Pumping for bottle feeds

[emvy]

I plan to begin introducing one bottle a day of expressed breastmilk to my DS from 6 weeks. I’m just looking for some advice regarding how best to go about it.

When should I pump?
Should I pump at the same time everyday or vary it up?
DS usually feeds from both breasts and takes an hour to feed in total, should I therefore do the same when pumping?
Most days, DP will give DS his evening bottle before bed so this won’t be a feed I’ll be doing anymore. However, on occasions I obviously might still need to. Should I pump then in order to maintain milk production at this time?

Thanks!

Usually you'll get more in the morning

But it's a hell of a faff unless you NEED to....

And babies sometimes have ideas about it being mummy not a bottle before bed. Mine certainly did for quite some time

Probably easiest/simplest to express at the same time each day.

Don't express for an hour! I'd try 15 to 20 minutes on each side and see how you get on.

It's probably worth starting to express a bit before you start bottle feeding so you can build up a small stash in the freezer in case of any issues.

I would see how you go with not expressing when DH is doing the bottle feed. To begin with you might find you get a bit uncomfortable given that you're increasing the gap between breastfeeds significantly at that time. You might want to express a little for your own comfort.

Thank you both.

Would you say I should pump straight after a feed, or leave it a while before pumping? I’ve read conflicting advice online.

There are some occasions where I’m going to need to leave DS with DP and the in-laws so that’s the main driver for doing it. I just thought giving one bottle a day might mean he’s better at taking it. It did also cross my mind about bottle before bed not being best - I guess we’ll see how we go!