can someone talk me thru expressing please

[MerlinsBeard]

ok, i know its early days (baby monster is only 3 weeks) and i know its probably so easy that an idiot can do it BUT I don't want to affect my supply at all but I do need a break. DS3 feeds every hour and a half to 2 hours day and night and sometimes doesn't settle in between. DP not supportive of me bf as he thinks the solution is to just bottlefeed so not going to get much help from him!

I need a break, i need to be able to go for a walk on my own without the DCs and not worry about whether DS3 will need a feed. Am struggling with having the other 2 boys at home (its half term and ds1 would be at school - ds2 easier to handle on his own)

at this stage expressing could be more trouble than it's worth as you have to take time to sit down somewhere and pump, before you can give someone else the milk to give him, so you might just as well feed ds3 direct.

Can you feed him and then the minute he finishes leg it? even a teeny tiny will be okay for an hour or so with DH and you get time to get your head together.

thats what i was thinking. didn't really want to be on atime limit but if its that or formula then i will take what i can get!

(disclaimer--i have nothing against ff but i just don't want to do it)

I wouldn't want you to affect your supply either, but in my experience I was lucky. Around 3 weeks I had mastitis and expressing was my saviour and I have kept up with the ebm every so often because it has given me 'me' time which I so needed (sounds selfish but I was beginning to fall apart.)

I found in the morning my supply is good for expressing, that and the 7am feed is one of babys shorter feeds, so after a feed I was expressing and was able to use that.. admittedly it can be a bit of a faff with the pump etc, but for me it was/is worth the effort!!

Right - when you start make sure your hands and the room are warm! Expressing with cold nipples is hell on earth.

Gently massage your breast sweeping down towards your nipple, using the flat of your hand. Go all around the breast.

Get your nipple in the middle of the expressing cup thingy and just experiment with the degree of pressure you need. When you can't get any more out of one breast or the flow gets very low then switch to the other breast. You can keep switching between breasts - back and forth. Don't be put off if you get nothing initially - it can take quite a while for your milk to let down when you're expressing.

I always found I got more expressing in the morning. You could try feeding from one and expressing with the other.

BTW - I'd second what everyone has said about leaving it a little bit longer - maybe a couple of weeks? Would that be feasible for you? 3 weeks is the long dark night of the soul with breastfeeding. You will come out into the sunlight very soon!

Just let things settle - you'll find that very soon your supply with stabilise, your baby will probably feed quicker and less frequently and you'll have a bit more mental and physical space.

thank you for replies.

Last night i kind of attached him to me and switched sides every so often. I am SHATTERED today but a half sleep is better than none (isn't it?!) he seems to settle betetr when someone is holding him. I didn't really want to co sleep but if it means i can get the holy grail of parenting and get at least alittle sleep then i will do all i can!

I had forgotten this particular growth spurt, the 6 week one sticks in my mind as being the one that made me meltdown with ds2.

We have no routine at all yet and it will all change again when i have to get DS1 off to school and ds2, ds3 and myself dressed and out in a morning!

I will try and wait but its hard to remember that it will pass!

sorry about not making much sense, am sooo tired! and thank you for replies.

Expressing in the morning was a god send for me as then dh gave ds the expressed feed at 10pm meaning I could go to bed at 9ish and not have to wake up until the 1-2am feed. I think I started around 4 weeks as that is the earliest the HV suggested.
My DS also fed every 2hrs often lasting an hour but at 8 months that now seems like a very very distant memory!