Expressing & formula combi feeding info

[Jen306]

Hi
Does anyone have any tips or can point me in the direction of advice/info on expressing and combining with formula?
I can find advice on breast feeding and combi feeding but not on expressing and formula.

I’m not sure how to fit in pumping - if theres a schedule for pumping that might be useful to combine with them expressed bottles and formula feeds.

Thanks

I had plenty of friends with premature babies who did this.

How old is your child? If you want to establish and maintain your milk supply then you need to express as often as they would feed- every 3 hours or more.

If you are already well established with milk then you can be more flexible, but still try to express regularly. You basically want to express as often as you would breastfeed if you were combi-feeding. You don’t have to do it at the same times of course! Eg if baby was doing 3xbf then a bottle at night then do three express sessions spread through the day.

I’d be doing it from a couple of days in once the colostrum passes and milk comes in.

I have expressed and fed formula since birth.
I feed my daughter on demand, as you would with breast feeding.
Initially for the first 5 weeks, I expressed every 2 hours during the day and once over night, ether 2 or 3am depending on what time I expressed before bed.
Try not to go for more than 6 hours overnight without expressing.
I was quite lucky at the start and my daughter would wake just after I’d expressed. During the night.
I now express 3-4 hrly during the day as I was struggling to find time to do anything else around expressing and then feeding. (Daughter is now 10weeks old)
I express for 10-15minutes each breast, double pumping is meant to yield more milk, but not for me.
I feed expressed milk at bedtime, night feed and 2nd day time feed (first day time feed is formula with gaviscon in it for reflux) formula at all other feeds as I have a pretty poor supply but can’t bring my self to stop expressing just yet.
If you have any questions, just ask, and I’ll try my best to answer!