Expressing - sterilisation & storage of equipment

[burritofan]

Please help me wrap my head around cleaning vs sterilisation of equipment, the order you do it in and your routine!

DD is 6 weeks old and firmly in the fourth trimester "don't put me down while sleeping" camp, so not sure how well expressing will work, if I can manage to get enough while she's on her bouncer – but I'd like to try to be able to palm her off on DP sometimes, especially as we'll be doing shared parental leave.

I have a Medela hand pump that I find a bit tricky (I'm squeamish about my nipple flying off down the tube so I don't pump it enough!) so just invested in a Medela Swing electric double pump and hands-free bra (though how well I can use this with a babe in arms?), a Haakaa, milk storage bags and microwave sterilisation bags.

So. Assuming I can wrangle this stuff around the Velcro baby, do I: express and store the milk, then dismantle the pump and clean it ASAP, then sterilise (assuming I only express once a day so can do this right away), air dry, then store it til the next day - where? Sandwich bag in fridge? Handbook says an air-permeable cloth bag? Tupperware? Or sterilise immediately before first use each day?

Do you store parts separately and assemble right before use, or assemble when dry and store whole? Feel like I need 9 pairs of hands to do all this and manage DD.

Do I need to sterilise once a day? DP says dishwasher is enough but instructions suggest that's just cleaning, not sterilising. Help! For what it's worth, DD was born at 40+12, healthy weight and happily packing on the pounds but obviously still little.

I just leave it in the steriliser until I need it again the next day. La Leche League say you don’t need to sterilise, but I always did.

Haakaa on one side while baby is feeding is much easier than trying to double pump (even hands free...) But you might find single pumping manageable while baby is resting. But yes, it feels like you need at least 9 pairs of hands.
In terms of cleaning and storage, I had to pump in hospital (continued after too). I'm in Scotland and the midwives on the ward just advised washing in hot soapy water, rinsing and airdrying. This is the NHS advice in Scotland- check out the "feedgood" website.

In terms of storage, I left the bits drip drying on a clean tea towel on the counter in my kitchen and covered them with another tea towel. If I was expressing more than once a day (and I often was- not a period in my life I'd rush to repeat) I rinsed the pump parts through with hot water fron the tap post use then bunged them in the fridge until I needed them again. Kept them in a tupperware box to keep them together.

On a slightly different note- is there a reason you are worried about your nipple with the hand pump? If you feel an awful lot of your nipple and areola are being sucked in it might be worth checking the size of the flange is right. The standard one with Medela is described as 24mm and this was too big for me; a lot of my breast tissue was being sucked in with that. There's a measuring guide on their website. If it's just a general worry I'm not sure the electric pump won't make you feel the same- it's quite sucky. I do get the "arg I'm going to pull my nipple off" thing though- it's a bit like getting your legs waxed vs trying to pull the strip off yourself i.e. it feels like it's not you doing it so less traumatic...
Hope all goes well.

it's a bit like getting your legs waxed vs trying to pull the strip off yourself i.e. it feels like it's not you doing it so less traumatic...
It's exactly this! It's not like I'm bothered by the baby sucking my nipple off (maybe sometimes...), it's just a random squeamishness thing. Like hand expressing, I just couldn't.

Don't think any breast tissue is getting sucked in and a midwife was there when I used it and seemed to think it was fine but I'll look at the measuring guide, thank you!

Hopefully it's a flange issue and easily fixed by getting a different part, but I just wanted to say that I simply didn't get on with Medela (used one at the hospital) and much preferred my Philips Avent for fit and comfort (still using occasionally 8 months in). I realise this may seem a little unhelpful as you've already bought the pump, but it's worth bearing in mind just in case you really don't get on with it.

I use a microwave steam steriliser. When I was expressing (what felt like) 'all the time' I'd leave the equipment and bottle in the steriliser 24/7 and take it out as required. Everything would get sterilised together regardless of whether it had been used (e.g. if I pumped but didn't give a bottle), to ensure it was fresh for the next use.

These days I only pump if I'm going out somewhere, so I sterilise before and after use, then drip dry and put back into the box. I like to store milk in bags (my favourite are by Lansinoh, best value on Amazon) and freeze.

The advice given to me by a nurse (and ex midwife) regarding sterilising is that all feeding equipment should be sterilised before 6 months. After that, you don't need to worry about sterilising food related items, but you should still sterilise milk related items (bottles/teats in particular are good breeding grounds for bacteria).

When in the fourth trimester I used to sit/'upright recline' on the bed or sofa, then nestle DS in my lap/against my legs. That way he was lulled into thinking he was getting cuddles but was hands free. I could usually manage a whole session expressing in this manner before he told me off!

I bought the microwave steam sterilising bags. Wash up the pump parts in hot soapy water, steam them, pour the water out and leave the bits in the bag until needed. Sometimes I leave the kit in the microwave until needed. Basically as taught on the neonatal unit.

I hate hand pumping compared to electric. Way too slow, and the effort while juggling everything else is awful. But I don’t pump enough to make buying an electric worthwhile.