In this section, you will find information on building close and loving relationships, how milk production works, colostrum collection and the face-to-face antenatal infant feeding workshops we offer at Winchester and Basingstoke hospital.
Around 16 weeks pregnant, your body is busy producing colostrum, which will be present and ready for your baby at birth. There are several hormones such as oestrogen, prolactin, human placental lactogen and progesterone working together to prepare your body to breastfeed. During pregnancy, progesterone is produced by the placenta which acts as the breaks for milk production. Once you have birthed your placenta, your progesterone levels rapidly drop, and your prolactin levels increase allowing lactation to fully begin.
Many mothers will start to notice their “milk coming in” around 3-5 days after birth, however this can vary. For 24-48 hours you may notice
- Discomfort
- Breast tenderness
- Swelling
- Mild fever
- Warmth
This discomfort is due to the swelling of the breast tissue caused by a sudden increase in milk volume. The discomfort doesn’t usually last for very long and will settle as your body adjusts to the amount of milk it needs to make.
It is at this stage that milk will only continue to be made when milk is removed from the breasts. Every time milk is removed from the breast, a signal is sent that will help to build and regulate your milk supply. This is so your body can adapt to the number of babies you have. If you choose not to breastfeed or express, your milk production will stop within around two weeks following birth.
At around 16 weeks pregnant, your body is busy producing colostrum. This will be present and ready for your baby at birth. Colostrum is a very concentrated food, so your baby will only need very small amounts. Colostrum is full of vitamins and antibodies and is often referred to as ‘liquid gold’. Collecting colostrum can be very beneficial for your baby if they are likely to have any difficulties with feeding or maintaining their blood sugars.
Your community midwife can provide you with a colostrum collection pack at 36 weeks. It is then recommended to collect your colostrum from 37 weeks.
How to hand express
- It is important to feel relaxed and comfortable as this will help increase oxytocin levels (one of the hormones responsible for milk production)
- With the palm of your hand or kneading motion, gently massage the breast to help stimulate colostrum let down
- Place your thumb and finger in a C shape about 2-3cm away from the base of the nipple
- Using forefinger and thumb compress in a steady rhythm without sliding fingers along the skin. Milk may take a few minutes to flow. If milk doesn’t flow, move fingers slightly up or down the breast and try again.
- Rotate fingers around the breast
- When milk flow slows or ceases, move to the other breast
- Ensure any colostrum collected is labelled with your name, date and time it was collected and stored in the freezer on the same day
Please bring your colostrum with you to the hospital in a cool bag. The syringes can then be transferred into our freezer on the ward. If you have any colostrum in the freezer when you are discharged from hospital, please ask a member of staff to return this to you so you can take it home.
More Information
Collecting your colostrum while you are pregnant :: Healthier Together
Close and loving relationships encourages high levels of oxytocin and low levels of stress hormones which help support optimum brain development. In the antenatal period you can start to build close and loving relationships by:
- Taking the time to think about baby
- Talking to baby
- Responding to movements
- Involving partner and siblings
We now know that building a strong relationship between parents and their new baby will give them the best possible start in life and will help them to grow up to be happy and confident. It can also help get breastfeeding off to a good start. This can be encouraged by:
- Ongoing skin to skin contact
- Being responsive to baby’s cues
- Soothing and comforting your baby
- Not leaving baby to cry for long periods
Building a happy baby: A Guide for Parents Leaflet - Baby Friendly Initiative
We are pleased to offer free antenatal infant feeding workshops at Winchester and Basingstoke hospitals. They run on the first Tuesday of every month in Winchester from 17:30-19:30pm and the second Tuesday of every month in Basingstoke 17:30-19:30pm. Topics include;
- Benefits of Breastfeeding for mum and baby
- How milk production works
- Hand expressing
- Positioning and attachment
- Responsive feeding
- How to recognise breastfeeding is going well
- Paced bottle feeding
- How to seek support with feeding
We recommend attending the workshop when you are around 36 weeks pregnant. Please feel free to bring your partner/birth partner along. You can book onto a workshop by scanning using this link Antenatal Infant Feeding Workshops | Eventbrite or scan the QR code: 
If you have any questions please email infantfeedingteam@hhft.nhs.uk
