2 things: weird sensation and electric pump not as effective anymore.

[Lizzybee]

1. When I bf I get itchy! Arms back and armpits! Also I get very smelly pits very quickly. Anyone else?

2. I have a medela mini electric. It did work really well however now it only gets 1 or 2oz but I can get 4oz using a handpump. What am I doing wrong? I've done both ways after feeding and during but neither makes any difference.

 

[MoldyVoldy]

I got itchy early on, when my letdown would happen. The itchy armpits (for me) was just sweat and was related to my letdown. It will probably go away for you after some time.

As for the breastpump, i'm sorry but I don't have experience with those...i'm sure someone will be in soon to offer help!

 

[staralfur]

Some people respond better to manual pumps. I definitely did. We ditched the electric pump entirely around 4 months and I did all of my expressing (3-4 times per day) with a single manual until she was just over a year.

 

[misspriss]

Never tried a manual pump, but make sure that your flanges and stuff are a good fit too on the electric. Does that particular pump have different settings you can play with?

For #1, yeah, let down is weird. I never got itchy, but it was very intense and I got very sleepy for the first few months. The intensity is gone now, I rarely if ever feel let down anymore. That will probably get better.

 

[Lizzybee]

Everything fits really well and I have played with the "strength" of suction!! I used to get 4oz in 10 mins with it. Now I struggle to get 2oz over the whole day!

Am I supposed to feel let down in my breasts?

 

[patch2006uk]

I've never felt a let down. I only know because LO starts taking big gulps of milk! Some women are very aware of letdown, some find it painful, others can't feel it at all. No problem either way.

I don't itch when I feed, but I do find my sweat smells stronger than it normally does. I don't remember it lasting long with my eldest, but I can't say exactly when it settled down. I'm still a bag of hormones at the moment - my skin is so irritated still - so I'm sure it will all settle eventually and I won't stink any more!