Pump died on a work trip, two nights away. Can I really just hand express and is the milk worth keeping?

Hotel room, nine o'clock at night, pump motor has made a grinding noise and died. Baby is eight months, I'm away for work until Friday, she's at home with my partner and has plenty in the freezer so SHE is fine. I am not fine. I'm already full and I have a whole day of meetings tomorrow.

Nowhere open to buy a pump until tomorrow evening at the earliest. Everyone says "just hand express" like it's obvious. I have never done it. I've watched one video in the last ten minutes and I'm getting about four drops.

Also, if I do get anything out, is it even worth keeping in a hotel mini fridge or do I just pour it away?

You can do this, it just takes a few goes to find the spot. Fingers further BACK than you think, not on the nipple, then press back towards your ribs before you squeeze. Most people's first attempt is too close to the end. Warm flannel first helps loads.

And swap sides every time it slows, don't keep going on one side. I got more doing short bursts on each side than one long stint.

Done exactly this on a work trip (pump bag left on a train, don't ask). First go was pathetic, by the third session I was getting a decent amount. Do it in the shower if you just need relief and aren't saving it, it's the easiest place to learn.

Mini fridges are hit and miss on temperature. I asked reception for a bag of ice and kept the milk in a cool bag with the ice packs from my lunch.

Hollie, you can absolutely get through two days on hand expression, and you are doing the right thing by expressing for comfort rather than waiting, because staying very full for long stretches is what tends to lead to blocked ducts.

Jess has the key bit. Cup the breast, make a C with your thumb and forefinger a few centimetres back from the nipple, press back towards your chest, squeeze, release, and keep a rhythm. When it slows, move your fingers round to another position and then swap sides. It should not hurt; if it does, your fingers are probably too close to the nipple or sliding over the skin. We put a full step by step guide up this week, hand expressing breast milk, which might be handy on your phone between meetings.

On keeping it: if you can keep it properly cold, it is worth keeping. Hotel mini fridges often run warmer than a home fridge, so Gemma's ice plan is a good one, or ask whether they have a staff fridge. The times and temperatures are all in the breast milk storage guidelines. And if you are not sure it has stayed cold enough, it is fine to pour it away and treat the sessions as being for your comfort and your supply. Two days of hand expressing will keep your supply ticking over perfectly well.

Night two. Fingers further back was the whole secret. Got about 90 ml this morning in twenty minutes, felt like a magic trick. Reception gave me a bag of ice and looked only mildly confused.

Home. Brought back four little bags in a cool bag that were still properly cold, and fed her on the doorstep before I'd taken my coat off.

Honestly glad the pump died. I'd never have learnt this otherwise and now I don't panic about forgetting a part. New pump arrives Wednesday, but I'm keeping the hand thing as my back up.