April 2007 - Every thread of wit has been extrapulated from me i'm afraid... I have a newborn baby!

[ellenkpa]

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maveta if i give Joe a bottle I then express the feed he misses, that way I always keep one feed in the freezer and I don't confuse my boobs!

Maveta, dh used a dummy on K last night as we were having trouble settling her due to what we think is silent reflux, and it worked a treat. I have to admit I wouldn't use it all the time, as I know it can be hard to wean the babes off them, but when she is making out she is hungry still and we know she cannot possibly be, in goes the dummy!

How do i sterilise? Just done micro sterilise, now can I touch stuff with clean hands? Have to really to put together the expresser thing. Do I have to dry stuff? How long will it stay OK?

Ellie, thanks for the email xx

Hi Katy. I touch the stuff with freshly washed hands. I dont dry it, just put it together and make sure the caps go on so it isnt open to the air too long. Is it bottles you are doing? With teats you use the little pincer things which go in the steriliser at the same time to pull through the bottle necks. I also use them to squeeze the water out of the dummy if there is any left. I dont think that anything can be perfectly sterile as you have to handle it, but just be as clean as possible. Thats how I do it anyway but dont know if its right. I use a steam steriliser and I know that the stuff remains sterile for 3 hours as long as you dont lift the lid.

Ellie - so then at this stage expressing doesn´t really give us a break at all, right? Cos we still have to express when we would be feeding. bleurgh. What a pain.

Still finding it confusing. At the mo´ he takes 10mins from each breast at every feed. So if I express off one does that mean he will need to feed double the time off the other breast? Am I going to empty my boob and leave him hungry?
Aaaaaaaargh! help!

SOKL - we don´t use it permanently and if he falls asleep with it in he normally spits it out shortly after. Dh had a dummy til he was 7 (!!!) and sees no problem with that so am not worried about weaning him off it at all. My sisters still suck their thumbs and they are in their 20s and 30s, thumb sucking significantly damaged my little sister´s teeth and this little one was already starting to suck his so I´m all for him having a dummy instead.

Katy - not sure what steriliser you´ve got, I´ve got an avent electric one and it has a 6 hour cycle or 24 hour cycle and it comes with tongs to remove any parts that will go in the baby´s mouth, of course you can touch any other parts with clean hands just fine.

ok, best ask CD on the expressing front, i'm no expert

if i do miss a feed and not express it i find that i'm overfull but just express a little to make his latch easier at next feed.

this is why they say wait til your supply is established i think!

Thanks mammyjo - going to put it all together now!
That's what I thought, but you never know, I thought there must be some trick I didn't know about! I'm doing my expresser bits, and some bottles and dummies.

and on the sterilising issue, i'm a bit slack on that, it goes in the dishwasher but not too fussed about faffing with it afterwards, if it's clean i use it, think sterilising is bollocks tbh, there are germs everywhere (especially on Matthew's thumb which goes in joe's mouth!)

Yes ellie, i dont get why i can only kkeep dummies for 3 hrs once sterile (with their caps on) but i stuff my finger in his mouth after picking my nose!!
(not quite but ykwim)
ok my boobs were squirting milk a sec ago, why is this expresser not getting any??

expressing isn't always easy Katy, try using the flat of your hand to gently press down on your boobs, kinda pushing the milk down IYSWIM

getting more out like that than with the expresser

now try using the expresser while you do it

some people find that they can't use pumps but can express by hand, or vice versa

i can't do it by hand, but can use the pump

Managed to get about 5ml
Going to give him that when he wakes up.
Hand expressing worked, the expresser didn't get anything! Ellie, I tried what you suggested, but I found I have to squeeze really, and can't do that when I'm plugged in!

Hello all I am Back and on the right thread this time

I haven't had time to read any posts as there are just too many, mind you saying that I did read my twin mummy mates post

Ooooggs I will eamil you with the boring details about our bed time routine.

Oh and I did see something on dummies, I am all for dummies anything to give me some peace!!!!

I don;t sterilise dummies - the boys regularly shive their fingers in his mouth LOL! I usually shove my finger in his mouth rather than dummy but sometimes need to put him down/have spare hand!

I would use a steriliser but not worried about touching them etc once done. Haven't looked into new regs yet for ff but think would use cartons if just doing odd top ups and if ff would leave water in bottle and add formula when need to use - and leave it at room temp ready to use .

Have just eaten 10 rich tea biscuits!

Ernie sleeping lots today - catching up on last night So have got a few jobs done and played with ds2

Oh have just seen aomething about expressing not sure what the conversation is but here is my two pence worth.

I BF 1 DT and then the other who is not having breast milk get's expressed milk, the way that I do it is 2hrs after I have breast fed I express, I make sure I have a huge cup of tea or something in the 2 hour gap, then I start off with 10mins of hand expressing then I do 5mins on each breast for 20mins, mind you this has left my nipples 12inches long

i don't know if that has any relavence for the conversation just thought I would add it in case it is any help

Katy is having probs getting milk out kneehigh so yes, that might help

5 more biccies

I tried to express yesterday - disasterous - would like top tips too please

Katy-on the sterilising dummies I don't do my dt's if they fall on the floor I just stick it in my mouth and give it a suck then pop it back in theirs.
My boob's arn't sterilised and they don't do them any harm.

katy-are you b-fing then expressing? Or just expressing?

I find that at night when I am lazy and one DT has formula in the morning I have extra milk, if I wake up an hour early and express before I bf I have extra for a night feed so only one feed has to be formula.
Mind you it does take me longer to feed in the morning as the milk is less, but they both seem happy with what they are getting.

Thanks KHIN and octo. I wondered if I was just being thick about the sterilising thing, I'm a bit sceptical about how necessary it actually is - I'll keep doing it of course but won't get paranoid about it!
KHIN - do you express from just one breast each time? Can't get my head round how you would feed twins!

Just bf so far but would really like to know that I can express, that it's an option. Plus I might end up doing the odd half day at work in a few weeks so will need to have it sorted by then (or use cartons of formula).
This one's really a trial run, just to try out all the equipment / sterilising / expressing thing, although I will feed him the milk when he wakes up.

I express from both breast's with 5 mins on each for hand expressing then 4 lots of 5 mins on each with my pump.

I also feed on both side's aswell as my boobs are i such constant use I find it just makes them that little bit less sore.