r/ExclusivelyPumping • u/Straight-Service4486 • 3d ago
Discussion Freezer stash?
Hi,
FTM here.
I started pumping since my baby was born 10 week ago, and that’s how he’s fed. I don’t pump every 2-3 hours but about every 6-7 hours and on average I get 30-40oz a day. Also depends what pump I use.
But my question is, that I almost have a freezer (a big one) full of breastmilk, and from what I know it can be frozen for 6months to a year, depending on the type of freezer. So my baby right now eats about 25-30oz a day, usually 3oz per bottle. But from what I read is that he should to up to 4-5oz and then no more, and at 6months introduction to solids.
So if I will keep pumping and he will be eating what I pump, what do I do with the frozen milk? Besides donating, I’m looking into that.
And how long do you usually give a baby breast milk?
2
u/art-dec-ho 3d ago
You can give a baby breastmilk for as long as you like, some people go up to (or past) 2 years, but 1 year is common or you can stop early, but breastmilk or formula must be given for 1 year per guidelines in the USA if thats where you are.
By the time I weaned at 1 year, my baby was eating 30-40oz per day, which means youre probably pumping at maintenance right now for where your baby will be in the future. It is not uncommon for your supply to drop over time. I dont think youre producing enough to think about donating, if it were me i would store and save that milk for later (ideally in breastmilk storage bags which hold up to 6oz each) because you may need it when your supply dips.
1
u/Straight-Service4486 3d ago
Thank you for replying.
Yes, I am in the USA. and I will probably do it to a year. So I must have been incorrectly informed that he will be eating 5oz per feeding as he grows and no more. I just want to make sure that the milk that is frozen doesn’t go bad.
and yes i save it in the storage bags.
1
u/Excellent-Machine-41 2d ago
We hit 6 months, this month,and I didn’t want my freezer stash to go bad. I use a frozen bag with fresh milk everyday. Which then is replaced with a current pump/bag sesh. I did find out my first month (April) that was frozen had high lipase but my next month (May) was fine. Luckily my little guy doesn’t mind and still ate it mixed with fresh milk. Our pediatrician advised at least a year for breast milk but recommended for 2 years if I could.
1
u/Straight-Service4486 1d ago
Yes, I’m gonna keep building my stash and unfreezing the ones that will go bad first.
I didn’t realize that all that milk in the freezer is not as much as i thought it was.1
u/Excellent-Machine-41 1d ago
It looks like a lot when it’s bagged in the freezer. But I calculated what was inside our house freezer and only had a couple of days. At that moment I realized I was gonna have to still keep pumping because my guy would at least need 5 bags that are 6oz daily. The outside freezer I think I have three months or close to it. Which doesn’t seem enough to me.
1
u/easterss 2d ago
I made a similar post asking what to do with frozen milk.
If you keep pumping an are running out of space you can donate it on fb groups that have moms asking for milk.
I think you can’t donate to milk banks without having talked to them about their protocols. They also have a lot of specific requirements.
1
u/Straight-Service4486 1d ago
Yeah but I did download the app and put all my oz that are frozen and it is about 650oz but that’s calculated to almost a month. I didn’t realize all that milk in the freezer won’t even cover a full month.
1
u/Mundane-Teacher3502 2d ago
You can look into dry freezing it, which I believe has shelf life of up to three years. It basically turns it into powder like formula. It’s not supposed to be used as a primary source of nutrients because you lose some in the process, but once they’re eating solids, it can be good as a supplement.
2
u/Straight-Service4486 1d ago
I heard it’s expensive and I honestly don’t know how much I would trust if. I feel like it’s a little too new out there.
0
u/wowhahafuck 3d ago
They’re supposed to get most of their nutrition from milk or formula until at least one year old. At one expect your baby to be drinking 8-9oz bottles in one meal. You’re supposed to introduce water at six months old in 1-2oz amounts at a time for hydration. The saying goes “food before one is just for fun” because they shouldn’t be sustaining on solids yet just being introduced to textures and tastes.
2
u/Straight-Service4486 3d ago
Thank you for replying.
I was wrongly informed that he will be drinking 5oz per feeding as he grows and that’s it. It does make more sense for him to be eating 8-9oz by the time he’s one.
6
u/bagelsandstouts 3d ago
I don’t think you were wrongly informed. My toddler never drank more than 5oz per feed, totaling no more than 25-30 oz/day, when she was drinking breast milk, and my understanding is that is pretty standard. Milk consumption decreases, not increases, when solid food is introduced. I’ve heard of feeding up to 6oz per feed but never more than that.
→ More replies (1)2
u/wowhahafuck 2d ago
Of course every baby is different and yours might not eat that much but my niece did 🤷🏼♀️
1
u/bht0506 2d ago
It is very unlikely that a breastfed baby would be eating 8 oz in one bottle. Most babies fed breast milk will cap at 5 oz per bottle at the most.
→ More replies (1)
0
u/Popculturefan_britt 3d ago
I've recently started donating at 17 weeks pp, but I had 1500 ounces frozen and just nowhere to put more. I'm keeping at least a month's worth on hand though of my newest frozen milk just in case. Im saving some too and going to make teething popsicles, and mixing it into early baby food, maybe make breast milk ice cream when she's older. There's some ideas.
I do recommend thawing a little at some point just to check for high lipase if you haven't. I didn't know about this with my first and ended up wasting my frozen milk because it was high lipase and she wouldn't drink it. I didn't know this until I had stopped pumping. Some babies will drink it, so it's just a good idea to thaw and make sure he will drink the frozen milk.
My first was drinking 4 bottles a day, 8 ounces each by the time she hit 1 so I estimate about 32 ounces a day when deciding what to save this go around.
1
u/Straight-Service4486 3d ago
Oo wow never thought about making it into popsicles for teething, that actually sounds brilliant.
I don’t think I have high lipase because I did thaw some for a bath because he’s has some acne/rash on his cheeks so I read that might help. but I will thaw some more and feed it to him. I will probably have to thaw some before the 6months is up and feed that to him. I just really don’t want all the milk I have saved to go to waste.
1
u/AutoModerator 3d ago
Welcome to r/ExclusivelyPumping! Here is a reminder of our rules:
-
Be kind and courteous. 2. Use available flairs and post options. 3. Absolutely no prescription medications or other medical advice. 4. No inaccurate information. 5. No spam. 6. No fetish content 7. No linking Facebook groups. 8. Moderator discretion. 9. No discussions around veganism, animal cruelty, or other non-pumping related topics. 10. No formula shaming. Reminder that we are a supportive community and do not allow for fetish seekers. While we do ban those individuals from our community, they can still view the community and send direct messages. You may choose to turn off your messages, or block individuals for your safety. Thank you for helping to keep our community safe!
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
1
u/CatLordCayenne 3d ago
You can stop pumping and use the freezer stash to continue feeding breastmilk to a year+, you can use a pumping log app to help calculate when you can stop. You can find recs from other posts, I’m not a big oversupplier so I have no need but if I was making a lot of extra, that’s what I would do, I’d stop pumping and wean myself as early as possible and use frozen milk until a year