Colostrum

Hi. I started collecting around 35 weeks. Wish I'd collected more as my baby couldn't latch due to a tongue tie that the Midwives initially MISSED. So you do you and follow your instincts xx

Collect it in case baby can’t latch. We weren’t able to but luckily baby had the 40ml or so id collected. Then went straight to formula. I was so proud to give even that little bit. Don’t listen to the doctor, collect as much as you can

Don’t stress out about colostrum. I definitely did. I tried to collect before my baby was born and struggled. I couldn’t get any. I was so worried when he was born I wasn’t going to produce anything!

I had a difficult labor which lead to
C - section. And I wasn’t able to latch. Good thing, sometime after he was born (everything was a complete blur lol), I was able to produce colostrum and supplemented with formula. I was so sick I couldn’t nurse him. I ended up pumping. In the end, I exclusively pumped due to struggles latching and was successful in giving baby breast milk! Other than the first week or two of birth, he has been giving just breast milk.

Don’t be like me and stress about colostrum lol

Ofc do collect as much as you can, at the beginning your nipples will be sore and if you are a first time mama like me, it will take time for you to master latching with your baby so it’s good to have it as backup,,, plus, I also used mine after my baby’s first immunisation and I’d do it again 🫶🏻 all the best

I didn't have any until after birth!

I started collecting at 36 +4. There’s 2 sides- some people can’t get any and it’s not representative of supply at all abd how your breastfeeding journey could go, however it’s good imo to practice hand expressing incase for whatever reason the latch is poor etc and you can keep expressing rather than needing to give formula if you want to EBF. Even if you end up not needing it , like in my case I had over 100mls by the time I gave birth and baby latched, it’s come in handy on my daughter skin when it was sore and can be given as a boost when she’s ill ☺️

I didn’t collect a single drop for each of my babies despite trying for weeks both pregnancies.

I had two C-sections and both babies latched within the hour of being born and I fed them both successfully.

Colostrum harvesting is no indication of what your breastmilk supply will be like, so don’t stress over it too much. Most people won’t make any until the placenta is detached and the hormones released.

I started in 34th week. And then everyday I keep collecting it and froze it in special syringes. If baby can't latch you can give it to baby's mouth. And I'm surprised what your doctor said if I can be honest..

A bit wild for your doctor to say it’s unnecessary like it’s a pointless thing to do 😵‍💫 I started harvesting colostrum from 37 weeks I think and froze it in its syringes. I never needed any as my baby latched perfectly from birth and I had loads of milk early. I’ll be keeping my stash though because it has so many other benefits for baby. It’s gold!

I was told not to start collecting till 37 weeks as it could start labour x

I collected and it was good that I did, latch was fine but our first son dropped 8% of his birth weight and wouldn’t take a bottle (as we were told to top up between feeds). We fed colostrum via the syringes and it brought his weight back up.

I started collecting at 38 weeks. Found it incredibly helpful as I had an emergency c section. It meant that my partner could give her colostrum allowing me some time to get comfortable before breastfeeding without having rush and hurt myself

Don't stress about collecting it, I collected from 36weeks and was getting anywhere from 1-10ml a day, we used a fair amount in the first 24hours approx 10ml but now 10 weeks on we still have loads in the freezer 😂

I started at 38 weeks, I really struggled and only managed to collect one syringe. It really stressed me out so I stopped trying.

I ended up with an emergency C-section and didn't see my baby for 4 hours.

Thankfully she had no issues latching when I finally got to hold her and is EBF.

The syringe is still in my freezer and she's 11 weeks now.

Sending all the positive birth vibes!