Question about Freezing Breastmilk

hohmanam

I know I had asked earlier how much breastmilk people freeze in a bag and all of you said either how much you pump at a time or how many ounces they eat.

 

However, I'm wondering why you wouldn't just freeze full bags and unthaw them? If the milk is good for 24 hours after being unthawed, it is clear that your little one would drink it in that time, right? I'm just thinking to save bags and time, that would be easier, right? I must be missing something though, because no one mentioned doing it this way. Please clue me in on why this isn't a good idea. Thanks!

watermellens

if you're EBFing and only giving bottles on occasion, then pumping 8 oz into a bag would be a waste if you thaw 8 oz and then your LO only drinks 4. Then doesn't take another bottle until 2 days later.

That's the only reason I can think of.

LovinTim912

I agree with the PP.

I freeze 2-3 oz in a bag.  This is my emergency stash.  When I go back to work, I will give whoever is with DD the milk I pumped the day before for the following (so what I pump on Monday will be given to DD on Tuesday, etc.)   The frozen milk is only for if she is short a few ounces (which she usually isn't) OR if I need to run out for a little bit and there's no milk in the house.

Aisham28

Well just on my experience I only did to the line so I knew exactly how much I was storinng. I EP and I had almost had a month stored up for whenever my supply went down. My little one is over 5 months now and my milk is starting to decrease. So I pull out a bag every day just to maintain. I don't need more then a 6 oz bag. Also the Lanosh bags I use tend to leak. Ive lost 4 or 5 so far and thankfully since I didn't fill them up so much I loss less than I could of! But I dont see any reason why you cant fill them fuller. Its just a personal preference.

hohmanam

Aisham28:

Well just on my experience I only did to the line so I knew exactly how much I was storinng. I EP and I had almost had a month stored up for whenever my supply went down. My little one is over 5 months now and my milk is starting to decrease. So I pull out a bag every day just to maintain. I don't need more then a 6 oz bag. Also the Lanosh bags I use tend to leak. Ive lost 4 or 5 so far and thankfully since I didn't fill them up so much I loss less than I could of! But I dont see any reason why you cant fill them fuller. Its just a personal preference.

 

Thanks for this! This solved my question! I EP too, but I can understand why women that BF would only do 2-3 ounces. I didn't think of that before hand! However, your comment about the bags leaking concerns me too, so maybe before I start a freezer stash I will downsize on the amount per bag. Thank you, thank you!

Kingston54

I only freeze when I have enough for a full bag!

beachbum482

I bought breastmilk freezing trays that freeze my milk in one ounce strips. This way I don't use a bunch of bags and can make bottles based on what my LO needs at the time. The frozen strips fit easily into bottles and take up less space in the fridge when they are transferred to a ziploc freezer bag!! I highly recommend them!!

ek91745

I bought the OXO milk/baby food trays. They look like ice cube trays. Each little cube is .5 oz. So after the milk freezes, i take them out and put into gladloc bags and label them. Later, i will defrost as much as i need. Each cube can fit into a bottle. Just defrost in the bottles. Plus, it save $$$ on the bags, and I won't waste any on leaky bags. Milk is gold! I worked too hard to waste any! LOL. After baby grows older, I plan to use the trays to freeze baby food, then ice cubes when baby is a lot older. Super eco-friendly!