breastmilk question?

So i had my little boy at 24wks 2days. I have been pumping about every 3hrs for 15min at a time and all i get is 3 to 4ozs at a time... sometimes 5 if i sleep through the night and forget to wake up to pump. Is it normal to have so little milk at a time? or will more come in when i finally take him home? i am confused it may be a lot since i was a little over half way done..

that sounds like a lot actually...and how old is he now?

That is actually on the high side of what women who pump are able to get. I have been pumping breastmilk for 3 1/2 month old since he was 3 wks old (he was full term) and the most I have ever gotten at one time was 6 oz. Once you are able to put him to breast (if you aren't yet able) his sucking will empty your breasts better and stimulate production for however much he needs.

Quoting ~Mommy of 3~:“ that sounds like a lot actually...and how old is he now?”

He is 18 days old

Yeah that sounds like alot to me i was only getting like 1-2 oz off both sides when i was pumping!

You are doing great! I couldn't even get an oz. during my daughter's NICU stay(5 weeks)!! When she was finally able to feed at the breast I got up to 3 oz. for a short time, then my body decided it hates pumps..

I agree with what they all said... I usually pump about 5 oz and my baby is 4 months old and i've been breastfeeding since day 1. So 3-4 ounces that early on is GREAT! When they feed him, how much is he eating? Assuming he is still in the NICU since he was so early and why you are pumping exclusively.

awww...i just looked..he is beautiful..
that is good u are getting that much then...i was only able to get 1-1/2 oz. for the first 3 wks...so good job mama!!

Quoting mommybrain:“ That is actually on the high side of what women who pump are able to get. I have been pumping breastmilk ... [snip!] ... breast (if you aren't yet able) his sucking will empty your breasts better and stimulate production for however much he needs.”

He wont be able to come home for another 3 months. that is good to know that more will come once he is actually able to latch on. i was worried i would starve him... but i have so much milk stored that he will be okay for a while. i dont really want to formula feed him.

Quoting BeccaShell:“ I agree with what they all said... I usually pump about 5 oz and my baby is 4 months old and i've been ... [snip!] ... feed him, how much is he eating? Assuming he is still in the NICU since he was so early and why you are pumping exclusively.”

lol well the lactation specialist said its good to pump at least 8 times a day so my milk doesnt run dry. he only gets 1ml every 4 hours.... not very much but since he was so small they want to get his intestines use to it... once he can digest a little better he will get more.

Quoting JOSIAHS MAMA!:“ He wont be able to come home for another 3 months. that is good to know that more will come once he is ... [snip!] ... i would starve him... but i have so much milk stored that he will be okay for a while. i dont really want to formula feed him.”

From the sounds of it, that shouldn't be a problem. The only thing you'll want to be sure of is that you pump the same number of times, with the same interval every day. If you don't it could affect your supply since you don't have the baby to stimulate production.

Quoting JOSIAHS MAMA!:“ So i had my little boy at 24wks 2days. I have been pumping about every 3hrs for 15min at a time and all ... [snip!] ... or will more come in when i finally take him home? i am confused it may be a lot since i was a little over half way done..”

3 to 4 ozs is A LOT for just starting out.... When my son was born I was soooo super religious about pumping every 2 or 3 hours that in no time at all I was pumping like 3oz or more off of just one SIDE!!!! So I was pumping like 6 ozs at a sitting, but I'll tell you that that became a huge nusance before too long, because my boobs hurt like hell if I didnt pump in 2 to 3 hours tops.... Even now I dont pump every couple of hours but I still get like 4 ozs total, which is what my son needs and then some, because I feed him a 2oz formula - 2oz Breast Milk combo bottle.....
Just stick to pumping every couple of hours and trust me it will build up, oh also too.... pump for at least the recommened 15 minutes and sometimes a little longer if you want to build your supply. The long you pump even if you arent getting anything at the time will tell your body that it needs to make more just as pumping more often will!

Good Luck!

You go mama! You are doing great!

Sounds like you are doing great! in the beginning i had trouble and barely got 3-4oz a day from each breast! Once he is older your supply will improve further, i noticed mine went up when we started non nutritive b/feeding too. Keep it up mama  

i would suggest trying to get a deep freezer so that the milk stays good longer in there...

Great Job keeping up with the pumping!