When does the breast milk actually come in?

We thought something had gone wrong

Mama had delivered by caesarean at 33 weeks, Ari was in NICU, and we were already staring at a few yellow drops wondering how that could possibly be enough. It felt as though the milk had not arrived. In fact, this was the milk.

Colostrum is thick, yellow and made in tiny amounts. When you are measuring drops rather than bottles, it is easy to think your body is failing. It is not. Those first drops are exactly what a newborn needs.

The fuller milk takes a little time

The fuller, paler milk often arrives between days two and five. It can take a little longer after a caesarean or a difficult birth. Knowing that earlier would have saved us a great deal of staring at the pump in despair.

Very gentle massage helped when Mama felt a tight area. Brief warmth before an ordinary pumping session felt soothing, and an ice pack afterwards helped with soreness. Pumping is hard work and, especially at the beginning, it can hurt.

Portable pumps gave Mama more freedom, but for her the suction felt more robotic and hurt more. The sit-down pump was far less convenient, but the suction felt more natural and was easier on her body. Freedom is wonderful; pain-free is better.

Silver nipple cups were amazing for Mama’s soreness, and Medela nipple cream helped too. That was our experience rather than a promise for every skin type, so stop if something irritates the area and ask for feeding support if pain continues.

Drinking a cup of Stilltea each day seemed to help Mama’s milk production

If your baby is in NICU, the nurses may collect even the smallest amount. Nothing feels more ridiculous than proudly carrying over a syringe containing what looks like almost nothing. But almost nothing is still something.

Why pumping mattered for us

Ari could not feed directly at first, so expressing did two jobs: it gave her the colostrum Mama was making and told Mama’s body to keep making more. The pump was not replacing Ari. It was standing in for her until she could feed herself.

What helped most was asking the NICU nurses what they wanted from us, rather than comparing every session with numbers online. If you are getting very little, are in pain or are worried that nothing is changing, ask your midwife, lactation support or baby’s nurse.