Can I go and breast pump before baby is born?

Question

This is #4 and never had soo much engorgement before baby is due. I know that it could bring on contractions but the pain of them getting full is hurting me. Can I go ahead and store some of this colostrum?

Answer 1

depending on how far along you are. being that it is #4 for you, you know that your breasts regulate themselves to your babys eating habbits, so you want to be really careful. i don't know if i would save too much maybe 15 oz. of the colostrum. they should start to get regular milk within 2-3 days after birth, so saving anymore than that may be senseless. i would definetly talk to your ob first or your pediatrition first. i can sympathize with you. it gets terribly painful. good luck! and congrats! i myself have a 4 month old and i am expecting again. we are truely blessed! take care.

Answer 2

I have to say this was mostly misinformation. I'm sorry you got such poor support. Your milk DID come in, that's why your breasts got so firm. (I myself have a medical reason why my breasts can't produce milk in any usable quantity and as a result never really got engorged.) It's very likely there was a latch problem. That may just have been inexperience of both you and your baby (and you were obviously not getting the right help if the nurse couldn't see if the latch looked right) or there may have been other factors aggravating the problem, for instance tongue tie. Your efforts were thoroughly sabotaged by the nurses insisting your baby needed formula. A bottle of formula gives instant gratification. With breastfeeding the baby has to work at triggering let-down. A baby used to a bottle can get very frustrated when that instant gratification doesn't happen at the breast and give up before he triggers let-down. Finally pumping: it's not a good indication of how much you are actually able to produce. Some women breastfeed very successfully and still never manage to pump much. Don't beat yourself up. YOU didn't do anything wrong. The people who were supposed to support you did. Breastfeeding is a learned skill for both mother and baby, and neither of you ever got a real chance to learn. I can't answer you about relactating. I once considered giving it a go myself to try combination feeding, but the whole breastfeeding experiment when I really could not produce had just been too traumatizing for myself and my son.

Answer 3

If you are engorged with milk than go rent a proper breast pump from your pharmacy. They are worth a ton of money but are very very very! good. I had a girlfriend with a boy who had a cleft lip and this pump worked very well. It is quite large and works awsome.
If it does not work you have not wasted your money.
Plus, those silly hand pumps, even electric ones dont do much.
Save the money and torcher.
If you need one long term your docter will advise you towards the proper type of breast pump to fit your needs'

Answer 4

You can pump if you want it won't cause premature labour. It may cause Braxton Hicks but those are NORMAL during pregnancy.

Is it safe to use a breastpump during pregnancy?
http://www.kellymom.com/nursingtwo/faq/05pumping.html

"It is often stated that a woman should not use a breastpump when pregnant. However, there is considerable reason to believe that pumping, like breastfeeding, will not trigger preterm labor in a healthy pregnancy.

When contemplating pumping during pregnancy, it is important to consider your motives for doing so. In general, when it comes to pumping during pregnancy, your efforts are best directed elsewhere unless you are pumping to provide milk for your current nursling.

* If you are pumping to provide milk for your current nursling when you are separated, this should not pose more of a problem than breastfeeding. Many working moms continue to pump through pregnancy, although pumping output will decrease due to the hormonal changes of pregnancy. Aim to keep your pumping in scale with what you were doing before pregnancy, or in scale with your baby's normal breastfeeding. Sustained and intense pumping is more of an unknown and is not recommended.
* If you wish to put some expressed milk in the freezer for your unborn child, keep in mind that pumping is not likely to be very productive during pregnancy. Milk supply and pumping output will decrease due to the hormonal changes of pregnancy.
* Pumping prior to birth will not increase milk production for your unborn child or otherwise enhance lactation after birth.
* If you are hoping to induce labor, it is known that nipple stimulation at term (38+ weeks) can be helpful for ripening the cervix and inducing labor.

See also Is it safe to nurse during pregnancy? "

Answer 5

Try tis old remedy.. shred some cold china cabbage into very small potion or long beans (qty enough to put into your bra) and wear them for 1/2hr.. the veg should be frozen/cool in the fridge before u shred them.. tis may soothe and relieve some of the pain. Hope tis helps!

Answer 6

NO! pumping will cause breast stimulation which could induce contractions. Use cool compresses [ frozen veggies in a ziploc bag, covered with a cloth so doesn't burn skin ].
Pumping will cause more engorgement; so will warm soaks or manual expression.

Answer 7

Sure you can. I just asked my lactation consultant tonight about that and she said I could but it is probably not worth the hassle more than the actual collection of colostrum

Answer 8

Why would you store it? It does not contain all the nutrients that the milk will. You won't want to use it once your milk comes in...the baby needs the milk. Plus, if you start the baby off with a bottle, you could cause nipple confusion. Why make those first days of breastfeeding tougher than they have to be?

Answer 9

I would not think that there would be enough there to store. I personally would only use warm and cold packs to provide some comfort.

I am also wondering if this milk would have ahigh sodium content and maybe not enough protein to feed your LO with.

Answer 10

i dont think so.. take a hot shower.. that should help.. relieve some pain and call the on call doctor and ask to be sure.. better to ask someone who really knows first!!