How does my wife go about expressing & storing milk?

Question

We are a little confused, so try and stay with me for this one.

We have a wedding to go to next month so my little girl is going to stay with nanny after for a few (who knows how long?) hours whilst we go to the reception/party.

The thing is, how do you go about expressing, when the time to do it is actual feeding time? Can she continue pumping after a feed? What can be done if she can't pump enough for a feed and for a full bottle? Can we continue to fill the same bottle if we were to come back to it (i think not what with inadvertedly warming the milk whilst you continue to fill)?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated, fill free to ask any questions if i have confused you, i will keep an eye on this page for a while.

Answer 1

there are several different machines she can use to express the milk. One is hand operated, battery operated or an elecrtic one. Electric ones make it faster and easier. She needs to express in the morning when she first wakes up for the most benefit. She can do it between feedings also. Also to make the milk come faster, a warm shower will help. She can store it in the refrigator in bottles or bags that are specially made for milk, or in the bottle if it's tobe used with 48 hrs. You can freeze the milk also but should be used within 2 months if you do it this way.

Most importantly, NEVER warm up the milk in the microwave. breast milk will heat unevenly and can scaled a babies mouth. Always warm it on the stove in water for a few minutes.

Most importantly, relax and it will come easily. Go out and enjoy your evening.

Answer 2

Great question! I have been expressing and storing milk for 6 months now as out little boy never quite got the hang of breastfeeding! Assuming your little girl is still breastfeeding your wife should pump until 'empty' after every feed for a day or two before the wedding. Breast milk can be stored for up to a week in the fridge and once the milk is cool you can mix it together. We usually take two feeds worth of milk out with us in a cool bag, just in case the little man is suddenly really hungry. You will need to warm the milk before giving it to baby, we usually put the bottle in a jug of hot water and swirl it around every now and then until it is the correct temp. (37 degrees, test a drop on your wrist) Don't worry of you accidentally over heat the milk, it can be cooled by holding the bottle under a cold tap.

If you have a small pump you can take with you your wife will just need to excuse herself at the normal feeding time to express (I have done this on trains, planes, buses). If the wedding reception is in a hotel maybe she can borrow a friends room for a few minutes (I would avoid the bathroom). You can either keep that milk for later or discard it if your wife will soon be breastfeeding baby again.

Hope this makes sense and helps! Good luck!

Answer 3

Ok.

Most likely if she is nursing full time she'll get 1-2oz per pumping session, very normal. She should pump 1st thing in the morning, that's when we have the most milk. Also when she is nursing from one breast, pump from the other.

Fresh breastmilk should be put in a bottle & in the fridge IF you are using it within the next week, if not, it should be freezed in the bottle or breastmilk baggies.

When she expresses more milk she can put it in the bottle in the fridge, it would be better if she puts it in the fridge for a few minutes to cool before mixing it with the already-cold milk.

I hope i helped. God Bless

Have fun at the wedding

Answer 4

You didn't mention how old your daughter is or how often she eats, but this is how I did it--

When my daughter started sleeping for longer periods at night, I would pump at what would have been the next mealtime after she went to sleep.  So if she at at 7:00 am, 10, 1, 4, and 7:00 pm, and then went to bed for 6-8 hours, I would pump at about 10 p.m.  I would keep it in the fridge for 2-3 days, add the next couple of pumpings until I was sure she had enough for one meal,  and then put it in the freezer.  It didn't take long for me to build up a nice supply so I didn't have to worry about it.  

I do have one suggestion--if you haven't done so already, I would introduce a bottle.  Your wife will pump a feeding, and you can feed your daughter.  That way, you can be sure she will take one when the time comes for your night out.

Answer 5

She should pump when she has the most milk- that's usually early in the morning.  She can also pump in between feedings.

If you refrigerate what she pumps she can add to that with milk from the next pumping session.  Milk can be kept in a fridge for 8 days, frozen, for two months.

Her b*****s aren't going to 'run dry.'  They'll make as much as you take out, and never be truly empty.  Don't worry.

Answer 6

Go to this website. La Lechee League has been helping with breastfeeding for years.

http://www.lllusa.org/