Can i pump and bottle feed

During the first few days after the birth of your baby, you will only be able to pump and collect a small amount of colostrum. On the very first day, in fact, so little will be expressed that it can get stuck in the tubing of the breast pump, which is why hand expressing colostrum is the preferred method during that time. After you have hand-expressed a few spoonfuls' worth, pumping for a short while is a good way to stimulate milk supply until your milk fully comes in.

After the first week , you should be able to pump two to three ounces every two to three hours, or about 24 ounces in a hour period. You would need to double this amount if you have twins, triple it for triplets, etc. After about one month , you will need approximately three to four ounces every three to four hours, or about 24 to 32 ounces a day.

By the time your baby is six months old , they will need about six to eight ounces every four to six hours, so approximately 36 to 48 ounces a day. It's easier to overfeed your baby when you're bottle-feeding in place of breastfeeding.

So be sure you're giving your child what they need every day and in each bottle. There's a simple formula you can use to calculate how much breast milk to put in a bottle: The child's weight in ounces, divided by 6, divided by the number of feedings per day.

It can be tough to maintain a healthy milk supply when you're exclusively pumping. It requires a good deal of dedication because you have to pump regularly and, if possible, during the night. To maintain and increase your supply. Since you will be spending so much time using your pump, consider buying or renting a high-quality breast pump designed for long-term, daily use.

Whichever pump you choose, be sure it's comfortable and the pump shields fit you well to prevent pain and damage to your breast tissue. Frequent pumping stimulates the production of breast milk. While your child is a newborn, try to pump every two to three hours.

As your child grows, you can usually pump less often. However, if you're struggling with a low supply, pumping more often can help to increase it. There are many breastfeeding superfoods , herbs , and teas that you can add to your daily diet to support and promote lactation.

You may find the transition back to work fairly easy, since you don't need to introduce a bottle to your baby or teach your body to accept a pumping schedule. However, if you find that your production drops a bit from work stress, there are many ways to increase your breast milk supply. When it comes to the prevention of pregnancy, exclusive pumping is not the same as exclusive breastfeeding.

The lactational amenorrhea method LAM of birth control may work during the first six months of exclusive breastfeeding, but it is not considered effective with pumping. Therefore, if you do not wish to become pregnant again right away, you and your partner should use another form of contraception.

Be sure to let your doctor know that you are exclusively pumping, though. Some types of birth control contain estrogen, which can cause a decrease in milk supply.

Pumping your breast milk for your child can be rewarding, but it can also be time-consuming and demanding. Fatigue and stress can make you rethink your decision to pump, and both can decrease the supply of breast milk. So it's important to take care of yourself.

Try to eat well , drink plenty of fluids , get rest when you can, and relax with your feet up while you're pumping. Also, don't be afraid to ask for help from your partner , family, and friends. A little support can make all the difference when it comes to how long you continue to pump for your child.

Get it free when you sign up for our newsletter. Pump early, pump often: A continuous quality improvement project. J Perinat Educ. American Academy of Pediatrics. Bottle feeding basics. Updated May 21, Which breast pump for which mother: An evidence-based approach to individualizing breast pump technology. J Perinatol. Lactational amenorrhea method LAM. Updated May 19, And all our teats can be attached directly to the bottles you express milk into, minimising the risk of spillages.

This allows your baby to sip or lap your expressed milk — be careful to avoid spills! For babies who need expressed milk supplements in addition to regular breastfeeding, a supplemental nursing system SNS can be helpful. This allows your baby to stay at your breast longer, which further stimulates your breasts to help maintain your milk supply, and also helps improve her breastfeeding skills.

It can be useful for mums with low milk supply or with adopted or surrogate babies. Start trying with a small amount of expressed milk, in a relaxed and unhurried way, a couple of weeks beforehand. Gradually build up to giving a full feed of expressed breast milk from a bottle. Ideally your breastfed baby should be alert, but not too hungry, the first time she has a bottle of expressed milk, so that she is as relaxed as possible.

Try dipping the bottle teat into some expressed milk before offering it, so it tastes and smells of your breast milk. Feed your baby on demand and cuddle her in a semi-upright position. Go at her pace, with as many pauses as she needs — you can even try switching sides during the feed.

If she pushes the bottle away or becomes upset, comfort her and wait a few minutes before trying again. Try again with the bottle at a different time of day. Every baby is different. Research shows that in babies aged one to six months, one baby may take as little as 50 ml during a feed while another may take as much as ml. Start by preparing a bottle with around 60 ml, and see if your baby needs more or less.

Always clean and sanitise your breast pump set and bottles according to the instructions, and wash your hands before pumping, handling milk or feeding your baby. Follow our guidelines for storing and thawing your expressed milk safely.

Never warm breast milk in the microwave or on the stove top. Mums sometimes worry that if they introduce a bottle too soon, their baby will get accustomed to the artificial teat and struggle to return to breastfeeding. Experts disagree on whether nipple confusion is really an issue. And some babies do seem to have a preference for breast or bottle, and never take to the other.

But many babies switch happily between the two. Clarifying nipple confusion. Experts also encourage pumping about five minutes past when the milk stops flowing, often by doing so mom will elicit another letdown, and at the very least will maintain production as well as encouraging increase in supply if needed.

Also pumping at least 5 minutes after your milk stops flowing will tell your body that you need more milk; thus increasing your supply. They had to work really hard to rebuild it.

Most experienced moms do not set the pump speed on high, but rather keep it on lower setting for comfort. There should be a suction setting on your pump and a speed dial. This is very important, the higher the suction does NOT mean the more milk you make. Your pump will probably have a suction setting of minimum, medium, and maximum. I had mine set on medium when I developed a blister. Once it healed, I turned it down to minimum and have never had another blister or pain again.

I keep the speed at 3 but if you feel like too much areola is being sucked into the horn, then turning down the speed will remedy that. If you are in a lot of pain and turn down the settings, you might actually get more milk because you are more relaxed! Moms may find it surprising that the breastfed baby often takes less milk in the bottle than formula babies take in.

This may vary a little from baby to baby, but the average range of milk intake is oz per day mL per day. Example : If baby usually nurses around 8 times per day, you can guess that baby might need around 3 ounces per feeding every 3 hours when mom is away. You can find a quick and easy expressed breastmilk calculator here. It is important to remember that it is very easy to overfeed a baby using bottles. This is because the way a baby drinks from a bottle is very different than how a baby would nurse from the breast.

Shaking breastmilk is also not recommended gently swirl to mix, instead. Ideally bottlefeeding the baby should mimic how a mother breastfeeds her baby. The baby should be fed on cue, or demand, and not according to a rigid schedule. Breastmilk digests in about 90 minutes, so one would expect the feedings to be anywhere from 1.

The bottle should be offered gently, in a non-stressful manner, with the baby drawing the nipple into the mouth. The type of bottle or nipple is not as important as the manner in which the bottle is offered. Changing position mid-way through a feeding is often recommended, as is holding baby is a more upright position.

Propping a bottle is also not recommended. First drink plenty of water. Check your pee when you go I know, sounds funny! If it is light yellow to clear, you are plenty hydrated. Make sure you eat!

While you are pumping, you will keep the weight off, I promise! It can make you hungry as a horse and it does that for a reason. You need the extra calories because you are burning so much off!

Eventually, your hunger should taper off mine has. Eat REAL oatmeal, not the instant. You can eat the quick oats the ones that cook in 1 minute or the old fashioned oats that cook in 5 minutes. You can also make cookies that have oatmeal in them and get oatmeal that way I prefer this way!

No one is sure how the oatmeal works but it does! Get some rest yeah, I know easier said than done! If you are exhausted and have the opportunity to take a nap even if it pushes your pump back do it!

You will actually get more milk that way! Conserving energy is important. This all depends on how you personally handle stress. I tend to be a thinker, so I think things out a lot. Some suggest drinking dark beer, with or without alcohol. Plus some women just swear by the relaxation it gives them!

You can have 1 or 2 beers without much crossing into your milk. Note : Most breastfeeding experts do not routinely recommend using alcohol to boost milk supply. More on alcohol and breastfeeding here. There is a tea called Mothers Milk Tea and it is supposed to increase your supply if you drink it. There are herbs like Fenugreek and also prescription medications that will increase your supply if you really need it.