struggling to express milk, any advice?

[mimpim]

I have had some troubles with this breastfeeding lark, cracked nipples, mastitis etc.
DD is now 6 weeks old and I am over the worst but I would now like to express some milk. I have a christmas do that will mean I have to leave her for a day and night, so will need a fair amount.
But all I ever manage is 1 or 2 floz's. I will never manage to have enough by 15th dec at this rate!!
And surely if I am only getting that much, all I am getting is foremilk?
Help!

Are you using a pump or hand expressing?

If hand expressing has anyone shown you how to do it?

Are you massaging breasts first?

Do you do it with baby close by to you?

Don't worry about fore/hindmilk. Try a warm shower or flannels first or expressing one side while feeding fromt he toher.

I found doing it the morning was best as this was when they were most full up. I was the same as you only getting 2 floz and taking 30 minutes, but then did first thing in morning before I fed him and right up to 8!! Also have to lean over to do it, don't know if its a gravity thing. Good luck.

Sounds obvious but try to ensure there is as much there as possible when you try to express. If you can express just before you are due to feed that would be best. Don't worry about there being enough for baby, they will always get far more out than any pump will. It does take time and practice. After struggling for months I would say to get the best pump you can afford and make it as easy as possible, esp if you are going to be doing it for a while.

No, no-one has shown me how to hand express, but they have given me leaflets. I tried it the other night as I was leaking I thought it would be a good time, but got more on my hands than anywhere else!! Most upsetting!!
Normally I try to use a hand pump, but I keep trying when I am leaking and forgetting to massage first.
I do try it when baby is around, but get distracted. Am I meant to meditate on her!!

Bathing is a good idea, but by the time I organise myself to do that, I get out and she needs fed!!
Might try hot flannels instead.

I think I have myself worked up about it now that my negativity is making me fail!

How do you express whilst feeding. The baby is in the way!

Get up BEFORE the baby wakes!
I can see the logic, I will have to try it but what a thought!!
I am using the tommee tippee close to nature thingy, is that a good one?

you need to 'build in' an extra feed. express at the same time for a week will do that. i did it 1.5 hrs after dd went to bed.

I had to express while ds was on other side to get let down. Keep at it and even within a day or two of just getting a couple of ounces you'll be amazed at how much you've built up!

I agree with the idea of adding in a "feed". I did it every day about 9am, as I had plenty from only having given one feed so far. Over the weeks it built up to about 3 oz in 15 mins, so it didn't seem too bad.

Good luck!

Express whilst you are in the bath (provided you don't use an electric pump .

I returned to work when dd was 12 weeks old so from 4 weeks, i frantically expressed whenever i could, often only getting 2 oz at a a time. But add each one to the freezer and it soon adds up. Once i had got the 'hang' of expressing i was able to work out when were good times for me to do it and get into more of a routine with it. And due to doing it so frequently in the beginning i had built my supply up enough that i was then able to get 5 or so ounces at a time.

Don't feel negatively about it - you sound like you're doing fine just give yourself time to work out best routine and method!

Btw have you started giving your dd a bottle? If not i'd start doing so once a day to ensure she gets used to it because the older they get the less open they are to change iykwim. If you have a partner around who can give her this bottle then its the perfect time for you to express.

Good luck!

I found expressing hard too but if I kept doing it after a few days my supply would of built up and then a good 4oz or so would woosh out. Choose a time when lo isn't feeding and just pump for an hour don't worry about what you get and in a few days it might just start coming.

I used to sit in front of Mumsnet whilst pumping and its amazing how much time can fly by then! Before you know you've read 20 threads and got 4 oz!

Good luck - I have had the same problem. Even when I know there is milk in there, unless I am really bursting at the seams, I have been lucky if I get a teaspoon full - Definitely been more an issue of let down. My hv suggested massaging breast beforehand - and that has helped definitely - massage towards the nipple. Also she suggested just expressing between feeds whenever you can (although admittedly with baby around this is quite a challenge to achieve) - then even if it is only a tiny bit, it does gradually add up. Swapping sides regularly when you are expressing seems to help me too - as it tends to come out a bit faster initially.

Also using breast shells can be quite good - if you leak from the other side when you are feeding - you might as well collect that little bit up, rather than just have it soak into a pad!

Try different times of day - morning is good for lots of people, but I've now found that as I know my dd will sleep for quite a while when she goes down at night, I am actually finding I get more in the evening just before I go to bed... but she is nearly 12 weeks now - and when she was younger like yours, I would always feel I had nothing left at all by the evening. Good luck - keep trying, you'll get there!

also, make sure to start the pump off slowly then gradually build up, that definitely used to help me.

Mimpim - sounds like you are doing brilliantly, especially as your baby is only 6 weeks old. Took me AGES to get more than a couple of ounces at a time with DD. Ended up expressing in the mornings with DD on left boob and expressing from right - never managed to express left-handed!! There is a knack to it however (you need to play around with positioning the baby etc!) and I found using a little 4oz Avent bottle rather than the 8oz bottle the pump came with much easier.
HTH

also you could try expressing off the one lo isn't on iykwim then when your let down goes it'll be easy!

I've always found Avent pumps better than others but that's just me! The first time I used an Avent manual pump I got 10oz! But I do have friends who didn't find the Avent any good, my cousin swears by Medela which I found useless! I never got the hang of hand-expressing either.
What I have seen people suggest is to create an extra "feed" by expressing at the same time every day. This creates more demand and apparently your supply will gradually increase at that time of the day.

Thanks everyone. I managed to get 3oz this morning by pumping away before she woke up! That all came out within about 5-10, I kept going for another 5 but nothing more came out. Seemed strange?
So I nipped for a shower and tried to get some more out after that by massaging etc but to no avail. Think I was trying to hard eh! I just got excited at getting 3oz and wanted to just continue.

My HV told me today that by the time my christmas do comes around she will be needing 6oz a feed, so that has doubled my target! oh dear.
She aslo told me that I can try to get DD used to the bottle by giving her cooled, boiled water. So at least I won't have to use my precious supply getting her used to the bottle. I was glad to hear that because that had me thinking I would never manage it all at all!!

Bear in mind she may not like water, so if she isn't keen on it and you are trying to get her used to the bottle you could offer her 1 or half an ounce before a breast feed, when she is hungry and will probably take it? My ds took milk from a bottle at 8 wks and wasn't bothered in the slightest! I'm sure it will be fine.

if its a let down problem then think about the situations when you start leaking milk. For some people that means thinking about thier baby feeding, personally I noticed that it would start coming out when I had sex . Next time i expressed i thought dirty, and whoosh out it came! . I'd try and give her a bottle soon so you dont have a refuser on your hands the night of your party!