I'm overwhelmed... Breast Pumps

[aprilz81]

I don't know why I've been putting this off but I have and now I'm overwhelmed.

I want to breastfeed and while I work from home Faith will be in daycare so I will need to pump to send bottles with her and maintain my supply.  I've also had a breast reduction and don't know how much milk I'll be able to produce.  After Ava was born I did have some milk come in even though I took Sudafed to dry it up and avoided stimulation, so I think it is possible just not sure if it will be successful long term.

Spectra and Medela are the two brands I hear most but both have multiple options and I'm just lost.

Does anyone have good resources to help me out?

[pippiann]

I have both, spectra is better without a doubt.
ETA: IMO

[Deleted]

No good resources except I highly, highly recommend consulting with an IBCLC (I don't know about your hospital but the plain old LCs who round at my hospital are absolute *pardon my french* shit). I have been unable to continue my BFing journey as long as I wanted to the first two times around. This time I will not be using any form of hormonal birth control in case that might have been the cause. My other piece of advice is just to be kind to yourself.

Anyway, I had both the Medela and the Spectra. The Spectra was far more comfortable, but my BFing journey ended rather abruptly after I returned to work whereas I pumped with my Medela for 4 months at work.

[aprilz81]

Nov 13, 2017 22:20:32 GMT -6 peachesncream said:

No good resources except I highly, highly recommend consulting with an IBCLC (I don't know about your hospital but the plain old LCs who round at my hospital are absolute *pardon my french* shit). I have been unable to continue my BFing journey as long as I wanted to the first two times around. This time I will not be using any form of hormonal birth control in case that might have been the cause. My other piece of advice is just to be kind to yourself.

Anyway, I had both the Medela and the Spectra. The Spectra was far more comfortable, but my BFing journey ended rather abruptly after I returned to work whereas I pumped with my Medela for 4 months at work.

Given my breast reduction I'm just going to do my best and see how long I can last.  If I'm miserable and stressed I will switch to formula, but I do want to give myself the best chance at success that I can.

[helloerrbody]

Spectra for sure. The S2 is usually what is covered by insurance plans. The S1 is the same except it has a battery pack you can use if you don’t have an outlet. So if that’s a nice feature you’d like, you can probably chip in the difference to buy it.

I was diagnosed with IGT (insufficient glandular tissue) with DS and could never produce more than 15oz a day. He is still nursing at 19 months. I supplemented using a Lact-Aid SNS and it was wonderful for us. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you need low supply support!

[rebeccabunch]

aprilz81 for now, just focus on ordering your pump. It will feel like an accomplishment once that’s done and put you in a positive frame of mind.

l have a Medela from my boys but did the Spectra S1 this time through insurance. l pump a lot on the go and paying the extra $75 makes sense for me. If l were you, I’d get the S2. Your job seems pretty homebased plus it’s likely completely covered so less pressure.

We will be here for you on the BF support front. It wasn’t easy for me either time but ended up working until about 14 months each round after more effort than l would’ve liked. When you feel ready start a BF support/tip thread!

For now though, order that pump. It will help give you confidence that the task is complete!

[flippinchica]

I used the Medela pump in style (Pisa) last time and it worked ok for me. But I didn't go back to work full time till DS was 9 months old because I was unemployed (long story). He also refused a bottle till about 8 or 9 months. Plus side is that parts for medela are pretty cheap and readily available. (Target and Amazon)
I hear really good things about the spectra from people who have used both though so I think I'm getting that this time. And I hear thee is a hack to use medela parts and bottles if you want.
No need to buy one now but I also found a hand pump really useful especially for travel.

[sweetsurprise]

aprilz81 I have never tried the Spectra but I exclusively pumped for a year with DS1 and the Medela worked great. I'm sure both are great products. I know a lot of people hate pumping but I didn't find it horrible.

[jessijean]

I have a similar story to sweetsurprise in that I exclusively pumped for 11.5 months using the Medela with DS1 and it held up nicely. I went with that one again simply because I know my body responds to it and I had extra parts already. Either is a good choice I'd say.

[stephne]

I used the Medela PISA last time around. I wasn't given an option, when I met with the lactation consultant before leaving the hospital she just handed it over and took care of all the paperwork. It worked fine. I went back to work at 6 weeks and pumped everyday at work for about 9 months. I will probably stick with it since I already have extra bottles, flanges etc.

I will also second what peachesncream said, the IBCLC I used seriously saved me last time around, that and my BMB. The first 2 weeks were the worst but I kept telling myself that I can't quit on a bad day. Try not to worry, you will be amazed by the advice and support you receive around here.

[benandjerrys]

We will be here as a resource for you. I breastfed until my DD was past 2. But I think you should check in with the breast feeding group here about the reduction.

I've personally heard of women who have reductions having no issues at all, but I don't know if that is the norm. Might be good to see if they have any tips for you about that part.

Your attitude is great. The first 6 weeks are the hardest. Set small goals (6 weeks, 3 mos, 6 mos - then evaluate what you want to do long term).

[sunfrogger]

We are here for you! Sounds like you have a ton of nursers here for support. I nursed my DD to 21 months before getting pg with my F18 baby. We've got your back!

[amesie]

Nov 14, 2017 9:43:13 GMT -6 stephne said:

I used the Medela PISA last time around. I wasn't given an option, when I met with the lactation consultant before leaving the hospital she just handed it over and took care of all the paperwork. It worked fine. I went back to work at 6 weeks and pumped everyday at work for about 9 months. I will probably stick with it since I already have extra bottles, flanges etc.

I will also second what peachesncream said, the IBCLC I used seriously saved me last time around, that and my BMB. The first 2 weeks were the worst but I kept telling myself that I can't quit on a bad day. Try not to worry, you will be amazed by the advice and support you receive around here.

so much yes to this last part! It must’ve been someone on our M15 BMB who reiterated the “don’t quit on a bad day” mantra, because i lived by that phrase for the first month or so. The first week was absolute hell. It took my milk a good 3-4 days to come in and my poor DD was starving so we supplemented with a little bit of formula. It was so much easier to just make a bottle at that point, and I almost quit so many times. But I kept remembering that saying... Don’t quit on a bad day... and I would think, man this is a really bad day and I can’t quit now. I was able to BF my DD for 15 months and loved it so much.

Now, all that being said. I am not a crazy BF enthusiast. I am very much in the “feed your kid however you need to feed them” camp. I’m just shedding some light on my experience

[amesie]

And to answer your question... I had the medella PISA last time. I didn’t HATE it, but I definitely didn’t get great output from it. Once I went back to work 3days/week, we had to supplement with a bottle of formula on occasion because I couldn’t pump enough at work. I’m sure if I added in an extra pump session I might have been able to get enough, but I couldn’t. I’ve heard amazing things about the spectra so that’s what I’m going with this time around. I’m curious to see if my output changes at all with it

[kyzo]

I second getting an LC after you leave the hospital. We had a lot of trouble with DD and she ultimately had to see a pediatric gastroenterologist. Even though I was excusively pumping those LCs had tons of advice to maintain supply. Those first few weeks can be awful if your baby loses weight like mine did. You feel like it's your fault even though it's not. The LCs kept me sane when I was ready to give up.

For pumping I used a PISA but I'm buying a Spectra S1 this time around. My insurance won't send me one until baby is born (and I'm pretty sure they only do Medela). Because I'm neurotic and want to be prepared I'm going to pay for the pump on my own. I had to start pumping really early last time (within two weeks) and I don't want to wait for the insurance to send me one. For pumping accesorries, the Simple Wishes pumping bra allowed me to work while pumping. I hated the Medela pumping bra since it was flimsy. The Simple Wishes bra really holds the flanges in place so you can type while you pump.

I also really liked the Kellymom website for help when I didn't go to the lactation clinic.

[snowyowl]

I had the Medela and I didn’t love it, but I don’t really have anything to compare it to. I’m going to splurge a buy the Spectra this time because I’ll have to go back to work much earlier and if pumping is as annoying as it was the first time, I’ll have trouble getting to my goal (I wanted to make it to six months the first time and I think I’m going to stick with that again).

Also, I might be weird, but I much preferred the hand pump. It’s not fast, which is why I will buy an electric for work, and your hand can get tired, but it was always so much easier to get as much milk as possible. I really liked my Medela handpump.

Definitely see an LC, and if you don’t like them, please don’t waste your time! Speak up and get someone else. My hospital keeps you for three days and two nights, and they send in an LC each day. The first two were awful and made me feel terrible about my jaundiced baby, the third one was great and actually bothered to explain the best methods for latching and so on.
I saw her a few times and she was always so helpful and reassuring, especially when we thought DS would have to be readmitted for light box therapy.

[sunfrogger]

Agree on use the LCs. I monopolized the shit out of mine when she came until I felt comfortable doing it on my own.

I had a PISA but I also had a bit of over supply that I tried to keep up so I can't speak to how well the PISA worked. I can get a new pump though thru my insurance, I have to look at the options they sent me this time. I fully plan to get a pump bag so I'm not carrying 29251684 bags into the office and also a bra to use while pumping. I have all the Medela stuff already so I would hate to get a Spectra only bc more $$ in accessories vs just getting new membranes for my flanges and new tubing, and a pump w a new motor.

[dragonflyinn]

We got a spectra S2 for this one. I didn’t have an electric pump last time bc I wasn’t working at all— a small manual pump worked fine for me. But this time since I’m teaching two mornings a week I’ll need more bottles & ive heard such good things about the spectra.

Agreed with the above, my BMB saved my life with BF-ing the first time around. So many BTDT mamas with different experiences that encouraged me to press on. Those early weeks are SO hard but you reach a point where it just clicks and is all of a sudden easy (at least in my experience). One day at a time!

[Deleted]

I had the medala and it worked well for the 15 months I used it. I plan on getting a spectra this time as long as it’s covered by my insurance.