Colostrum harvesting

I was told your not suppose to do it until your 37 weeks cos it produces the hormone that can bring on labour...

Oh my leaflet says from 36 weeks…

Weird.. maybe you just have to keep trying, I haven't started mine yet. 🙃

It's 36 weeks for people with GD and 37 for everyone else, that's what my leaflet said and what my midwife said x

This happened to me too, I tried twice at 36 weeks and got absolutely nothing and also felt a bit bruised. I spoke to my midwife about it in our routine appointment and she said wait a week and try again, it's still early days and stressing will only make it harder! Easier said than done but I am putting it off for another week now. Good luck!

I have got a nuby suction cup that helps for me but don’t be disheartened not everyone can collect till after and collect straight from boob using syringe you also can’t store until 37+ x

First pregnancy I used a hot water bottle on the opposite side and I felt it helped ☺️

I'd recommend asking your midwife to show you if you're not shy, on my 34 week appointment when we were asking about it she literally showed me on my boob and I was so surprised I made a whole syringe! Now I'm 37 weeks and I do it myself/with husband but it's not as easy as she made it looks like but at least I have an idea of it 😅

My midwife told me at my 36 week appointment to start trying. Im not 37+4 and have not had one single drop! So you’re doing well! Have you tried doing it in the bath or with a hot flannel over the one that is sore? X

Some people just don’t produce a lot before baby comes along and milk is established, sometimes you need to do it for a few days before you see an improvement in the amount you can collect as you need to stimulate the breast to tell your body you need it x

I have used a hand pump managed 1ml on day one and one ml on day two at 36+4 and plus 5 days, it wasn’t painless and definitely hard work a few drops can be normal keep trying unless it’s too painful and I’m sure you’ll get there ❤️ xxx

I put a warm towel on mine first, put nice music on and chilled for a bit, only got a tiny bit but gonna start doing it every evening, I think you'll get a bit more each time 💜 also 4 drops is good! It will get more!

I started colostrum harvesting at 36 weeks and initially only managed to get a few drops after 30-40 minutes of massaging and a hot shower. The next day, I tried again and managed to fill a 1ml syringe. Now, a week later, I have six 1ml syringes stored. I know some people switch to a pump to get more, but when I tried a hand pump, it was painful. So, I'm sticking with hand expressing and aiming for 1 or 2 syringes each time—I’m happy with that. Just keep at it and don’t get discouraged in the beginning. Our bodies are amazing, and it will come naturally. ❤️

There’s a big randomized trial for colostrum hand expressing where the median for total volume expressed between 36 weeks and birth was 5ml. Some women did not manage to express any colostrum at all and it did not impact their breastfeeding, and others were able to express loads, like in the hundreds of ml. All normal! I think medical professionals so far have not paid much attention to the potential worry not expressing much can bring, but it’s an experience shared by many 💛

I started trying 2 days ago at 36 weeks and didn't get 1 drop. I'll try over next few days or will just give up.

I did no harvesting with my first pregnancy. Feeding was fine and I’m still feeding that baby. Don’t let it stress you out. Good to try it out but not it’s not essential

My partner does it for me as I struggled, can your partners help?