Guest guest Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 I've really been enjoying the threads on home visits and office visits as well as different approaches to follow up phone calls. I've been curious for a long time about hand expression. Do any of you feel confident about teaching moms hand expression and do you teach it on a regular basis? I've been a LLL Leader for five years and a lurker on Lactnet for almost two years and it seems most folks in North America seem uncomfortable with hand expression - which could be an enormously empowered skill for moms to learn. I never got the hang of doing it myself. McCormick Vermont, USA (studying for the exam and learning so much here!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 Hi , I teach hand expression to every mom I see and is willing to learn. I see moms in the hospital within 24 hours post birth when colostrum is just coming in. I work with a population that is middle low to low low income often uneducated, uninformed, where many myths are predominant and bottles rule. Early pumping can be frustrating and discouraging for most. There are many moms who for one reason or another (epidural meds, pitocin, c-section, mother/baby separation, premature births, etc.) don’t produce much colostrum (if any) the first few hours. With these moms hand expression and breast massage are key. I’ve seen too many moms wanting to give up when the pump just doesn’t do it for them. I also walk around with my belly balls in my hospital coat pocket to help explain and visualize the relationship between baby stomach size and milk production. After I assess the situation, I offer to show them how to hand expresses. If they accept, I work on them, explaining everything, until the milk starts to flow easily. And then I have them do it themselves. Seeing is believing. Moms need to see that they are producing the appropriate amounts of milk for their babies. I also explain that pumps mostly exert negative pressure (suction). A baby that is breastfeeding WELL, exerts both negative and positive pressure. Hand expression is an invaluable and underused skill. It primes the breast jump starting a system that may have been disrupted by hospital interventions. It gets mom to be comfortable handling her own breasts. She will learn exactly where to touch to get more yield. She gains confidence and self-esteem. Ideally, we put baby to breast immediately after. Baby will latch-on and stay on longer because milk flows more easily. When baby is in NICU, we pump and yield increases. Somewhere in the back of my mind I recall having a conversation with old time leaders or/and IBCLCs who said that hand-expression was taught regularly at LLL meetings. Anyone out there remember this? Carmen Carmen , LLLL, IBCLC 324 Edgewood Avenue Teaneck, NJ 07666 (h) © From: [mailto: ] On Behalf Of lucasmama Sent: Wednesday, December 03, 2008 5:31 AM To: Subject: Hand expression I've really been enjoying the threads on home visits and office visits as well as different approaches to follow up phone calls. I've been curious for a long time about hand expression. Do any of you feel confident about teaching moms hand expression and do you teach it on a regular basis? I've been a LLL Leader for five years and a lurker on Lactnet for almost two years and it seems most folks in North America seem uncomfortable with hand expression - which could be an enormously empowered skill for moms to learn. I never got the hang of doing it myself. McCormick Vermont, USA (studying for the exam and learning so much here!) No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG. Version: 7.5.552 / Virus Database: 270.9.12/1822 - Release Date: 12/1/2008 8:23 AM No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG. Version: 7.5.552 / Virus Database: 270.9.13/1826 - Release Date: 12/3/2008 9:34 AM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 Hi , I teach hand expression to every mom I see and is willing to learn. I see moms in the hospital within 24 hours post birth when colostrum is just coming in. I work with a population that is middle low to low low income often uneducated, uninformed, where many myths are predominant and bottles rule. Early pumping can be frustrating and discouraging for most. There are many moms who for one reason or another (epidural meds, pitocin, c-section, mother/baby separation, premature births, etc.) don’t produce much colostrum (if any) the first few hours. With these moms hand expression and breast massage are key. I’ve seen too many moms wanting to give up when the pump just doesn’t do it for them. I also walk around with my belly balls in my hospital coat pocket to help explain and visualize the relationship between baby stomach size and milk production. After I assess the situation, I offer to show them how to hand expresses. If they accept, I work on them, explaining everything, until the milk starts to flow easily. And then I have them do it themselves. Seeing is believing. Moms need to see that they are producing the appropriate amounts of milk for their babies. I also explain that pumps mostly exert negative pressure (suction). A baby that is breastfeeding WELL, exerts both negative and positive pressure. Hand expression is an invaluable and underused skill. It primes the breast jump starting a system that may have been disrupted by hospital interventions. It gets mom to be comfortable handling her own breasts. She will learn exactly where to touch to get more yield. She gains confidence and self-esteem. Ideally, we put baby to breast immediately after. Baby will latch-on and stay on longer because milk flows more easily. When baby is in NICU, we pump and yield increases. Somewhere in the back of my mind I recall having a conversation with old time leaders or/and IBCLCs who said that hand-expression was taught regularly at LLL meetings. Anyone out there remember this? Carmen Carmen , LLLL, IBCLC 324 Edgewood Avenue Teaneck, NJ 07666 (h) © From: [mailto: ] On Behalf Of lucasmama Sent: Wednesday, December 03, 2008 5:31 AM To: Subject: Hand expression I've really been enjoying the threads on home visits and office visits as well as different approaches to follow up phone calls. I've been curious for a long time about hand expression. Do any of you feel confident about teaching moms hand expression and do you teach it on a regular basis? I've been a LLL Leader for five years and a lurker on Lactnet for almost two years and it seems most folks in North America seem uncomfortable with hand expression - which could be an enormously empowered skill for moms to learn. I never got the hang of doing it myself. McCormick Vermont, USA (studying for the exam and learning so much here!) No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG. Version: 7.5.552 / Virus Database: 270.9.12/1822 - Release Date: 12/1/2008 8:23 AM No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG. Version: 7.5.552 / Virus Database: 270.9.13/1826 - Release Date: 12/3/2008 9:34 AM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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