expressing - when is best?

[olivo]

i saw the hv yesterday and she said i could give my 2 1/2 wk dd one bottle of 3-4oz expressed milk in the evenings as i am finding the feeding on demand thing exhausting. when should i express the milk? do i do it after feeding dd on one side then express from the other or do i do it while she is asleep? morning or afternoon? i was so relieved i could start expressing so early i forgot to ask these things! she feeds roughly every 3 hrs.

TIA

I expressed while ds1 was asleep in the mornings, both sides or just one. Have had no time with ds2 dammit as it is really great!

Sounds very familiar (see my thread ). I am expressing mornings as I find for me that's when I get the most milk (and because it's the only chance I now get, when dh takes ds out for a walk in the pram...). When I tried in the evenings I got about a third of what I get in the mornings but maybe it's different for different people.

hi olivo

heres some thoughts on expressing

I think it may be trial and error to start with as to when is the best time for you . Remember to get a good feed off you, you need to have eaten well a short while before. Mornings can be good after a breakfast , say 10 ish but it depends on whe youve fed, and if you feed one side then you can express on the other. The worst time can be late afternoon say 5 , as your more tired then and may feel drained from the day.

Im managing 4oz on one side and then top it up to 6oz with the other and thats the side that may have been fed on , so may be getting some of the creamier stuff. I then decant into 2 bottles of 3oz each. These bottles are then used at the 11pm feed that evening and the following morning at 10am. Other days I use one bottle for the 5pm feed.

Im tending to only express once a day , as it can encourage more production and Im getting quite engorged by night time, but its soo different for everyone and their bodys, it also depends on how your lo feeds.

Im not finding the isis hand pump too bad and I can get 4oz quite quickly (within 7-10mins). Just make sure you readjust its position slightly to get it all flowing well and massaging helps to open all ducts out.

thanks. am determined to give it a try tomorrow, will get dh to take her out for a walk while he is still off work. have been putting it off, not sure why as i'm desperate for dh to be able to give her the late evening feed so i can get some sleep. did some expressing while in hospital as dd was in scbu and didnt find it too troublesome so fingers crossed.

I used to feed DS from 1 side & then express 1st thing in the morning. And then expressed about 10pm from both sides. I found a Medela electric pump much easier than a hand held one & def worth the money. Then DP gave DS the bottle last thing at night. It really does help to egt some early nights. Good luck!

I was going to say the same chocshoes. I found I could express from one side whilst ds fed from the other, used to sterilise my breastpump and leave it next to the bed to use first thing.

I've found I have more in the mornings but was always scared to use that because never seemed to have enough milk. Grr. dd goes down at 7pm and then woken for late night feed so expressed at 9.30 ish. Means you can get to bed early. Depends on your child's routine. I had usually had a rest and meal by then and could guarentee she wouldn't wake up needing some just after I'd expressed it all which happened during the day!