Why can I not express my breast milk?

[S082018]

Hi all

So my little one is now a month old. I am EBF him and on the odd occasion, I've been able to express some of my milk in case I have ever needed to pop out and leave him with someone at home or if we have had to go out in public (I am not comfortable with BF in public - hats off to those who are confident in doing so).

However, these last few days it seems like expressing has just stopped working for me. I used to be able to get at least 3-4oz at a time (even 5oz on one occasion!) but now I'm luckily if I get 1oz or even half an oz.

My baby has been feeding on me a lot more than usual over the past few days so he's leaving me with little opportunity in between feeds, could this be the reason I'm not able to express? How can I overcome this problem?

I really want to be able to express my milk and him take this in the bottle if ever I need to leave him at home or if I go out with him, as opposed to giving him formula. But it is making me wonder if now is the time to start introducing formula on the days where I am not with him to feed 🤔
I know he takes formula just fine - hubby had to give him a bottle on one occasion as my expressed milk wasn't enough for a full feed.

Help please!!

Your supply has probably started settling so you're only producing as much as your baby actually needs, not extra.
You might find you're able to express if you miss a feed, as you will still produce the milk for that feed.
Or you could start expressing at a certain time each day to "trick" your breasts into thinking your baby is feeding at that time. You probably wont get much to start but it may increase if you persist.

Unfortunately some people just arent able to express much or at all and you could just be one of those people, now that your mill supply has levelled off a bit.

I could never express very much, even when my baby stopped feeding for a couple of days due to painful ears. I think not everyone finds it easy- I had a great supply, but pumping was a problem for me.

I think your supply is settling down - if you pump at the same time every day your body will start producing extra milk for that 'feed'.

I always found it hard to get a let down with a pump though, had best results pumping one side with baby feeding on the other.

Once you have a buffer stash in the freezer, you only need to pump to replace what has been drunk that day. You can express while out or straight away when you get home, and should get some because baby won't have been feeding for you.

Have you tried a hakaa? They are great. You attach it to the opposite breast while baby is feeding and you can usually get some. This depends on how long ago the last feed was. In the day I only get 15 mls max per session especially if LO has been feeding lots. However at night as he generally goes for longer stretches I use it then and I get anywhere from 60 to 130mls over the course of the night. Best money I ever spent...way better than my expensive breast pump.

@OnlyLittleMissOrganised how do you store the milk at night? Just wondering about practicalities as no way I'm going you the fridge after every night feed

I just keep it by the bed in a milk storage bag and take it down in the morning. Then I usually freeze it until required. My LO doesnt have a problem with it if I used it the same day or when it's been defrosted.

I like the hakka too because its silent so no noisy pumping in the night.

@OnlyLittleMissOrganised sounds great. Thanks

One tip I heard is to put a sock over the bottle while pumping so you can’t see how much you’re getting. The very act of looking at how much you’ve collected and stressing it’s not enough can cause you to produce less.

I found the earlier suggestion of pumping at the same time of day every day worked. I also got significantly more if I was looking at my baby (I know it sounds strange!).

Thanks all for your replies!

For the past two nights, I've decided to give my little one a bottle of formula for his 10pm feed. He sleeps through till about 2am and at this time, I breastfeed him on one side whilst I pump on the other. This has been working really well as I've noticed I only ever pump decent amounts when he's missed a feed from me!

It's working well so far and it means I get a chunk of sleep as the formula is settling him off to sleep for a longer period of time which is an added bonus 😃

I also used the hakaa pump it was so much better than “pumping” I’d use it overnight and by the morning I would have a good amount to put away. No time spent pumping during the day and no sore nipples from pumping. Wish I’d had it for my first two babies.

Another recommendation for the Haakaa, I use it during all feeds at home and usually get around 60mls if it’s been a few hours between feeds (we still have episodes of cluster feeding so it’s no good then...) I only use the electric pump now if DS is having a bottle of expressed milk.

Just on here to say I could never express much either - had an super strong pump too. The haakaa however was a game changer and I was about to express reasonable amounts with it, well worth getting one!