tandem nursing 2yo, 6week old, pumping (back at work), excess milk - milk bank?

[makawee]

I have too much milk! grrrr. Since my 2 year old helped out with my milk coming in I have an overabundance.

I don't have room in the freezer anymore. My baby might never even eat that milk. I spend extra money on the groceries to keep my energy up. I need to buy those special milk freezer bags. Basically it's an extra expense.

Have you ever used a milk bank before? What was it like? Was it hard to get *approved* to give milk in the first place? Was it a hassle to ship milk there? (The nearest milk bank is in Iowa - I'm in MN). Should I even entertain the idea with a 2 year old and an infant? I'd hate to see all my milk go to waste!

Other ideas -
Shorten up my pumping time to lessen my supply? - I've already started this one.
Confirm this as a weight loss plan?

[mama24-7]

I don't think I would accept donated milk from someone but there are people who will. Do you know of anyone in your area who might want the milk if they aren't able to supply all their child needs (maybe they have multiples) or if someone has an adopted baby?

Only thing I can think of beyond donating to a bank.
Sus

[dawndup]

Hi, I have donated to a milk bank before and it was a good experience for me. Our milk bank is only an hour away and they did "local pickup" in my city - I just had to drop off the frozen milk to a nurse's office and the bank would come retrieve it.

It wasn't hard to get approved, but it was time consuming. I had to fill out a lot of paperwork and send it in - then when the paperwork was approved, I was told to get blood drawn. Then it took another week or two before the blood sample was analyzed and they could start accepting my milk. They would take any milk I had pumped prior to the blood draw, so your freezer stash would still be ok to donate.

Since your milk bank is farther away, I'm not sure how they would manage shipping. I hope they would send you prepaid containers or set something up with FedEx, but I don't know for sure. Give them a call and ask - that part is free!

[elfgirl]

I might hang on to the milk. I had a similar experience when my last baby was new, but now, at almost 8 months old, my pump yield has dropped dramatically and I dip in to the freezer supply 2-3 times a week. Just my two cents!