question re expressing

[LeilahB]

My daughter is 2 weeks old and I'm breastfeeding her. I'm keen for my husband to give her a late evening feed of expressed milk so that I can go to bed early. Does anyone know how much milk I should express for one feed at this stage? Thanks

[catjo13]

I don't know the answer to this, but just from experience expressing what looks like a reasonable amount of milk takes a while to start with. I remember doing a 4oz bottle for my daughter, which took forever and then she went and ate it all in one go when I left her with my mum for an hour. I think it really depends on the baby and what time of day it is - mine seem to eat more in the evenings. See what you can get out and take it from there. Btw give it a few weeks and you will be able to express 8oz in record speed !

[helibell]

The amount that you can express will vary from day to day too. Catjo13's suggestion seems like a good one - see what you can get out without too much trouble, give it a few days & you'll work out what she needs. I think my baby used to take about 4oz at that age.

If it's any help, I used to do exactly the same & what worked best for me was to give my daughter one boob first thing in the morning, and then express from the other before topping her up - that way there is lots of milk ready for expressing. Nothing more miserable than pumping from a dry old boob...

[Moos]

Advice I was given by the breastfeeding specialist at King's was to give the same amount in oz as baby's weight in kg. So for a baby of 3.5 kg try 3.5oz - obviously you'll then need to adjust depending on your child. She also suggested not heating up the full amount at once, so as not to waste any if the baby doesn't want it all.

Good luck!

[LeilahB]

Thanks so much for all the tips! Over-excited at the prospect of a couple more hours sleep!

[prm]

For bottle size I follow this rule for formula fed babies "150ml per day per kg" (which divided by the number of feeds per day gives you the bottle size) plus I add a little bit extra as breastmilk is "lighter" than formula. I then let her take as much as she wants - this is a different issue but I have to say at times we struggle a bit as she prefers the boob and is not too keen on the bottle.

So far I have only tried giving a full bottle feed in the evening but I know other mums that are using expressed milk to top up after breasfeeding in the evenings when babies are hungrier and sometimes don't seem to get enough from the boob.

What I would say is don't despair if you don'get loads of milk at first, it takes a few goes to get the hang of expressing and what times are best etc. I express mostly in one go, first thing in the morning when the boobs are really full (as you produce more milk overnight) plus a little extra in the evening while my husband is giving her the bottle (personally I can?t get any after feedings, she takes everything). Also bear in mind that apparently "babies are better at getting milk than the expressing machine" so don't worry even if you don't get much it doesn't mean / the baby is not getting enough.

Good luck!

[ClareC]

Can't remember what they drink at that age, but a top tip is to not heat up/store in too greater quantitities- it's heart breaking when it goes to waste!!

I used to store in 50ml quantities even though my daughter usually had more than this - that way if any went to waste it was always less than 50ml (which is still too much in my book!!)

Good luck and enjoy the longer sleep.

My partner and I did the same from 3 weeks, it made a huge difference!

[LeilahB]

Was only able to express 3oz but it bought me an extra 2 hours of sleep - bliss! Thanks all.

[Saffron]

If you find you don't get much expressing from just one breast at a time, try a double pump. I laughed at these when I first saw them, but I get better let-down when I express simultaneously.

Also, if you have a very sucky baby -- like I did/do! -- try a bottle with a slower teat. Otherwise, baby just gulps down all the milk in one quick go. I have two breastflow bottles you're welcome to have if interested. xx

[gwod]

I found that listening to this helped...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C18tIlNLRCk

[sandy_rose]

Expressing from one boob while baby feeds from the other seems to work really well too.