During my pregnancy, I was determined to purely breastfeed. and to breastfeed for my child’s first year of life. Like most things in life, expect the unexpected. Things don’t always go as planned, and for me this was very challenging. Sometimes you have to alter your plans and do what is best for everyone involved.
My daughter was born with a bad case of jaundice. We ended up having to stay several extra days in the hospital before she could even be released. Even after bringing her home, we had to have nurses come to our home and draw blood every other day to check her jaundice levels. We had to keep her on the bilirubin machine for about a week to a week and a half after we came home from the hospital. After I gave birth, we tried a several times to get her to latch. We had issues for multiple reasons. One of the main reasons was her jaundice. It made her sooo sleepy. Plus with her having to be tied to the machine 98% of the time, it was just impossible.
During our time in the hospital, I ended up having to supplement my ‘breastfeeding’ with formula. I was devastated in my super emotional state. I cried and cried. The reality of what I wanted just wasn’t going to happen. From that moment to today, my daughter drinks my pumped breast milk and formula combined (in every bottle).
Since I was still determined that my daughter gets as much breast milk as possible, I made the decision to be an exclusive pumper. Exclusively pumping is no easy feat. It is soooo hard on you and your family. I am more than willing to bet that many people would argue that this is much more challenging than breastfeeding (I would agree). Not only are you hooked up to a machine every 2, 3 or 4 hours, all day, everyday, but you have to wash a million pump parts constantly (okay, not actually a million). Pumping my milk allows me to be able to know exactly how much milk my daughter is being fed everyday. It also allows daddy (and others) to help feed the baby via a bottle. Sometimes my husband will feed the baby while I pump.
One of the hardest things with pumping is still having to pump through the night. I just recently went to a 6 hour stretch overnight. The longer you can go in-between pumps, the better. For me, I can’t produce enough milk for my daughter to only drink my breast milk (I mentioned that before with me supplementing). Since I never produced enough, I have to pump more frequently to try and keep my production up. For the first 4 months of my daughter’s life, I pumped every 3 hours like clock work. It is a mental, physical and emotional job (and might I add a full time job).
Pumping is also hard on the entire family. We have to often plan our life around it. I have to make sure I can pump when I need to pump. If you go too long in-between pumps, your breasts start getting really sore (just like breastfeeding mommies). Pumping requires a lot of time (I mean A LOT). That takes away from some family time. Going on long trips or vacations can also be challenging. Long road trips require a battery powered pump, pump parts, bags, ice packs and bottles (etc…).
So, why do I keep pumping? I do it 100% for my daughter. Even with not making enough, I feel so much better giving her all that I can. Would I do it all over again? Absolutely. It may be one of the hardest and life draining things I’ve done in my life, but when you are doing it for someone so important to you, there is no doubt of it’s worth. It makes me happy to be able to do this for her. There are so many benefits to all of this hard work.
Unfortunately, I will likely be giving up pumping when my daughter turns 6 months old. I wanted to try and do it for her first year of life, but with me going back to work soon and some other personal reasons, my husband and I decided it would be best for me to try and stop at that time. I am not fully sold on the idea yet, but I will see how I feel when the time comes. At the end of the day, I only want to do what is best for my baby. I feel like 6 months gives her the optimal amount of milk that I can provide for her in her developing young body.
Whether you want to be an exclusive pumper like me, or only pump for small durations, here are some tools to help you pump like a pro:
It is important to note that everything I listed below are products I actually use and recommend to my friends, family and readers.
Spectra Baby USA – S2 Plus Premier Electric Breast Pump, Double/Single, Hospital Strength – This is my main pump. I love it. It includes everything you need to just get started. This pump is quiet, has two light options, allows you to control all of the settings, etc… It is fantastic! It doesn’t disturb my baby or husband in the bed next to me.
Nenesupply 5 Count Compatible Duckbill Valves – It is important to have replacement parts. The more you pump, the faster these parts all need to be replaced.
Nenesupply Compatible Backflow Protector
Wide Mouth Breastmilk Collection Storage Bottles – I use the small ones and the large ones depending on what is going on.
Medela Quick Clean Breast Pump and Accessory Wipes – These are great for pumping on the go.
Medela Quick Clean Breast Milk Removal Soap – This is awesome for washing pump parts on the regular. It helps break down the fat/grease that builds up from the milk.
12 Volt Car Vehicle Lighter Adapter – This is a must for long outings or road trips.
Then there is the bag and its accessories to carry around all of those fantastic pump parts 😉
Sarah Wells Cold Gold Breastmilk Cooler Bag with Ice Pack – I get a lot more use out of this than I thought I would. It is pretty great!
Sarah Wells Lizzy Breast Pump Bag – I absolutely love this bag! It literately has a compartment specifically for the Spectra Pump. I can just zip it up, easy peasy. Compartments for everything.
One of the best tips I can provide to anyone getting started in pumping is to put all of your pump parts / bottles in a gallon sized Ziploc bag and place them in the refrigerator in-between pumps. TRUST ME, This will save you a TON OF TIME throughout your day. I wish I knew this from day one. I didn’t find out about it until a month in. It is a huge help.
Here are some times I’ve tried and researched to help increase your supply and/or keep it going strong:
- Eat Oatmeal
- Drink Body Armor, Gatorade and/or Powerade daily
- Drink A LOT of water (you cannot drink enough)
- Try out a lactation cookie recipe and keep a batch handy at all times (well, most times) – My husband is a huge fan of lactation cookies, he thinks they are delicious.
Do you have any recommendations to share? Any other tips? A great lactation cookie recipe? I would love to hear about them. Please share.
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