How much do I need to express?

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This is probably a really stupid question but here goes...

I'm exclusively breastfeeding my 4 month old son. However, he has always been a very poor sleeper and wakes up 30-40 mins after I put him down at 7pm and then regularly throughout the night. He is a real 'snacker' and doesnt seem to take in much at each feed. So I'd like to rule out hunger as a reason why he wakes up so much.

So I thought I'd have a go at expressing...it seemed to take me forever to even get 2oz! I dont know if I'd have the time to do it everyday! Perhaps I was doing it wrong... (was using a manual)

I just want to know roughly how much I should be aiming to get for his 'going to bed' at 7pm feed? Like I said, probably a stupid question but since I've not given him a bottle before I'm not really sure how much he should have.

Thanks in advance :)

2oz sounds like a great amount to have got for a first try . Expressing is no guage at all of how much you are producing or he is consuming.

This might not be what you were hoping to hear, but the behaviour and sleeping pattern you describe sounds totally and utterly normal for a 4 month old, if very exhausting . This is an interesting article on the subject of babies this age.

To answer your specific question there's a milk calculator here.

my baby is 16 weeks and has a 7oz bottle of expressed milk every night.

at 6 weeks she was having 6oz and by 9 weeks was having 7oz.

i get 1oz - 2oz per boob normally so i express 3 times a day to get enough.

I have 3 breast pumps, i get the same amount of milk regardless of the pump i use but my medala freestyle (that i use all the time now) gets both boobs done in 8mins

I express;
1 breast at 7am
2 breasts at 7.00pm
1 breast about 9.30pm

i get between 6 / 10oz a day

Its a real faff though....

My ds is also 4 months, bf, and not fond of sleeping.

He was in SCBU so I was expressing from the get go, first using the hospital electric, industrial Medela pump then at home using a manual Avent. We ended up coming home with a stash and it is reassuring knowing it is there in the freezer in case of emergencies.

He has been having his (1st) nighttime feed from dp since day 8 and has never taken more than 60ml, although we live in hope! He did take 250ml in 3 hours from Aunty babysitter when we went out for the evening, so he can do it when he has to!

I always express in the morning (don't think it's a myth that morning milk is best) while ds is on the other boob. This seemed a ridiculous suggestion when put to me but it is very effective and now, with some careful limb arrangement, it is a breeze (but only using the small bottles)! I can get 60ml/2oz in a few minutes and have got as much as 150ml in one sitting. Expressing alone, it takes ages to get anything. The more you relax, the better the flow; think positive!

You can store ebm in the fridge for 8 days so you could try collecting over a few days to make sure you've got enough; you might even be able to get ahead of yourself!

Recently we have tried a bottle of formula before bed. Ds seems to not mind it and will take up to 100ml but it ABSOLUTELY DOES NOT make him sleep any longer. Think I will stop bothering.

Good luck. Even if it doesn't make him feed for longer, if someone else can give him a bottle it gives you a break. And after 4 months you deserve it!