Advice needed-Expressing in early days

[lovemybabyboy]

I am 12+2wks with DC3, I breastfed DS1 for 7 months and stopped after my supply went down when I returned to uni, so with DS2 I really wanted to bf for a year but only made it to 9 months because again my supply went down due to mix feeding untill I had no milk left!
So next time with DC3 I really am determined to get to at least 1yr bf, so I am wondering whether in the early days when milk first comes in whether it would be a good idea to express after feeding to empty my breasts then I could freeze the leftover milk for future use?
With DS1 he fed for 40 mins every 1 and half hours so I had no problems untill I started mix feeding when I returned to uni when he was 6 months but with DS2 he only fed for 5 to 10 mins every 3 hours!! So my breasts were very full even after feeding which led to me suffering really badly with mastitis so by the time he was 2 months I just needed a break and started giving him a bottle of formula every day, I should have asked for help when after a few months my supply was becoming more and more affected but I was embarrassed, I thought they would think I was a failure etc for not ebf!

Sorry this is so long but I just really don't want the same to happen again and wondered whether expressing and freezing the extra milk in the early days would be a good idea and maybe prevent mastitis as my breasts wouldn't be so full?
Thanks in advance.

hi. Will you be going to uni/leaving baby this time or will you have a full year off with baby?

Your boobs never actually empty. When you pump more milk between or after feeds you are telling your body to make more milk. Your baby, when left to feed as often as he/she likes, (feeding on demand-which is fine if you are together) takes as much milk as baby needs and your body produces just the right amount (takes 6 weeks to establish your supply after birth).

If you are away from baby you'll need to express regularly to keep up your supply so your body knows it still needs to produce the milk. Your baby may get nipple confusion in the first few months if you offer a bottle/dummy so if you can exclusively breast feed for the first 3 months all the better.

I'm not an expert but I beeline that the composition of breast milk changes as the baby grows, so what you produce at a certain stage would not be so suitable to use a month later. I expressed every day right from when my babies were two weeks old and it really helped establish a great supply and I only ever used the expressed milk for top up feeds in the evening within the same week when I felt tired or run down. Both of mine were happy to feed from a bottle from an early age and we experienced no nipple confusion at all.

'believe' Not 'beeline'!

Hi thanks for replying, I am working now but just returned from mat leave in October with DS2 (I had a year off) so thinking I will just be taking 9 months off this time round, would like to ebf this time with no formula as I know this is what messed up my supply last two times, but obviosly if I return to work when baby is 8/9 months old I will have to give them a bottle while I am at work but if I express I should have a good amount frozen for when I go back (how long does it last in the freezer-I have never frozen it before).

So do you think expressing in the early days will not help? DS2 really did not drain much of my breast so I really was very full still after feeding where as with DS1 they felt empty after feeding him.

I know if I express then my breasts will just make more but I really am just hoping that it would help me to not develop mastitis again? Sorry if I am sounding really stupid! I just really want to feed DC3 for at least a year and felt like I failed the first two time!

Thanks merryng just saw your reply after I replied! will have to do more research on expressing then, I didn't express with DS2 and did only a few time with DS1 but that would have been used the same day in a bottle given to DS1 by DH.

obviously if you are still feeling full and sore you should express some off until you are comfortable. i dont think we need to get hung up on what stage of their life they get the milk im sure the composition does change but its still breast milk and thats what counts. people donate milk to give to prem babies nobody says it has to be a certain age milk as long as it is stored properly and used within the time limits (3 days in the fridge -6 months in the freezer 6 hours at room temp).
b milk lasts 6 months in the freezer xx

you didnt fail your other two! god youve been amazing feeding 7 and 9 months. it makes such a difference to them bfing for the first 6 months of their lives. honestly youve done amazing.

Thank you so much for your support and advice.