Question about expressed breast milk

[snowchick1977]

hi, ive just started expressing some milk, using an electric pump.....what a bloody faff with bottles etc :( - i now regret cursing exclusively bf, as its so much easier - never thought id say that!

Anyway, ive done it so that my husband can do a few feeds whilst Im out.

I have a few questions:

• how much should i look to be able to express from one breast, i've only managed to get 1-2 ounces from one breast

• im paranoid about expressing from both breasts inbetween feeding my daughter in case it affects supply etc

• if i get one ounce can i combine all of the milk together to make one big feed. At the moment i only need it for 2 feeds a week, so would you recommend storing it all in the fridge.

Thanks in advance.....again!

the amount you can express varies from woman to woman, some can't express anything at all, some absolutely loads. If you express at teh same time each day, your body will think of it as an extra feed so you may well find you start getting more per session.

Yes you can combine all the milk together, but you will need to make a note of the date of the first lot you expressed, and take that as the "use by" date.

Have you tried expressing from one side while feeding from the other? you may find you get more that way. It takes a bit of practice to get the knack though - you do seem to need 4 hands!

Just to add to that, if you're storing in the fridge (at the back of the shelf, not in the door) you can add what you get within a 24 hour period, then use or freeze that.

You might find it better, though, to freeze in something like 2 oz amounts because then when it's used your DH can defrost small amounts rather than a full 5 or 6 oz bag, and waste 1/2 of it.