Forum : Mums

hi there,they do say breastfeed ur baby for the first 3 weeks so its used to ur breast, but as u just want to express and feed via bottle i'd say just say feed ur baby untill ur "normal"milk comes through (2-3 days)then i dont see why you cant start expressing,ur babies still getting "the best" _must say though that expressing is a long job and quite tiring,then again,so is breastfeeding _hope this helps x

i started expressing after about 7 days but just to relieve the pressure between feeds and then properly expressing and storing after about 2 weeks mainly cos i didnt have the need til that point.
plan on doing the same kinda thing this time round aswell
good luck

I think it is recommended that you don't express the first few weeks, about 8 I think, so baby gets used to breastfeeding and your milk supply settles down. I did that last time, however I shall be doing it a lot earlier this time, cos my little girl wouldn't take a bottle at all, no matter what we did. We then had major issues with beakers and the like, difficult when I went back to work but we did get there in the end with a beaker. However I am starting earlier this time so baby gets used to having something other than my boob to feed from. Well that is the plan anyway.
Good luck xx

I don't see why you can't express and feed your baby from the bottle straight away. I'm breastfeeding, but I have started Jessica on expressed milk from bottles for when I am out without her, and will also do so when I am out with her, because I'm rubbish at feeding discreetly. Jessica took a bottle at 3 weeks quite well, but only from someone other than myself. It also depends on how easy you find expressing. I'm like a little cow, but I kinow not everyone manages so easily. Avent breast pump is good, compact and easy to use. Best of luck.

I expressed for the first time at 6 days, as my son had jaundice and was very sleepy, so we wanted to make sure we could see what he was drinking, and also he was less likely to fall asleep so quickly when taking a bottle. I wouldn't reccomend expressing all feeds, as if u ever want to give a quick breastfeed for whatever reason (for eg. your baby surprises you and suddenly cries for a feed and u don't have time to express or r out and about with not enough expressed milk) as your baby may not know how/remember how to breast feed. As long as they only have one bottle a day they will not get "nipple confusion". My son takes a bottle of expressed milk last thing at night from his dad, so i can go to bed early if i want and also so that we know he has had a decent feed before bed time.