two and a half weeks to expres and stockpile milk - what is the best way to go about it?

[popsycal]

thars it really
gave 4 days work two wekls come mondat
can feed ds at 7:30am abd arounbd 4pm and maybe midday
so i need 2-3 feeds per day
can express twice at wotrk//.....

[popsycal]

whatv i mean is, i will need to increase my supply as am still exclusively feeding ds2 every three hoursday and night

[mears]

Do you leak at all? If so catch milk in sterilised breastshells. Express some milk off any time you feel fullish, even if babe needs a feed immediately after. You have plenty of milk to do both. Express a couple of ounces off at a time. Put it in fridge. Freeze in batches of 6oz. I kept milk in fridge for up to 48 hours till I had amount for a feed to freeze.

[popsycal]

i do leak when feeding, yes.
will get some shells today
have freezer bags too
can you direct me to storage guidelines....
48 hours in fridge?
how long in freezer?
at room temp?
in cooler bag?

what about the steriliser at work...

actually will go and check out kellymom.com as am sure there is info there rather than bothering evryone

[mears]

this probably ansewrs questions

I kept mine in fridge for up to 48 hours before freezing because that was guideline at the time. Milk can be kept in fridge for 5 days for use. I just liked to freeze it before first amount expressed was 48 hours old.

[mears]

I hand expressed so that made it easy. Whenever I has spare time I expressed some milk off. I was donating to a milk bank so that is why I did it. Some days I expressed a lot, some days a little. It all mounts up.

[Mum2Ela]

Express from one side while baby is feeding from the other. Takes a bit of getting used to but thats the way I used to get the most milk.

[soapbox]

I found that waking and doing it at 3-4am was highly effective. I managed to express about 10oz at a time during the night which didn't affect my daytime supply at all.

I did have a daisy the cow two side milking machine though Not sure I'd want to be awake for too long in the middle of the night!

[mears]

006 - formula milk is not sterile so organisms starts to grow quickly in it. Breastmilk is full of anti-infective properties and therefore does not grow bugs so readiy.

[Fran1]

I was advised to store each lot of milk seperately, so i bunged whatever i got at each expressing session straight in the freezer ( or fridge if going to be used soon).

But don't add to this, as fresh milk will be warm and adding it to the cold milk in fridge, just brings the temperature back up and encourages bacteria.

So often i'd only express 3oz and so i'd get two or more bags out to defrost for one feed.

You'll be fine, just increase the amounts of expressing and the supply will increase, making it easier for you. I found expressing in the bath was helpful, not sure why, either i was more relaxed, or the warmth of the room.

HTH

[chipmonkey]

If you can afford it , Popsycal, I have found double pumping very good for supply, I pump a couple of hours after ds has gone to bed but he's sleeping through which does help.

[chipmonkey]

But yes, soapbox, it is a bit daisy the cow!

[popsycal]

ds2 still feeds during the night - twice if i am lucky and three hourly if not.....
might be an idea when he is sleeping better!!

[chipmonkey]

Then I'd suggest you should just get your sleep. With ds2 I used to pump twice a day at work and usually made enough for him to drink the next day. So if you just have enough for one day, hopefully that will keep him going! I think a good trick is always to have the pump clean, sterilised and in the fridge so you can grab a few minutes here and there to pump. You can put it back into the fridge and re-use as well, just date the milk from the first expression that day.

[popsycal]

can i just ask about sterilising the pump...obviously it all needs to be sterilised but i dont need to sterilise it at work...what do i do beteen the two pumpiing sessions?
does that make sense?

[SamN]

If it's just for your ds (i.e. not for a milk bank), just washing it in hot soapy water between sessions should be fine. You can sterilise it once a week approx.

With ds1 I used to sterilise every time (such a pain) and freeze the milk after each session. But since then I have realised that it changes the properties (milk stored in the fridge has better immunological properties than milk that has been frozen and then defrosted). So with ds2 I just keep it in the fridge. My milk from Friday lasts in the fridge until he goes to nursery the next Wednesday.

I agree that you only really need one day's supply. With ds2 I didn't manage to build up much milk beforehand but once he was away from me I found expressing a lot easier.

Kellymom.com probably has the guidelines for storage and some good advice on expressing, but if not, try here on the La Leche League International site. The Association of Breastfeeding Mothers leaflet that mears linked to is very useful too although I found their guidelines are somewhat stricter.

[SamN]

another warning - my ds2 may drinks far less at nursery than I am expressing during the day, and then makes up for it in the night! Quite different to his brother... but apparently quite common with babies who have been exclusively breastfed prior to going into daycare.

[popsycal]

thanks sam
I will bear that in mind

so
just to check
i can sterilise the pump on a night, wrap it in cling film (dont know where i read this) put it in the fridge then take it to work in a cool bag
use it
clean it with soapy water and re clingfilm it, put it in the cool bag and use it again 3 hours later
also once i have pumped the milk, i can put the bottle/freezer bag into the cool bag nd it will be fine there til i get home and put it in the fridge

i can pump during the day at home before i go back to work and do the same with the pump
i can have a 'master bottle' in the fridge to put all the days 'expressions' in after they have been cooled spearatly in the fridge - not adding new milk to old until it is at the same temp....

[chipmonkey]

Popsycal what pump do you have? Just that if its an avent one the sealing disc keeps it sterile and you don't need cling-film.

[popsycal]

i have a medela mini elctric

[mears]

popsycal - out of interest have you ever tried hand expressing? It is really fast (and less noisy) when you get the hang of it. No need to faff around with pump at work.

[popsycal]

i tried your marmet method last night and just git afew drips...what am i doing wrong

[Prettybird]

During the day, I just used to put my pump, unwashed, back into an (opaque!) plastic bag and put the whole thing into the fridge ready for my next pumping session. I took the view that the same anti-bacterial properties that allow ebm to be kept for longer than formula would also work on the bits of milk on the pump.

[mears]

Did you massage the breast towards the nipple first. Did you wait for letdown? It can take a minute or 2. Were you in a warm room? Once the letdown starts the milk comes firing out. When it slow down you switch to the other side and keep alternating. Feel down towards the areaol to feel the milk resevoirs (like peas). They usually are at the outside edge of the areola but sometimes they are further back or further forward. It i sthe resevoirs you need to gently queeze. Do not slide your fingers down the nipple as you squeeze. Also press in towards the breast just as you squeeze. Honestly, it is so easy once you hit the right spot

[popsycal]

i didnt wait for letdown but did masage,,,,will try again
it was the 'roll like you are making a thumbprint' bit that confused me