Please help am confused first time mum to be and got to go shipping tomorrrow

[Wishfulmakeupping]

Hi ,
Baby due in jan I want to breastfeed but need to be able to store milk and for others to be able feed baby/to be able to feed when out and about after initinal first few weeks.
Can you please tell me how many/what kind of bottles I need? Im literally clueless as all my family have ff so can't really recommend to me.
Ive had a quick scout round and seen an acent pack that looks ok but not sure about the 'stages'?!
Will need a breast pump am I best to go electronic or manuel? And will I still need an electronic steriliser (sorry know I sound clueless its because I am!)
Thanks

[Wishfulmakeupping]

Go shopping not shipping bloody iPhone!

[tiokiko]

If you're planning to BF don't worry about buying anything just yet. Get feeding established in your own time, don't add extra hassle at the start worrying about expressing, sterilising etc unless you really have to.

When you are ready (don't set a time limit on when this will be, just see how you go), I'd recommend an electric pump. I used the Medela Swing, more £ but works well and has good resale value on eBay. You can use Medela milk storage bags too and freeze your milk to use later.

You don't need an electric steriliser, they are handy but take up lots of space if you're just planning occasional bottles. You could go with a microwave steriliser instead - I used Lindam travel micro steriliser bags which were pretty good.

I think you need to make sure that you use bottles with a newborn teat so that they still have to suck hard to get the milk and don't get used to a faster flow?

[BertieBotts]

If you want to express occasionally then a hand pump is just fine. You can usually buy a pack which has a pump and around four bottles which should be enough. I wouldn't worry about types etc - they're all pretty much the same despite all the gimmicky packs etc! Size/stage wise newborn should be fine for a breastfed baby, you don't need to move up a stage with EBM.

You don't really need a steriliser, you probably won't get the use out of it. You can either sterilise stuff with tablets, by boiling in a saucepan for 5 minutes, or just put them through a dishwasher cycle (this sterilises them if over 60C) or alternately you could just wash well. Breastmilk has antimicrobial properties so it's not as much of an issue as with FF.

If you want to build up a store of milk e.g. in the freezer then the breastmilk storage bags are great, I used these.

I'd be wary of expressing just so that others can have a turn, fair enough if you need/want to be away from the baby for any reason, but expressing is pretty hard work and you'll find that it's not really giving you much of a break, plus it's not really good for babies to be handed around and fed by everyone as it's unsettling for them. In short it's more about the adults than the baby and it's more work for you, so generally better if you can talk them into doing other things with the baby rather than feeding!

[BertieBotts]

Good advice from tioko too about waiting until the baby's here before you buy stuff :)

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

You don't actually need a pump at all wishful, your mw will be able to show you how to express by hand once Lo arrives. If you do want to buy a pump, I'd actually wait until Lo arrives. Expressing isn't recommended until your supply is established and you may find hand expressing so easy that you may never need one. If you really want to buy one now I'd recommend the ameda lactaline but different pumps seem to suit different women.

As for bottles, different babies seem to suit different bottles so my best advice would probably be to not spend lots on a particular make as Lo might not like them.

No need for an expensive steriliser either, you can get cheap microwaves ones, its even cheaper to use Milton fluid or the dishwasher.

You may even find that you don't want to leave Lo and will just take them with you, babies are very portable .

I come from a ffing family and a city where the bfing rates are one of the absolute lowest so can completely understand your quandary. I found the support from my local nct group invaluable, have a look on www.nct.org.uk to see if they run one near to you. They are a great place to meet local mums and mums to be and you don't have to wait until Lo arrives to go

Can you tell I don't like buying baby equipment that I might not need.......

[Pooka]

Agree with tiokiko that is a good idea to play by ear - get past the initial couple of weeks and then go shopping for any extra things I.e. pump that you might need.

I used avent hand pump. Tried a Medela electric one but preferred my no frill hand pump. Didn't bother expressing with dc2 or dc3, apart from hand expressing when was engorged when milk came in. just didn't have the need. But was useful with dc1 because I was able to have a break from feeding so could have longer sleep or go out for more than a couple of hours after the first month or so. With dcs 2 and 3 wasn't as tired or in need of break. Co slept with them, so night feeds a doddle.

I tended to just wash in very hot water the bottles and pump. Used the avent bottles that came with the pump.

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

X posted with everybody!

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

And if you are looking at electric pumps look for one with a closed system rather than an open one.

[ArthurandGeorge]

I really struggled with a hand pump and have a feeling this was because my breasts aren't very big so I needed one hand to hold the cup in place and one hand to pump leaving no free hands for anything else. My electric medela was much more useful.

[ArthurandGeorge]

And it is much easier to simply breast feed when out and about rather than pump then take it with you, worry about how long it has been out of fridge for etc etc.

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

I struggled with a hand pump too arthur I think for the same reasons and was much happier once I'd just stopped trying to express and took DS with me.