when should u express bmilk from??

[SANA]

I am a new mum to b & am getting confused with all the info I am getting on expressing milk, the mws seem to b saying once the milk supply is established ( 6wks??), a friend recently told me once the milk comes in ( after about 3days) & i read somewhere that u can do it from day one ( even though the milk has not come in)??? what would b your advice?

you can do it from day one if it is just for the purpose of improving your supply - but if you are doing it with a view to substituting a bottle of expressed milk for a breastfeed, it is a best to wait at least a couple of weeks, till you and baby have got into the swing of bfing. i expressed before my milk came in (i think from when ds was 3 or 4 days old) as there were problems with DS having jaundice (and my milk came in later that than it ought).

Leave it as long as you can. Unless you have to express I wouldn't bother for a while (at elast 6 weeks). Apart for the fact that it hurts if you do it too soon it takes a while for your milk to be established and settle. I tried early on and it hurt.

btw I had problems with supply/milk coming in so was told to express by the midwives. if bfing goes well, you shouldn't need to express to improve your supply.

With your first baby, I would suggest you leave it for a few weeks - concentrate on getting all the other bits going!

There's no 'should' about expressing anyway. Plenty of mothers never bother ever. See what works for you.

As everyone says, it's absolutely not mandatory. BUT ... if you want or need your baby to take the bottle, for whatever reason, it's worth trying them on expressed milk between four and six weeks. There seems to be a bit of a magic window for getting them to accept the bottle, and if you miss it, getting them to take the bottle gets a lot harder, or so I'm told.

My ds2 is 3.5 weeks now, and I've expressed a few times, as it always takes me ages to get anything, and I want to have a good big bottle for when we try it, later this week. I expressed and gave ds1 bottles fairly often, to try to encourage him to sleep.

No evidence for a window, NQC, magic or not ....people's experiences differ so much with this, I don't think it's helpful to suggest any time at all (not getting at you, but it is a myth that bothers me a lot!)

totally agree with tiktok

I did in the very early days whilst in hospital because ds was too sleepy to latch on having been a long ventouse delivery and developing jaundice - at least that way he got some colostrum. However it was really time consuming for just a small amount and I felt like a cow attached to the industrial-sized pump. Having finally got breast feeding going I only started to express again when I had a blocked duct at around 8/9 weeks.

With dd I did express before 6 weeks as I wanted to have some banked for when I could not be with her. However the amounts produced seemed very small ,it would take several goes to produce enough for a feed, it was hard to fit it in between the normal feeds and it was easier to just breast feed her because she'd fuss more over a bottle anyway. I don't think it compromised my supply but my nipples were a bit sore with constant use and it was a hassle remembering to sterilise in time. In the end I don't think we really benefitted. Even when I was advised to express and feed her ebm when she was unwell at 3 months I still found it a struggle to fit it in although I know of others who could produce a full feed in minutes.

As a new mum, your priority should be getting to know your baby. Leave all the 'should' stuff for now. Unless you absolutely have to express to feed your baby while you're away, don't. I expressed at about six weeks, but DS wasn't interested in a bottle particularly. However, as going back to work loomed, I decided I'd have to persevere. With a little and often approach, he was soon taking a bottle happily from anybody (but me best, oddly!).

Don't worry about reading things or taking well-meaning advice from friends - or if you do read things or get given advice, just sift through it, see which bits fit you and ignore the rest.

I breastfeed, co-slept when we both needed sleep, express for going back to work and am only just starting to wean using bits of food rather than endless purees - DS is 28 weeks old. I realise these things don't necessarily suit everyone, but I don't tell everyone they have to do them, so that's fine! Just do what feels comfortable for you and enjoy your baby. I think we get too hung up on advice these days (I know the only time I ever felt depressed was when I dipped into Gina Ford - DS hadn't read the book so had no idea what he was expected to do - LOL!).

HTH
HM xxx

tiktok, I'm sure you're right about the magic window, I just want to believe in it as I'm planning a Very Important night out in late November, and will need ds2 (who will be 2 months then) to take the bottle. Well, I guess he could just scream endlessly at whoever dh has conned into taking care of him ...

I'll know how he feels about the bottle later this week ... wish me luck.

Message withdrawn

Definitely recommend not doing anything you don't need to do in the early days. Just coping with the baby was quite enough for me, it was weeks before I felt sorted out enough to express.

NotQuiteCockney - I remember vividly a night out at almost exactly the same stage, dd had taken a bottle 3 days consecutively before I went out and then of course wouldn't drink a drop whilst I was actually out and about! But try not to worry about it, at that age they're really not going to waste away in the time you're away.

Tiktok is right about the mythical window of opportunity - but it is true that if a baby is not used to taking a bottle there may be some serious training to be done. We were successful at 7 weeks, then didn't bother for a few weeks and spent a good 2-3 weeks doing bottle training at 5 months with a view to me returning to work at 5.5 months!

This topic is so individual - it really does need to be what feels right for you.

I started expressing and getting DH to give DS a bottle at 6 weeks. I don't know about "a magic window", but just went on the MW advice to get BF established before contemplating anything else. Also, I waited for 6 weeks because, for me, it took a while to get the hang of breast feeding. That was something I didn't expect - I thought BF was going to be a doddle - it is wonderful, but it took a few weeks for both myself and my son to "get the hang of it".

DS didn't take to the bottle the first time round (he guzzled it all and then threw up everywhere), but he did manage it on the second attempt. I then breastfed and bottle fed (both expressed milk and formula) for six months, which gave us quite a lot of flexibility. I have a good friend who only breast fed with no bottles at all, and that worked really well for her too. So, again, it's what works for you.

Oh, if you do decide to express, I found that I only got 1/2 ounce to start with, then 1 ounce, then 2, until finally a few months down the track I was getting 6 or 7. It seems it takes a while for the boobs to know what to do with the pump, so don't get disheartened if you do try, and you don't get much out to begin with.

Good luck SANA - look forward to chating with you about your experiences. Above all, if there is any advice anywhere that was useful to me, it was - DO WHAT FEELS RIGHT FOR YOU (regardless)

Thank you all- the reason I want to express is really want dh to be involved and I get tired so easily, cant imagine what its going to b like when baby is born so thought if dh could give last nightly feed maybe i could get some rest, i think I will get the expressing machine and then take each day as it comes, feels like there is so much to learn...........

I agree with pixiefish. Pumping can definitely hurt at first. I tried it several times early on but was already suffering from cracked nipples etc and when I started to pump it just slpit it open (nice!).

I managed to finally sort out bf without pain at around the 6 week mark. After that when I mustered up the courage to try pumping again, it was ok, although is still much harsher than a baby.

Do whatever suits you. I started expressing with the medala mini-electric within the first fortnight so that I could go to bed at 9pm-ish while dh gave dd a late bottle. Never found it any more painful than b/f. No problems with dd taking the bottle or "nipple confusion" (or whatever) and she breastfed til she decided to stop at 10 months.
Good luck whatever you decide is best for you