Breastfeeding is one of the most exciting moments in a mother's life. But due to various circumstances, in order to maximize the period of breastfeeding, it is necessary to have knowledge of how to express milk correctly.
Top reasons for expressing
Expressing is ideal for preventing congestion (lactostasis) and for increasing milk supply. However, if you feed the baby on demand (the interval between feeding is 2-2, 5 hours) and 24 hours a day you have the opportunity to be with the baby, there is no need to pump, since milk arrives in exactly the amount that the growing needs it the baby's body.
But there are a number of reasons why breast expression is essential:
Feeding according to the regimen. In this case, the baby is applied to the breast up to 6-8 times a day. That is why experts recommend expressing milk after each feed until the breast is completely relieved. Such a procedure is necessary so that the brain does not send signals about a large amount of milk, which in the future can lead to a decrease in the level of lactation.
If your child is at a distance from you or you need to be away for several hours.
If you are taking medications that are incompatible with breastfeeding. In this way, you can continue feeding after the required course of treatment.
How to express milk correctly
There are 2 ways to express milk:
- manual pumping;
- mechanical expression (using a breast pump).
To collect milk, you can use a sterilized container with a wide mouth or a special container.
When expressing by hand, you need to wash your hands first. After that, take your chest in the palm of your hand. Do this in such a way that the thumb is on top 4-5 cm from the areola (areola). Now begin to gently bring your thumb and forefinger together, massaging the area of the milk ducts.
In this case, your fingers should slide from top to bottom to the area of the areola. Never squeeze the nipple. In the first minutes, milk may be weakly released, however, after rhythmic pumping movements, the reflex of its release will start, and the whole procedure will accelerate.
Manual expression is very convenient if you do not use it too often and only occasionally bottle feed your baby.
For breastfeeding mothers who need constant pumping, it is recommended to use breast pumps. They are of 2 types:
- electrical;
- manual.
Both options allow you to express quickly and efficiently.
With an electric breast pump, you simply place a part of the device on your breast, press a button, and milk begins to pump into the attached container. This kind of breast pump is expensive, but you can rent it. A handheld device is much cheaper, but you will need to perform the "pumping" function yourself by rhythmically pressing a special lever.
Please note that if for any reason your baby is unable to suckle on his own, it is necessary to express both breasts at once, moving from one to the other and so on until they are completely empty.
Remember, short and frequent pumping is much more effective in stimulating lactation than long, rare ones.
