How to express breast milk by hand is the most simple and natural technique to get expressed breast milk. However, special techniques are needed so that your breast milk can come out smoothly when you want to pump breast milk by hand.
Currently, there are many types of breast pumps with various models that have been adapted to the needs of the mother. However, if you don't have a breast pump at home, you can still pump your milk by hand.
In addition, the breast pump can also be damaged immediately and cannot be used. Therefore, you need to know the correct way to express breast milk by hand.
Steps to Express Breast Milk by Hand
Before you express your milk, don't forget to wash your hands with soap and warm water first. Then gently massage the breast from the top of the breast to the areola, which is the dark colored part that surrounds the nipple. This is done to facilitate the flow of breast milk.
Next, place a clean container under the breast as a place to hold the milk. Mothers are also advised to stay relaxed and calm so that the milk comes out smoothly and in large quantities.
After the preparation is complete, you can start expressing your breast milk by hand by following these steps:
- Place your thumb on the top of the breast and the other finger on the bottom of the breast.
- Squeeze the breast slowly for many times until the milk drips and flows smoothly.
- Do not squeeze the areola or nipple as this will hurt.
- If the milk doesn't drip or the flow slows down, massage and squeeze the sides of the breast.
- If the flow of milk from one breast is drastically reduced or stopped, you can start expressing milk from the other breast.
- After the mother has finished expressing the milk, immediately put the breast milk in a special breast milk plastic and store the breast milk in it freezer. So you don't forget, you can label the bottle or container of breast milk and note the date and time the milk was expressed.
This series of hand-expressed breast milk takes at least 20-30 minutes.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Expressing Breast Milk by Hand
How to express breast milk by hand turns out to have advantages and disadvantages. nowBefore you decide to continuously express breast milk by hand, you should first identify these two things.
The following are some of the advantages of expressing breast milk by hand:
- Natural and not noisy.
- The milk that comes out can be more.
- No need to spend money to buy a breast pump.
- No need to bother carrying equipment or breast pumps and changing batteries or looking for power outlets.
- It is easy to detect if there are changes or abnormalities in the breast that need to be examined and treated immediately, such as blocked milk ducts or mastitis.
- Allows you to push milk from another part of the breast, if one of the milk ducts in the breast is blocked.
On the other hand, the method of expressing breast milk by hand also has its drawbacks. One of them is difficult to do, especially if you are breastfeeding for the first time or are not used to expressing milk by hand. Therefore, you have to practice this method often in order to do it properly.
Not only that, expressing breast milk by hand often takes longer than using a breast pump. Thus, the mother should spend more time expressing milk completely.
If you are still confused about how to express breast milk by hand or have difficulty expressing milk, don't hesitate to consult a doctor or a lactation consultant at the hospital.