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Originally published on A Piece of My Mind.
I mentioned yesterday that I use hand expression at times. I first learned how to do this when I wanted to increase my supply because I found out that breast compressions/massage coupled with my pump could increase output. I noticed a significant difference between when I did massage and when I didn’t (to the tune of two or more ounces per breast).
There are two well known techniques for hand expression— Marmet and Stanford. The primary difference between the two is hand placement. I found the Stanford technique to be the one that worked the best for me, but I have used both at various times.
One nice thing about knowing how to hand express was that even if I was without my pump, I could relieve pressure. Certainly I would be sad to see it go to waste (liquid gold people!), but there is only so much misery one can take!
When I started nursing less and traveling more (basically June 2009), I stopped packing my pump. The first time I had to relieve pressure. The second time, I did not feel anything. This time, I also have not expressed any milk other than one night to see if there was any there!
Another use for hand expression is prior to a woman’s milk coming in, if she is having trouble getting her baby to latch, she could express in to a spoon and feed the colostrum to the baby! I find that amazing by the way!
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Those videos are great. I never learned about the techniques, but rather just kind of figured it out on my own. What I’ve been doing is exactly the Stanford method, with a lit bit of Marmot thrown in every once in a while.