When to start pumping

They Said 38 weeks to 40 but the first pumps not as its supposed to and it hurts Lots to pump

You can’t pump before they’re born - giving birth triggers the milk x

I've heard you can start as early as 36 weeks, but it isnt milk it's colostrum being collected

Pumping before birth doesn’t increase milk production. It’s a hormonal response that occurs after you give birth. Pumping before birth can induce labor and shouldn’t be attempted before 38 weeks. This is colostrum only and can be stored if you want to in the freezer for later use.

Your midwife should be able to advise more but I got told 37 weeks onwards and you should only express by hand and not to use an actual pump. It is just colostrum (the gold stuff) and you can collect and store it in a syringe. Some people can collect a lot but I didn’t collect loads. Whatever you do, just don’t put too much pressure on yourself for it. :)

I started expressing by hand this week (36 weeks) once a day and I’ve been getting 3-5mL of colostrum each time. I’m storing it in 1ML syringes and freezing.

I would wait until 37, too soon could kick start contractions.

Thanks so much everyone for your responses. All been really useful ❤️

This is interesting. I didn't know you could pump beforehand. But I know colostrum is supposed to be super good for the baby. So save any extra of that you get. 👍

Pumping before birth has absolutely nothing to do with ur milk production after birth. Pumping can induce labor so u should wait till at least 37/38 weeks but solely for the collection of colostrum. My son is 12.5 months and I’ve been breastfeeding him his whole life. Ur supply depends on ur diet like high protein and high water content foods like fruits and veggies. And also supply and demand the more u nurse/pump the more milk u will make. With that being said I would also avoid pumping too much if ur also going to be nursing as an oversupply can cause clogged ducts and mastitis which are no fun.

I’ve never heard of pumping before birth to increase your milk supply. So I definitely wouldn’t pump until after baby. Pumping while pregnant can start early contractions. Your supply is more based on a supply and demand kinda thing. The more you empty the more milk can start to come in. I think the only way you can start to collect milk now is if you have already started to leak and you would just collect what comes out. But plenty of women dont have their milk come in til a few days after birth.