Hellobee Boards

I pumped about an hour after nursing (so pretty much as soon as he was done and I could get him settled doing something else). I pumped for 5-10 minutes total (usually got 0.5 - 1 oz at a time). I freeze in 2 oz bags.

I usually stored a bottle's worth in the fridge so that if I wanted to do something or wanted Hubs to feed him, we had it. Once I had extra, I'd take the oldest and freeze it.

It really is tough to find the time when you're taking care of a newborn!

When should I pump? I think a good time would be after she nurses first thing in the morning. Or I used to pump after DS went to bed for the night. How is she sleeping at night?

How long should I pump? I would do 15-20 minutes.

How should I freeze it? In 2 oz? 2.5? 2 ounce portions are good and when she starts taking more in 3-4 ounce portions are good.

When should I pump? I was told by my LC to pump once in the morning and once at night so that I didn't create an oversupply issue. Nights don't work well for us since my ds cluster feeds and then I want to sleep so I pump once after his first feed of the morning and then once during his long nap. You may not be to the one nap stage yet, so maybe try at night after he goes to bed?

How long should I pump? My LC said 10-15 mins but I've heard others on here say to go as long as 30 mins. Maybe someone else can answer this, but I usually just pump until the milk stops coming.

How should I freeze it? In 2 oz? 2.5? Again my LC said 2-3 oz but I just freeze all of it in one bag. Since your lo is younger though, 2-3 oz is probably a better idea. My lo is quite a big eater so I figure if he doesn't finish it all in one bottle, he'll get it in the next feed.

Anything else I should do? I use the medela storage bags because they fit so easily to PISA pump. I read that you should store them upright and not stack them (which i had been doing) so that there's no leakage. Also store them in the back of your freezer, not the door.

Best of luck!

@Jennimac:

When should I pump? I pumped 20 minutes after nursing sessions. (on the advice of an LC). I started with just one session a day (in the morning, when you have the most milk), then built up from there.

How long should I pump? I started out at 10 minutes and built up from there. The longest I ever pump is about 25 minutes if milk was still coming out past the 20 minute mark.

How should I freeze it? In 2 oz? 2.5? I personally could not stress about exact amounts on top of everything else. So I just froze what I pumped.

Anything else I should do? Be kind to yourself and try not to stress out over all the little details. Drink tons of water while pumping and try to make it an enjoyable experience too - read a book, listen to music, play a game on your ipad, etc.

Also, I enjoyed tracking the total ounces I had frozen on a whiteboard in the kitchen. It totally motivated me on the days pumping really sucked

When should I pump? I got this advice from an article Lawbee posted and it worked perfectly! After the first feed of the morning (between 6-8 a.m.) I pumped the side that DS didn't eat. Then as soon as DS went down his first nap of the morning, I would pump both sides. I built up a 250 ounce stash during my maternity leave this way!

How long should I pump? I pumped for 20 minutes.

How should I freeze it? In 2 oz? 2.5? I did a mix, but I never went higher than 4 ounces.

Anything else I should do? I froze my bags flat, and transferred them to the Sterilite ice cube trays you buy at Target. They fit perfectly, and its a really easy way to rotate my stash.

I had a huge stash when I went back to work (hundreds of ounces). At first I would just pump when I could. Around 5 weeks I started to pump more on a schedule. There is no right way to do it, just do what seems to work for you/LO and adjust as you go.

Does LO feed on both sides or just one side? At some point in the first few weeks, LO started feeding on one side per feeding. After the morning feed, I'd pump on the other side. Before I went to bed at night (once LO was sleeping 5ish hour stretches), I'd pump before I went to bed.

I pumped 15-20 minutes at a time, and I froze in 2 oz bags. I immediately froze everything I pumped so I could cycle through my stash. It was also important to me to make sure LO took frozen milk (there wasn't lipase issues or any other issues).

I froze flat in the lansinoh bags in 2 oz portions. At some point I started freezing in larger quantities.