The ins and outs of exclusively expressing

[Mwd1985]

Hi everyone, I've been exclusively expressing for nearly 6 weeks now for my little man but in the last 10 days or so I've been finding it even more uncomfortable than usual. I always hate the tugging feeling on my nipples, but now they're turning a dark purple when I use the pump, even on the lowest setting. I'm using a Medela Symphony. I've tried hand expressing but I get next to nothing whereas with the pump I get an average of 760mls/day.

Also for anyone who reads who had a micro preemie, when did they start to take proper volumes from you? My son is 35 weeks gestational tomorrow (but still small at 3lb on the nose) and has been taking 2-6mls each time I try him at the breast for 2 weeks, but he doesn't seem to be increasing what he takes, but then again he's only properly latched during one session. I expressed for DD for 10 weeks but my supply was less than I'm getting with my son, and I had to stop suddenly due to medication changes, so transitioning to the breast is new to me.

As for the pain, have you tried putting a bit of coconut or olive oil on your nipples before you pump? Also, are the flanges to small? Are you are to have a nurse or LC look while you pump to make sure they are the right size. Also, do your nipples hurt after you pump, or just during? Keep it up!! Your doing great!

 

[GdaneMom4now]

Has anyone used pumpin pals angeled breast shields? I'm thinking of ordering them because both sizes of my medela brand hurt (bigger ones hurt less) and i hate leaning forward

 

[missbabes]

Hey ladies, I've made it to the 11 month mark and am continuing to pump all of once a day (finding it less of a chore these days). I've turned to combination feeding, but thankfully not feeling bad about it since it's only just started in the last couple of weeks. I pump a grand total of anything around 5 to 6oz per session.

I'm just riding it out now and will be stopping once I've reached the 1 year mark. To think there have been a few times where I didn't think I would ever get this far at all. It's really strange to think back to the early months where it seems that I was pumping every waking hour and more. It's really enough to make me feel proud of myself to have kept on going even when it was causing stress for everyone.

For those struggling all I can suggest is to try and remain positive and give yourself small goals. You may very well surprise yourself

 

[Mimzy3]

congrats missbabes

I'm almost the the one year mark myself!!!!
I can't believe I made it either. I've been lucky enough to have him solely on breast milk! After struggling to get my supply back up after having the flu and getting through growth spurts, we did it!!! I'm waiting till I get the okay from his ped to make the switch to cows milk. His appointment is the 23rd. I really can't wait to be done pumping. I will feel like I will have so much free time. The plan is to cut out one pump in the day then slowly cut out another leaving the evening and morning pump still for a while then eventually cutting them out. When we were on vacation last week I did get a hard lump and red shooting marks on my breast. I thought I had mastitis from not pumping as much but it went away. So I know it will have to be a gradual processes so I don't get mastitis again.

Next baby I will do my hardest to get that baby to latch and be able to feed from the breast directly. I didn't know he was tongue tied till late and thought just giving the bottle was easier. Knowing what I know now I know having him feed directly from the breast in the long run would of been a TON easier. So all you moms considering solely pumping just cause.... know that its a lot of work so try and get the baby to latch first and for most but if you can't for legit reasons also know that it CAN be done!!!! Either way we are all super moms for even trying and doing what ever we can to give our babies the very best!!!

 

[missbabes]

Congrats to you as well Mimzy. I think it's kinda helped that we've more or less been at the same point throughout, especially the early days which helped it along. Good luck to you with dropping the pumps. I more or less made a transition once a month. Most difficult one for me was the one to two times a day one. I went back to leaking for a short while to begin with. My supply has dropped by 1oz since I last posted, but I'm still happy even with that.

I'm feeling the same if we decide to have another baby. Even though I know it can be done, doing it with my son running about would be an even greater challenge. I've a lot of respect for 2nd time (plus more) Mums who manage to solely pump.

 

[Disneyfan88]

Hi ladies. I've been exclusively pumping for 10.5 weeks. I've learned a lot from everyone on this thread along the way, but I'm looking for some advice from some of you experienced pumpers. I'm looking forward to when I will be able to reduce the number of times I pump in a given day. I'm currently pumping every 3 hours around the clock. Does anyone have any tips as to how to go about starting the process for reducing pumps? I have supply issues and only pump about 21-22 oz per day (with ml outputs in the 70’s and 80’s most times, which is actually an improvement from just a couple of weeks ago). I imagine that the process needs to be gradual so that my existing milk supply doesn't take a big hit, but I'm at a loss as to how to go about it. My husband and I are looking forward to a time when I will be less chained to the pump.

Thanks!

 

[Mimzy3]

Hi ladies. I've been exclusively pumping for 10.5 weeks. I've learned a lot from everyone on this thread along the way, but I'm looking for some advice from some of you experienced pumpers. I'm looking forward to when I will be able to reduce the number of times I pump in a given day. I'm currently pumping every 3 hours around the clock. Does anyone have any tips as to how to go about starting the process for reducing pumps? I have supply issues and only pump about 21-22 oz per day (with ml outputs in the 70’s and 80’s most times, which is actually an improvement from just a couple of weeks ago). I imagine that the process needs to be gradual so that my existing milk supply doesn't take a big hit, but I'm at a loss as to how to go about it. My husband and I are looking forward to a time when I will be less chained to the pump.

Thanks!

10.5 weeks your supply is still not established so I would not recommend cutting out pumps yet. Sorry but if you do now your supply will continue to drop. I'd wait it out a few more weeks. I know you're looking forward to being less chained to the pump I can totally sympathize but hang in there!

 

[Disneyfan88]

Hi ladies. I've been exclusively pumping for 10.5 weeks. I've learned a lot from everyone on this thread along the way, but I'm looking for some advice from some of you experienced pumpers. I'm looking forward to when I will be able to reduce the number of times I pump in a given day. I'm currently pumping every 3 hours around the clock. Does anyone have any tips as to how to go about starting the process for reducing pumps? I have supply issues and only pump about 21-22 oz per day (with ml outputs in the 70’s and 80’s most times, which is actually an improvement from just a couple of weeks ago). I imagine that the process needs to be gradual so that my existing milk supply doesn't take a big hit, but I'm at a loss as to how to go about it. My husband and I are looking forward to a time when I will be less chained to the pump.

Thanks!

10.5 weeks your supply is still not established so I would not recommend cutting out pumps yet. Sorry but if you do now your supply will continue to drop. I'd wait it out a few more weeks. I know you're looking forward to being less chained to the pump I can totally sympathize but hang in there!

Thanks! Sorry, I should have said before that I'm not ready to drop any sessions just yet (still holding out for at least a couple of weeks). I'm just trying to plan ahead and figure out things beforehand so that I can be prepared and have a gameplan for how I want to do things when the time comes.

 

[missbabes]

Hi ladies. I've been exclusively pumping for 10.5 weeks. I've learned a lot from everyone on this thread along the way, but I'm looking for some advice from some of you experienced pumpers. I'm looking forward to when I will be able to reduce the number of times I pump in a given day. I'm currently pumping every 3 hours around the clock. Does anyone have any tips as to how to go about starting the process for reducing pumps? I have supply issues and only pump about 21-22 oz per day (with ml outputs in the 70’s and 80’s most times, which is actually an improvement from just a couple of weeks ago). I imagine that the process needs to be gradual so that my existing milk supply doesn't take a big hit, but I'm at a loss as to how to go about it. My husband and I are looking forward to a time when I will be less chained to the pump.

Thanks!

10.5 weeks your supply is still not established so I would not recommend cutting out pumps yet. Sorry but if you do now your supply will continue to drop. I'd wait it out a few more weeks. I know you're looking forward to being less chained to the pump I can totally sympathize but hang in there!

Thanks! Sorry, I should have said before that I'm not ready to drop any sessions just yet (still holding out for at least a couple of weeks). I'm just trying to plan ahead and figure out things beforehand so that I can be prepared and have a gameplan for how I want to do things when the time comes.

I didn't drop my first pump until 3 months, by that stage your supply should be plentiful. Best thing to do when you do feel ready is to see how long you can go before you get the uncomfortable feeling where you know you need to pump. For me personally I was getting near 6 hours between pumps by then during the day, and close to 8 at night (my boobs always woke me up instead of DS by that point).

 

[Mimzy3]

At 3 months I still was pumping 5 times a day. Every 3-4 hours max during the day and I could go 8 hours at night. I was also making about 40 oz a day though. So if I pumped less I prob would of had less milk. But my baby was a BIG eater and I stored a lot of milk.

How many times a day are you pumping now? And how many oz.? Your baby's appetite will increase and he'll go through growth spurts and since we don't feed directly from the breast our bodies don't naturally adjust. So I always made sure I was pumping enough to have more than enough milk for him at any given time.

 

[Disneyfan88]

Thanks, ladies. I'm currently pumping 8 times a day, evenly spaced at 3 hour intervals. When my DH is home and time allows, I am sometimes able to squeeze in an extra pump or two. I currently average about 80 ml per pump (+/-); if I accidentally sleep through my alarm at night and am late pumping, I will pump more. I've been getting just over 22 oz per day with the highest output at just over 25 oz on a day when I was late pumping one night and pumped extra sessions.

We've been supplementing with formula as necessary, but she hasn't had any formula for over a week now as we still have a small surplus stash in the fridge that we are using to build full feedings for her until we "catch up".

 

[missbabes]

Thanks, ladies. I'm currently pumping 8 times a day, evenly spaced at 3 hour intervals. When my DH is home and time allows, I am sometimes able to squeeze in an extra pump or two. I currently average about 80 ml per pump (+/-); if I accidentally sleep through my alarm at night and am late pumping, I will pump more. I've been getting just over 22 oz per day with the highest output at just over 25 oz on a day when I was late pumping one night and pumped extra sessions.

We've been supplementing with formula as necessary, but she hasn't had any formula for over a week now as we still have a small surplus stash in the fridge that we are using to build full feedings for her until we "catch up".

Just out of curiosity how long are you pumping for? Do you have more than one let down?

 

[Disneyfan88]

Thanks, ladies. I'm currently pumping 8 times a day, evenly spaced at 3 hour intervals. When my DH is home and time allows, I am sometimes able to squeeze in an extra pump or two. I currently average about 80 ml per pump (+/-); if I accidentally sleep through my alarm at night and am late pumping, I will pump more. I've been getting just over 22 oz per day with the highest output at just over 25 oz on a day when I was late pumping one night and pumped extra sessions.

We've been supplementing with formula as necessary, but she hasn't had any formula for over a week now as we still have a small surplus stash in the fridge that we are using to build full feedings for her until we "catch up".

Just out of curiosity how long are you pumping for? Do you have more than one let down?

I'm pumping for an average of 20-25 minutes each time (sometimes longer) or until I stop seeing milk come out. I use the letdown button on my pump once or twice per session. To be honest, I don't get a different feeling when I experience a let down.

 

[missbabes]

Thanks, ladies. I'm currently pumping 8 times a day, evenly spaced at 3 hour intervals. When my DH is home and time allows, I am sometimes able to squeeze in an extra pump or two. I currently average about 80 ml per pump (+/-); if I accidentally sleep through my alarm at night and am late pumping, I will pump more. I've been getting just over 22 oz per day with the highest output at just over 25 oz on a day when I was late pumping one night and pumped extra sessions.

We've been supplementing with formula as necessary, but she hasn't had any formula for over a week now as we still have a small surplus stash in the fridge that we are using to build full feedings for her until we "catch up".

Just out of curiosity how long are you pumping for? Do you have more than one let down?

I'm pumping for an average of 20-25 minutes each time (sometimes longer) or until I stop seeing milk come out. I use the letdown button on my pump once or twice per session. To be honest, I don't get a different feeling when I experience a let down.

I've only got a Medela Swing pump which only has the letdown mode when you first turn it on, but I would still get another letdown even without it during pumping, on rare occassions even one beyond that back in my early weeks. I don't think I really recognised the letdown feeling until after my supply settled.

I was the same as Mimzy with getting around 38oz throughout the day by the time I was at 12 weeks, which more or less means that we had over supply.

I definitely recommend trying not to even think too much about the amount you're pumping at this stage though, as it can effect the amount you pump. Whenever I worried about it my session was clearly effected, when I didn't think anything about it then it seems like I was over flowing.

Eventually you could end up at the stage I was, with so much milk and running out of places to store it. I had to resort to storing milk at both set of DS's grandparents freezers as mine was full to capacity by the time he was 4 months old

 

[missbabes]

Happy Birthday to your little man Mimzy

 

[Mimzy3]

Happy Birthday to your little man Mimzy

Thank you!

Yes I officially made it to one year of pumping!!!!

Still pumping 3 times a day and making 30-32 oz a day which is more than he drinks daily. Just waiting till after his one year check up to start whole milk and cut out another pump!

 

[Mimzy3]

Thanks, ladies. I'm currently pumping 8 times a day, evenly spaced at 3 hour intervals. When my DH is home and time allows, I am sometimes able to squeeze in an extra pump or two. I currently average about 80 ml per pump (+/-); if I accidentally sleep through my alarm at night and am late pumping, I will pump more. I've been getting just over 22 oz per day with the highest output at just over 25 oz on a day when I was late pumping one night and pumped extra sessions.

We've been supplementing with formula as necessary, but she hasn't had any formula for over a week now as we still have a small surplus stash in the fridge that we are using to build full feedings for her until we "catch up".

That's great! I was at about 8 times a day at 10 weeks too. And congrats on not having to supplement in the past week. My guess is you won't have to supplement anymore

 

[Disneyfan88]

Thanks for the tips and encouragement, ladies! Pumping is hard work, and it's often hard to pump with a little one to look after and no one else home during the day. There have been many times when I've resented having to pump, but then I look at my baby girl and know that it's worth it for her. The middle of the night pumping is the hardest one for me, especially now that my daughter seems to be sleeping for longer stretches at night. My husband is looking forward to being able to leave the house for longer stretches, too. I will pump away from the house when I need to, but I prefer using the larger Medela Symphony pump over my portable Pump in Style one, and I'm not really a fan of pumping in the car. I applaud you ladies who have been able to do this long-term.

 

[Mimzy3]

Thanks for the tips and encouragement, ladies! Pumping is hard work, and it's often hard to pump with a little one to look after and no one else home during the day. There have been many times when I've resented having to pump, but then I look at my baby girl and know that it's worth it for her. The middle of the night pumping is the hardest one for me, especially now that my daughter seems to be sleeping for longer stretches at night. My husband is looking forward to being able to leave the house for longer stretches, too. I will pump away from the house when I need to, but I prefer using the larger Medela Symphony pump over my portable Pump in Style one, and I'm not really a fan of pumping in the car. I applaud you ladies who have been able to do this long-term.

there are LOTS of time's where I resented pumping! My advice is try and make it enjoyable when you can. For instance when I'm at work and have to pump I watch Netflix on my computer. Started a TV show series I always wanted to watch but never had time for. You're chained to the pump and can't do anything else so why not indulge a little...read a book, watch an episode of a TV show, paint your nails, ect..assuming you have a hands free bra. If not you def need one, I made my own. As for leaving the house for longer periods my husband actually bought me a car charger for my pump. So If we were going to be gone for a long time I'd just pump in the back seat while we were driving to the next place. In the early months I would pump right before we left the house. For instance, my mom would come over to watch the baby so me and DH could have a date day. I would pump right before we left, we would go to a movie or the mall or whatever then I would pump in the car as we drove to the restaurant.

May I ask why you were unable to feed directly from the breast?

 

[missbabes]

Happy Birthday to your little man Mimzy

Thank you!

Yes I officially made it to one year of pumping!!!!

Still pumping 3 times a day and making 30-32 oz a day which is more than he drinks daily. Just waiting till after his one year check up to start whole milk and cut out another pump!

Just a matter of days before I hit the year mark too, but I'm now working on dropping pumping all together which is such a crazy thought. I thought I was going to have dried up naturally by now already but nope, still been mataining a similar amount since dropping to the one session. I managed to get to almost 29 hours between pumps for the first time today, and even after halving my pumping time I pumped all of 2oz less than I had been.

We also gave DS whole milk for the first time today as I'm sure just a couple of days early won't be an issue. We had the one year check up a couple of weeks ago and he was perfectly in proportion for height and weight. Was just amusing that we were asked if he was cruising yet and he decided that was the moment to show off that he could walk