Your privacy is a PRIMARY consideration of AskDrSears.com. Your
e-mail address is used ONLY by AskDrSears.com for the purpose of
announcing news, events and special offers available only
AskDrSears.com registered users.
Baby Sling Closeout Special! Extended through April until sold out!
Buy a baby sling for a friend and get one free for yourself or get just one at 50% off.
Buy one get one free Discount code: freesling
Or 50% off your babysling Discount code: halfoff expires: 04/30/08
*Not valid in conjuction with any other offers.
Your privacy is a PRIMARY consideration of AskDrSears.com. Your
e-mail address is used ONLY by AskDrSears.com for the purpose of
announcing news, events and special offers available only
AskDrSears.com registered users.
HAND EXPRESSING YOUR MILK
The Low-Tech Approach: Hand Expression
Expressing milk by hand works very well for some women. It's a handy skill to have when:
You are caught somewhere with full breasts and you don't have your baby or a
breastpump, you'll be able to relieve breast fullness and avoid problems with engorgement.
You do not need to express milk regularly.
Your breasts are more responsive to the skin-to-skin feeling of hand
expression than to plastic pump parts.
HERE'S 6 EASY STEPS TO EXPRESS MILK FROM YOUR BREASTS BY HAND:
Position your hand on your breast, with the thumb above and fingers underneath, about
an inch to an inch-and-a-half behind the nipple. If your breast were a clock, your thumb
would be at 12 o'clock and your fingers at 6 o'clock. Don't cup your breast in your hand.
Instead, your thumb and fingers should be directly across the nipple from each other.
Press your thumb and fingers directly back into the breast tissue, towards the wall of
your chest. Don't move them further apart. Just press straight back into the breast.
Roll your fingers and thumb forward to squeeze milk out of the milk sinuses, which are
located under the areola behind the nipple. Don't slide the thumb or fingers along the skin--this
will quickly make you sore.
Repeat this sequence--position, press, roll--until the milk flow ceases. Then move your
hand so that the thumb and fingers are positioned at 11 and 5 o'clock and do it again. Use
both hands to work your way around one breast, then switch to the other side until you have
emptied all of the milk sinuses. As soon as you see milk squirting from your nipple, you know
you are compressing the underlying milk sinuses. (This position is also where baby's gums
should be during efficient latch-on.)
The trick to hand expression is discovering where to position your fingers. Experiment
until you find the right spot. Having someone show you how is very helpful, too.
Combining hand-expression with breast massage can be a very effective way to stimulate
the milk-ejection reflex. Massage first, then express. Massage again, and repeat the hand-
expressing routine.
"When I relaxed, I could pump more milk. A friend who's a dairy farmer told me that cows yield less milk when they're in a bad mood or if milked by a stranger."
HOW TO COLLECT THE MILK
When you hand-express, milk sprays out in all directions.
If you're expressing just to make your breasts more comfortable, you can lean over a sink or
express into a towel.
If you want to save the milk, you'll need something in which to collect it. Some mothers
manage to aim the nipple directly into a baby bottle. Or, try a container with a wider mouth,
like a coffee cup or a small jar. As the cup fills up, transfer the milk to a storage container.
(See Storing Human Milk for suggestions.)
The Medela company makes a special funnel for hand-expression that collects the milk and
channels it down into a standard baby bottle.
AskDrSears.com is intended to help parents become better informed consumers
of health care. The information presented in this site gives general advice
on parenting and health care. Always consult your doctor for your individual
needs.
