamma2N