any full-time EPers?

[BrandyBestPal]

Hi everyone

I'm looking for support from others who EP.

A little about my situation... When dd was born, she latched right away, I thought things were going to be great with bfing. I successfully bf dd1 for 11 months. Well, things didn't work out had I had hoped this time around. Once milk came in, dd2 would latch, but wouldn't suck. We had a dehydration scare and we were in the hospital overnight for jaundice. During that time, I pumped to provide nourishment. Since then, I've invested is a really good pump, and pump after every feeding.

I find it real really time consuming... Especially in the eevenings and overnight. The day is hard, too, because I also have a toddler to entertain.

How do you do it? Any tricks of the trade to share? How have you managed to cope? Dd will be 2 weeks old on Friday. So I'm just starting out and it feels like I have a long way to go

 

[apple_20]

With my DS he didn't take to bf ( refused breast after overactive let down kept chocking him) pumping exclusively wasn't easy and involved me using a double pump (one handed) and feeding a baby at the same time sometimes.

I don't know what advise I can offer you other than learning to pump two breasts one handed is helpful!

 

[BrandyBestPal]

Thanks for the reply.

I've been using the swing and hoping dd doesn't start screaming her head off. But you're right, I need to practice using one hand so I can use the other to tend to the kids!

 

[apple_20]

I would hold one pump with my hand (across my body) abd the other would be supported by the arm that's across. If that makes sense!

Hats off to you doing it with a toddler too that's something I wasn't even going to attempt this time around.

 

[FarmMom]

I don't EP, but went back to work when dd was 12 weeks so have had to pump quite a bit. There are some good bras and tank tops for pumping so that you can be handsfree. I bought them when i went back to work. They're isually not cheap, but allow you to at least somewhat tend to the baby or do what you need to do. You can also make your own pumping bra out of a sports bra, but i didn't have as much success with that. You can do an internet search To find how to do that. I also don't wash my pump parts during the day, but store them in the fridge and just wash at night. Good luck!

 

[Rhiannon137]

I've been EPing since my son was born 10 months ago. It's certainly not the most convenient thing, but doable once you find routines that work for you. When I first started, I had serious doubts that I would make it to my initial goal of one month! You can search my old posts for some of the tricks I have been using. There is a long one on a BFing after breast reduction thread from around November.

I cram as much pumping in as possible when baby is sleeping. When my son was tiny, he was happy to hang out in his bouncy seat while I pumped. For months 5-8 the jumperoo kept him confined. Now I usually just put him on the floor in his play yard. Lucky that I got a fairly independent guy who likes to play on his own.

Making it work with other little ones around probably adds multiple other levels of chaos! I hope I get to find out firsthand in a year or so. I anticipate just letting the older one do whatever will keep him quiet and contained - TV, iPad, whatever it takes. Even if the baby cries, it's not exactly going to get up and run away.

 

[BrandyBestPal]

I've been EPing since my son was born 10 months ago. It's certainly not the most convenient thing, but doable once you find routines that work for you. When I first started, I had serious doubts that I would make it to my initial goal of one month! You can search my old posts for some of the tricks I have been using. There is a long one on a BFing after breast reduction thread from around November.

I cram as much pumping in as possible when baby is sleeping. When my son was tiny, he was happy to hang out in his bouncy seat while I pumped. For months 5-8 the jumperoo kept him confined. Now I usually just put him on the floor in his play yard. Lucky that I got a fairly independent guy who likes to play on his own.

Making it work with other little ones around probably adds multiple other levels of chaos! I hope I get to find out firsthand in a year or so. I anticipate just letting the older one do whatever will keep him quiet and contained - TV, iPad, whatever it takes. Even if the baby cries, it's not exactly going to get up and run away.

The tablet has been my best tool so far in keeping my toddler entertained. she isn't a fan of tv, so I do what I can.

I did make a hands-free bra out of a sports bra. It's been a life saver. It's challenging to hold the baby and pump, but it's great when other things need to get done around the house.

My goal is to pump for 9 or 10 months, the use my freezer stash to get through the last 1 or 2 months before I move to home homo milk. I have a long way to go.

 

[BrandyBestPal]

I've been EPing since my son was born 10 months ago. It's certainly not the most convenient thing, but doable once you find routines that work for you. When I first started, I had serious doubts that I would make it to my initial goal of one month! You can search my old posts for some of the tricks I have been using. There is a long one on a BFing after breast reduction thread from around November.

I cram as much pumping in as possible when baby is sleeping. When my son was tiny, he was happy to hang out in his bouncy seat while I pumped. For months 5-8 the jumperoo kept him confined. Now I usually just put him on the floor in his play yard. Lucky that I got a fairly independent guy who likes to play on his own.

Making it work with other little ones around probably adds multiple other levels of chaos! I hope I get to find out firsthand in a year or so. I anticipate just letting the older one do whatever will keep him quiet and contained - TV, iPad, whatever it takes. Even if the baby cries, it's not exactly going to get up and run away.

I should also ask... When does pumping get easier? As in, I'm currently pumping 8x a day. About 4x in the night and 4x in the day. When Can I reduce this? Will dd sleep through the night sooner because she is bottle fed? Or wishful thinking

 

[Rhiannon137]

The sports bra trick is essential! I bought a whole pack of super cheap ones and attacked them with scissors.

As far as when things get easier... I can only advise based on what my experience was, and everyone's body can be different. If you don't already use one, I suggest getting an app that tracks pumping output. I have a comical amount of data about my breasts, but it always made it very easy to see if anything was changing. I would keep pumping as much as you can until at least one month - two if you can - to make sure your supply is established. Then basically drop one pump per day and see what happens. If your supply keeps up, then you gradually drop additional daily sessions. I realized early that I got a lot more milk if I "double pumped" at each session; I pump for ~12 minutes, break for 10 minutes, pump for 10 more minutes. By about 4 months, I was doing that cycle 4X per day, and getting 900-1000 mL per day. I tried dropping to 3X per day and my supply seemed to be keeping up; however, I got mastitis the next week. I can't say for sure that they were related, but I went back up to 4X. I pump at 5:30 every morning (easier to fit it in before the day really starts), mid-morning, mid-afternoon, and 9:00ish in the evenings. I have the occasional very busy day where I only pump 3X. If I ever noticed a dip in supply , I would just add a pumping session back for a few days, and it would pick back up.

As far as sleeping through the night, there may be something to it. You have more knowledge and control about exactly how much they take at a feeding, so you can set up their bottles to always have a large one at "bed" time. My son's bedtime bottles have always been 25-30% larger than his other bottles. He started doing 8 hour stretches pretty consistently at 3 months, and 12 hours stretches at 6 months. I got REALLY lucky with a baby that loves to sleep, but I think his extra-full belly helps.

 

[BrandyBestPal]

The sports bra trick is essential! I bought a whole pack of super cheap ones and attacked them with scissors.

As far as when things get easier... I can only advise based on what my experience was, and everyone's body can be different. If you don't already use one, I suggest getting an app that tracks pumping output. I have a comical amount of data about my breasts, but it always made it very easy to see if anything was changing. I would keep pumping as much as you can until at least one month - two if you can - to make sure your supply is established. Then basically drop one pump per day and see what happens. If your supply keeps up, then you gradually drop additional daily sessions. I realized early that I got a lot more milk if I "double pumped" at each session; I pump for ~12 minutes, break for 10 minutes, pump for 10 more minutes. By about 4 months, I was doing that cycle 4X per day, and getting 900-1000 mL per day. I tried dropping to 3X per day and my supply seemed to be keeping up; however, I got mastitis the next week. I can't say for sure that they were related, but I went back up to 4X. I pump at 5:30 every morning (easier to fit it in before the day really starts), mid-morning, mid-afternoon, and 9:00ish in the evenings. I have the occasional very busy day where I only pump 3X. If I ever noticed a dip in supply , I would just add a pumping session back for a few days, and it would pick back up.

As far as sleeping through the night, there may be something to it. You have more knowledge and control about exactly how much they take at a feeding, so you can set up their bottles to always have a large one at "bed" time. My son's bedtime bottles have always been 25-30% larger than his other bottles. He started doing 8 hour stretches pretty consistently at 3 months, and 12 hours stretches at 6 months. I got REALLY lucky with a baby that loves to sleep, but I think his extra-full belly helps.

So far I have a very healthy supply. I always said I could feed an army when I was nursing dd1. I am going to try your schedule in a couple months. It would be amazing to sleep during the night, rather than pump. How did your body adjust no night pumps? I can't go more than 4 hours without feeling like my boobs are going to explode!

 

[Rhiannon137]

I definitely feel full in the morning, and that's when I get the most milk, but I don't feel discomfort. I think your body adapts if you stick to relatively consistent times.