giving EBM

[CharlieP]

Hi

can anyone help? how and when should i give a daily bottle of EBM without affecting supply?

cheers

 

[Seraphim]

Someone with more experience than me will be along shortly I hope... but for us we've given a bottle on a couple of mornings (so I can get some sleep) then I can express when I get up.

 

[Wombat]

If I wouldn't have expressed a couple of times in those first 2 very difficult weeks I wouldn't be breastfeeding now.

So - whenever you are ready I think. Make sure you do it around 30 minutes after your LO finished bf, so if it is 2 hours between feeds your boobs manage to produce more.

Also I found the best time to express in morning. I bet the night would be good too but I just can't face it.

 

[CharlieP]

I have been expressing in the mornings and have a stash bit wasn't sure when to actually give the bottle. Should I express when I give the bottle? I thought that kind of defeated the object of giving a bottle as you don't actually get a break.

I have been trying to give him a bottle during the eve when he's cluster feeding but ge gets in a mood!

 

[TigerLady]

Mostly, you need to make sure you express the same amount your LO eats. Preferably close to the time they take the bottle, but it doesn't HAVE to be that way.

When I express at work, I do 2x per day. By the end of the day I usually end up with about 16-18 ounces. While I am away LO has either 2 or 3 bottles of EBM (which means he might get one more feed than I pump), but only eats about 12-15 ounces for those feeds. That means I am always pumping just a bit more than he is eating. It is working for me.

So, if you can just make sure you pump at least as much as LO eats every day, your supply should keep up with him. I wouldn't make a habit of going without pumping when he eats, but once in a while should be okay.

 

[florabean1981]

good advice there from tigerlady

my lo has his ebm bottle at about 8pm-9pm every night, given by his daddy so i get a break... i then have a shower, wash-up, etc etc, then pump before i go to bed... i try to pump in the mornings too, but it depends on lo, coz he's super hungry in the mornings now he's sleeping thru the night & devours both boobies, plays for a while, then wants more, lol!

 

[misswren]

I have read the stories of ladies who have exclusively fed EBM and they have all said the supply is best in the early hours so this is probably a good time to express but if you don't really want to be getting up just to do that I have found first thing in the morning I have expressed the most so that fits with the logic.

I have done that and given the bottle at the end of the day a couple of times.

Hope you find a way to do it that works for you. x

 

[Seraphim]

Sorry to hijack but I'm eager to know how much EBM babies take . how often x

 

[Rebaby]

So far OH has just been offering Toby a bottle of EBM about every other day at whatever time of day suits, i.e. when Toby is awake and hungry (but not too grouchy or he won't take it) and OH is home from work and in the right mood (i.e. not just walked through the door) I say offering because he doesn't ALWAYS take it, sometimes he'll have half an oz and then just gag and cry for the boob, other times he'll wolf down 3oz and fall asleep

At the moment i have been sticking to expressing while OH does the feed as i didn't want to jeopardise my supply, plus i do still get a bit of a break that way as expressing doesn't take as long as Toby normally takes to feed, plus winding etc after. I think further down the line though i might start to take a more liberal approach and just try to express *roughly around* the time Toby feeds, certainly there may be times when i have to go out for e.g. and i guess i'll just express before i go or when i get back. I'm not really feeling ready to leave Toby at all yet to be honest, i haven't even left him with OH yet but my dad is in hospital right now and no children are allowed on the ward so i am probably going to have to leave him with OH for a few hours while i go to visit pretty soon.

 

[florabean1981]

Sorry to hijack but I'm eager to know how much EBM babies take . how often x

at first, harry would only take 1-2oz, but now he wolfs down a 4oz ebm bottle & is soundo by the end of it, lol. I only store my milk in 2oz lots coz I dont want to waste it & also so it's quick & easy to defrost.