Sharing my milk with a friend's baby - how/when to pump?

[nstewart]

Hi all.  I am hoping for some suggestions from you all on how to start pumping so that I can provide milk to a friend for her DS, who is 4 mos old.

My DS is 10 months old and currently nurses 7-8 times per day.  He nurses upon waking, then at 9:30, then takes a big break until 2:30, then nurses again at 3:30, at 8pm, at 10:30 and then through the night at least once more (sometimes more but I don't keep track!)  

I haven't been pumping since he doesn't take a bottle anyway.  A friend of mine is having supply issues and her DS does not like formula.  She is on meds (I can't remember the name, but the common one for supply) to try to increase her supply but thinks her DS is still wanting more than she is making.  I've offered her my milk as I've always had plenty in the supply department and have a small stash in the freezer from when DS was younger and I thought eventually it would be useful.  I've suggested that she pump when she gives her DS a bottle of my milk to try to ensure it doesn't tank her supply.

So I guess I am looking for input on when/how to pump to provide what I can to her while ensuring DS is still getting his needs met.  How can I increase my supply to maximize what I provide her with?  My other question is to you moms about how she should best go about giving her DS the bottle of extra milk.  Should she nurse her DS until she is on empty then offer the bottle?  Should she give a bottle at the same time each day?  Is there a way to do it best??

Thank-you for your advice!

I've cross-posted in Breastfeeding Challenges!

Edited by nstewart - 6/2/11 at 5:39pm

[olaz-b]

My friend and I had a similar arrangement.  She had supply issues, and I had a lot of milk to spare.  My DS would nurse only on one side each session.  When he finished, I'd pump out any milk left in that breast and then pump out the whole untouched breast.  The next feeding session would be similar, but I'd always let DS decide if he ever wanted the second breast if the first wasn't enough.  This rarely happened, but I do think that after a week, my body started making even more milk, so one breast was for him and the other for my friend's DS.  My milk was always supplemental to my friends, and she would always offer her breasts first, then my milk, then formula.  She was flexible and did what she had to make sure her DS received enough food.  We did this for around 3 months, until her DS was about 6 months old.