Colostrum Harvesting

[bestwisheskindregards]

I'm 37 weeks pregnant and have started trying to harvest colostrum but so far I've been completely unsuccessful.

I'm a FTM and have no idea if I'm doing it right. I've watched videos but still no idea if it's right. I have quite large areolas at this point in pregnancy (hello chocolate digestives!) and all the videos of knitted boobs have quite small areolas. Does areola size change where you need to place your hand in the C shape?

For those that have successfully harvested colostrum, how does it feel when it's "right"? What should your breast tissue feel like?

Also, has anyone been unsuccessful in colostrum harvesting but still been fine with breastfeeding in any previous pregnancies? If I fail to harvest any at all, I worry slightly about my ability to breastfeed 😬

I found that originally I was squeezing too near the end where the tissue was softer. It wasn't until I moved back a bit to where the tissue felt firmer (almost like a big ball under the surface?!) that I started to get good results. And squeezing together and inwards, rather than pulling forward. I don't know if everyone's feels like that, but that's just what helped me!

Have another search on YouTube, there are videos of people hand expressing with actual breasts. It makes a much more sense that way. I think I was surprised by how far from the nipple your fingers actually need to be when compressing.

Are you warming your breast up before hand with lots of stroking?

I couldnt get any colostrum out before the birth and apparently this is very common. I hand expressed loads after birth as DD was tube fed then syringe fed as she was in NICU.

I am pretty sure however that my attempts at colostrum harvesting are what brought on my labour, so hope you've got your hospital bag packed!

Hmm I thought it was all bobbins tbh. I didn’t get a single drop. Had a c section. Milk didn’t come in for 5 days (but she presumably did get some colostrum as she seemed pretty happy). Still breastfeeding at 10 months.

Hello

I know this is a bit of an old thread but I was just wondering how you all got on with colostrum harvesting?

I am a midwife and I am trying to design a research study about colostrum harvesting. I am looking for a few volunteers to simply ask about their experiences and to ask what areas surrounding colostrum harvesting would be good to investigate in my research study.

If any of you would be willing to have a chat with me it would be much appreciated! Please PM me if interested x