Breastfeeding and pumps!!

Molly · #1 October 11th, 2005, 04:13 AM

Okay - I have so many questions about this!! If you have in the past, or plan to pump this time...

What breast pumps are you all using and why?
Once you start pumping, when should you do it? And how often?

I'll start with that...

sunshinealyssamichelle · #2 October 11th, 2005, 06:01 AM

Great questions!!!! I am anxious to hear answers!

#3 October 11th, 2005, 06:53 AM

Well- this is my first baby, so I don't have any advice for you-- but I do plan on getting the Medela Pump In Style. I have done a ton of research on it, and while it is expensive it seems like one of the best pumps out there. I will be going back to work after 12 weeks, so I will need a pretty heavy duty pump to use while at work. I am still trying to learn/decide when to introduce a bottle with breastmilk though-- I have heard so many conflicting answers.

BensMom · #4 October 11th, 2005, 07:54 AM

I just bought this one - http://www.mybirthcare.com/purelyyourscarryall.asp

It's sold all over the place, but this one was $100 cheaper than a lot of stores. UPS delivered it last night. I haven't actually USED it, of course, but it's REALLY nice. It's so simple to put together and seems very durable. It's got adjustable pump levels and stuff as well. ALL of the reviews I found online compared it to the Medela and gave it 4 to 5 stars. It's worth checking into anyway. There's also a backpack version that's just a little more expensive than the purse.

bearbait · #5 October 11th, 2005, 10:53 AM

I plan on staying at home after the baby is born, so I hope to be able to breastfeed almost exclusively. I did register for the Avent pump-on-the-go kit, though, so that I can fill a few bottles when baby sleeps at grandma's or when I will be gone during feeding times. It contains a manual breastpump and some bottles and comes in a little cooler. I figure that since I plan on not using bottles too much, this may be all I need.
However, if you are planning on doing a lot of pumping, then you will probably want an electric one. They can be very expensive though, and you don't want to buy one and then not like it, or if you have problems and cannot breastfeed, then you can't return them. At my breastfeeding class they suggested renting one at first (you can even rent them at the hospital), and then if everything works ok you can buy one or just keep renting it. There are many electric ones that will pump both breasts at the same time.

Sugerplumfairy · #6 October 11th, 2005, 12:07 PM

I have a medela Pump,
I have the electric, battery and manual attachments,
I can even use my own pump attachments on the hospital pump should I need to be in the NICU again,

Its also the pump the Lactation consulatants recomend here in NZ

I dont plain on having to use it much, but had to buy one when DD was born,
And the times Ive used it, its been great,

#7 October 11th, 2005, 02:51 PM

Popping in from Jan DDC...
I pumped with daughter with a hospital rental and this time I bought the Ameda Purely yours. It is the best on the market along with Medela Pump in Style, but it is less expensive. I got mine off ebay for $118, which is a steal and that was brand new. It is electric and a double pump.
I plan to start pumping when I get home from the hospital in order to try to increase my milk supply.

LisaLisaBoBisa · #8 October 11th, 2005, 03:40 PM

popping in from ddc oct im pumping and feeding Ariana what i pump. Im using the medela pump in style original the one for around $250. It works awesome i pump for 10 min on each breast and get about 5 ounces out of each breast yes the freezer is packed with milk lol. Anyway the lactation consultant told me that i needed to pump every 3 hours for 10-15 min on each side. You can do both at the same time with the medela pump but i have large breasts so its hard for me to so i just do one at a time. During the day i sometimes pump for 15 min at night time i only pump for 10 min cause im so tired i stare at the clock and watch the minutes go by.

Anne07Nov05 · #9 October 11th, 2005, 06:44 PM

I got the Medela Pump in Style, also. The reviews are great, and my friends who have used it rave about it. It sells at BRU for $249, but I ordered it from the site below for $219, and free shipping.

http://www.breast-pumps.org/

The site offers both Medela and Ameda pumps.

BensMom · #10 October 12th, 2005, 06:28 AM

hehee... COOL! I said that I'd bought the Ameda pump in a previous post, and then last night at my birth class the nurse was promoting that same one! She sells them for $225, where mine was only $150.

I need to tell her where I got mine becasue she said that was the cheapest she'd found. Even the backpack version is only $194 with TX sales tax added!

anu_p · #11 October 12th, 2005, 06:49 AM

With my son, I went back to work in 8 weeks, and used the Medela Pump In Style. It is a great pump, and very convenient. The bag looks cool too, nothing to be conscious about when you have to take it to work.

I will be using the same pump this time also.

I started pumping about 4-5 weeks after the delivery, but only 10 minutes at a time. I had to feed my son every 2 hours, so there wasn't really any time to pump in between and still have enough to feed him !

I still managed to store a lot of breast milk in the freezer before I had to go back to work. At work, I pumped thrice a day for 15 minutes at a time, equivalent to what he was drinking at home.... so I was replacing whatever he finished during the day.

Molly · #12 October 12th, 2005, 08:38 AM

Y'all are wonderful!

I'll probably get the Medela Pump in Style - it's the one that was so highly recommended by our lactation consultant, too. I really want to exclusively give Charlie breast milk as long as possible, then introduce other foods around 6 months in addition to the breast milk. I hope that's not too much to hope for!! Who knows!!

We were also told to go ahead and get the pump, but don't open it until it's time to use it, just in case he have issues with breast feeding - because they cannot be returned! Which is good - I'd hate to use a used one! Ick!

Pumping with my school schedule will be difficult, but I'll try to make it work. Our schools just don't really have private areas, you know? I guess I'll cover my windows and lock the door!

~Trina~ · #13 October 14th, 2005, 05:55 PM

I'll tell ya what my LC told me

Our plan is to have J.J. fed breast milk as long as possible but not necassarily from the "tap".

She said they normally recommend you wait 2-3 weeks before pumping at all. But because of our circumstances, for me to start pumping immediately.

First, there is a chance JJ will have to be re-admitted tomorrow and they will need milk for him there if I don't want him given formula. They won't be bottle feeding him though...they will be feeding him with a syringe to avoid nipple confusion.

Second, my milk came in very quickly (less than 48 hrs after birth) and I have/had SEVERE engorgement. She has me on instructions to pump for 10 minutes every hour. However, since I've been home...I haven't been able to keep that schedule (who could???).

In order to start building up a nice supply in the freezer, her recommendations were to:

1) pump after 2-3 feedings per day and store what you can get there. The first handful of times you do this, you won't get hardly any milk but keep going because thats how your body will know to make more at that time of day. A good time to do this is after first morning feedings and later at night because your body will respond quickest to them

2) If baby will only eat on one side per feeding (such as J.J.) then you can pump for a few minutes at the same time he is eating off the other breast. This has actually been working quite well for me ... however you have to be careful not to pump too much or you will have engorgement problems when you aren't able to pump while he eats.

~Trina~ · #14 October 14th, 2005, 05:57 PM

Oh... I forgot...

I'm using the Medela Lactina Select which is a hospital grade double electric pump and is VERY expensive .... it's usually a hospital rental but I lost it after I quit b/fing Kira ...and the hospital charged me for it ...so when we found it again .. I told them to KMA..I'd paid for it ... I was keeping it!

Anne07Nov05 · #15 October 14th, 2005, 11:12 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by EeyoreMom@Oct 14 2005, 05:57 PM
Oh... I forgot...

I'm using the Medela Lactina Select which is a hospital grade double electric pump and is VERY expensive .... <div align="right"><{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[/quote]

Holy cow, Trina--I just looked up the Medela Lactina Select, and wow, yeah, that's expensive!

Breastfeeding sounds like a full-time job... and then some. I can't believe you're supposed to be pumping EVERY HOUR for 10 minutes... yikes!

~Trina~ · #16 October 14th, 2005, 11:17 PM

Yeah...I think my LC was on crack when she told me that! LMAO

I pump every few hours ....and actually not near as often as I could. I have 14 oz of milk in the freezer from last night and today.

Banned-Brenda2005 · #17 October 15th, 2005, 04:05 AM

I'll be using 2 pumps, the Avent Isis for work and the Nurture III double electric pump at home. I'll probably start pumping after a month or so because i want to concentrate on getting my milk supply well established. I go back to work the beginning of Jan so that gives me plenty of time to build a stash.

When i was home i pumped from the opposite breast after each feeding because JJ only nursed from one boob at each feeding. When i went back to work i pumped every couple of hours