Expressed milk

[Haribolover]

I think I am going to start expressing for DD aged 5 weeks. Her weight gain is slow and she is at bottom percentile so this seems better option than formula and suggested by paediatrician. Also like the idea DH can give the odd feed when I eventually get a night out.

Some questions-

1. Is thus a good plan?
2. Should I start using bottles or cup feed first? If bottles what are the best?
3. Anything else I need to consider?

Haribolover: the easiest and most effective way to get more breastmilk into a baby whose weight gain is causing concern is to do these things:

• feed more often especially at night
• do breast compression (google it) use at* least both breasts on every occasion
• switch feed (moving to the other breast and back again and then back again as soon as the baby seems to stop sucking well)

If you have not tried all of these together then it is too soon to decide to switch to expressing which is time consuming and labour intensive.

Is her weight a genuine problem? What are the details?

Hi, i exclusively pump for my ds as we had problems with bf but i still wanted him to have bm.
In answer to your questions:

1. It's a good plan if you're sure it's theroute you want to take. I work on a rough schedule of expressing every 3 hours as i'm still establishing supply.

1. I used bottles from the start so no advice on cups. I use avent classic bottles. If you want to do a combination of bf and expressing you may want to researchbottles that make the baby work like feeding from a breast.

1. You will need a good pump. I started off with a manual pump and then progressed to an electric pump. Currently waiting for my double pump to arrive so that ican reduce my expressing time. Not many people see eping as an option but it is doable.

Hth

I wouldn't use cups at such a young age, even beakers arent recoomended until 3-4 months x

Our LO has been bottle and boob fed since two weeks without issue, for the same reasons...slow weight gain. He gets last boob feed from me, then striaight away OH tops him up with expressed milk. I sleep, from the last boob feed, so I get a few solid hours, then I'm back on duty again. Seems to have helped with the weight gain, as well as us getting some latch issues sorted.

I've started expressing for my dd who is 17 days old, although for different reasons (so OH can get involved in feeding her and because I'm not yet confident with bf out in public) and she has taken to it well. She is still bf most of the time so it's only occasionally. I got the medela swing electric pump which is very good. It came with their 'calma' teat thing to use with the bottle but its rubbish. We have got some Avent 0+ month bottles instead which are great and she's had no problem going from breast to bottle and back.

Sorry, didn't really answer the question! Consider a good pump, if you do decide to express. In terms of bottles I think all babies are different as each person will find their little one prefers different ones...it can be expensive getting the right one. We personally find Dr Browns brill, but our little one has reflux and it seems to help a bit.

I breastfeed and express bottle feed my son, since 4 weeks and daughter since two weeks. My milk supply stayed fine (I make sure to pump every 4-5 hours) and breastfeed a few times day/night. Both babies fine with the bottle. Actually, better w the bottle...bc my breasts squirt milk out too fast. My daughter, who is older, did well on breast after 3 months...hoping my son will improve. I think this time around I've got more forceful let down though :(

I think u will be fine if u pump a lot and make sure to do lots of skin and breastfeed if u can as well to keep up milk supply.

Cup feeding is fine for newborns, I did it in hospital. You just put the cup to their lips and they lap like a kitten, so cute!

I'd follow tiktok's advice though, she knows her stuff. I'm not sure you were thinking of expressing full time as opposed to just topping up but if the former I know from my friend's experience it is absolutely punishing and hard to sustain long term as pumping is so much less efficient at getting the milk out so it's slower and then you have to feed the baby and wash and sterilise...

I should add though that cup feeding is very slow so you'd only do it if you were concerned about the baby developing a preference for the bottle as you wanted to continue feeding from the breast