Advice please.

[BethHx]

After thinking long and hard I have decided that bf this time round isn't for me/my family.
However, I would like to give Eliza the colostrum.
Can I start expressing at week 38 and freeze the colostrum then when she is out of hospital give it to her? (In her formula or separately?)

I am going to give her first feed as a bf but after that I think I will be going straight onto formula for numerous reasons.

 

[Maxy1]

Yes!!! Thats a great idea. I too was not planning on bfing my second and this what my midwife recommended doing. I was leaking (pouring) colostrum from about week 32 so she told me to collect it and freeze it for when LO arrived and I could syringe it for the first few days.

 

[BethHx]

How does freezing work?
How do I defrost it?
Would I be better off putting it into bumps formula or just giving it her has it is?
Will ask my midwife when I see her but she has a very laid back approach lol xx

 

[sheldonsmommy]

Babies only get a few ml of colostrum per feed in the early days from the breast, so I think it's a great idea to just give him the colostrum on its own for the first few days, provided there's enough. After that I would mix it with small amounts of formula

You can freeze it, you might want to find a small enough container that can be sterilized and then frozen with the colostrum inside. The bags are great for milk, but it can leave a lot of the fattier milk along the sides of the bag, and the colostrum is so thick you may end up leaving quite a bit behind. Maybe ask the HV about those options?

You can thaw it in the fridge, or I like to thaw my milk in a small container of cool water as it takes much less time.