I Worship at the Shrine of My Medela Pump in StyleI am the mother of a darling boy who surprised me by coming into my life, then surprised me by arriving 6 weeks early, and continued to surprise me by chewing my nipples off every time we tried to feed! After several bouts of thrush, latching difficulties, lactation consultants who scared the pants off me about my supply, a few good souls who helped me gain my confidence, and countless tears shed in utter frustration (not to mention pain), I became the full-time pumping goddess that I am today!I worship at the shrine of my Medela Pump in Style, knowing that every drop I express feeds this incredible little person I gave birth to. He is now 4 months old and I intend to keep pumping until at least 6 months. Here are several snippets of advice to moms who want to pump exclusively: 1. Know that you are blessed among women. The courage, stamina, and dedication it takes to exclusively pump are saint-worthy. 2. Know that every time you feel exhausted, cheated, angry, sad, frustrated, bored, or start hearing your pump talk to you in the middle of the night — you are not alone. And it is all normal. I don’t know how many times I’ve decided to “just let my milk dry up” — and just as I decide to do that, it flows into those two bottles like ambrosia… The sheer physical and emotional energy it takes to pump exclusively require a special kind of inner fortitude. I have learned a lot about my inner resources through this experience. It is not for the feint of heart. You are a warrior-woman. 3. Know that if you do indeed give up, you are NOT a failure. The fact that we even pump as long as we do is a sign of our motherlove. Whether it’s 2 weeks, 2 months, or 2 years, you are doing the best thing for your child. Banish all thoughts of failure from your head (because they will be there, trust me). 4. Know that the key to supply is three fold: a regular pumping schedule, enough rest, and plenty of nourishment. These three things, plus the belief (I guess you could call it faith) that you CAN DO THIS is all you need to keep producing milk. (Fenugreek worked for me too, but watch for gassiness and tummy upset in you and baby after prolonged use). 5. Know that part of this experience means sacrifice: of your ideas about being able to breastfeed, about your time, about your autonomy as an adult, about being the one to directly feed your baby. But you can choose to see yourself as enslaved by your pump…or liberated by the inner journey it affords you (and the incredible sense of accomplishment, against the odds, when you succeed.) And know that helping hands — from a partner, husband, grandma, friend — are welcome. Weigh the sadness of not being able to cradle you baby as he feeds against the fact that because your husband is feeding him your milk at night, you can pump MORE milk for him. 6. Know that people might ask funny questions, or judge you, or not understand why cannot answer the phone right now…or you cannot come out of the public toilet stall right now…but keep your inner compass steady. You are doing this because you believe it is the best thing for your beloved child. So frankly, screw anyone who thinks otherwise! And let them wait — no phone call of angry toilet patron should force you to put aside this vital task. It is vital to your baby…and so it is more important than anything else! 7. Know that there is a sisterhood of women who exclusively pump, and share the knowledge with others around you. We are brave, bold, bitchin’ mamas and we should sing our praises wherever we can. Strength to you as you listen to the swishing gurgles of milk splashing (or dribbling) into bottles — and as you watch your little one drink down your milk and grow round and fat and pink and gorgeous… Mama Meg the Medela Queen 15 Responses to “I Worship at the Shrine of My Medela Pump in Style” Leave a ReplyYou must be logged in to post a comment. |
 
 
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February 9th, 2008 at 11:00 am
What a great article! I’m also doing this, have been since my little guy was born 5 months ago. We tried breastfeeding for the first month but unfortunately it didnt work out. So nice to know I’m not the only one!
February 29th, 2008 at 2:15 am
This is an awesome article. I’ve been questioned several times by (mostly my mother!) people about why I’m not breastfeeding. I’d like to talk more about how to keep supply up… I find mine fluctuates a lot! If anyone wants to chat my email is vivster81@hotmail.com
March 10th, 2008 at 6:46 pm
Thank you for the encouraging article. I’m a new mom and have been pumping for 2 months with many difficulties along the way. It’s always nice to not feel so alone!
March 12th, 2008 at 10:28 am
Thank you for this article. I NEVER thought I’d do anything but breastfeed with my baby at my actual breast. (well, until I went back to work.) I bought a pump to use at work, but after what seemed like hundreds of failed breast feeding trys, I went to pumping. My baby cried a lot in the first few days when it was time to eat and we were told she had a very weak suck. If I breastfead, I’d only have 30 minutes between feedings because of how long it took her to get enough or fall asleep at the breast. I was tired of crying and so was my baby, so I decided to try breastfeeding and pump. Now two months later, I pump seven times a day even while working, and I always have bottles of breast milk ready as she doesn’t drink quite as much as I produce. I think I was scared to not breast feed since it came so easily to my mom and sister. I felt pressured to keep trying. My sister tried helping a lot, but even she said she never had either of her children kick and scream like my baby did when we tried feeding at the breast. Now my mom and sister are proud of me for pumping so often and I am quite happy too. I’m not sure when I’ll be mentally prepared to go to formula. I guess time will tell.
March 12th, 2008 at 4:29 pm
In my experience, you will know when you are ready to quit pumping. It will just feel right to you and you will be at peace with the decision. You may never need to switch to formula as you may pump until your babe is old enough to go on to other foods and cow’s milk if you choose. Take it a day at a time and be proud of yourself for doing what you are doing right now for your baby. I think women EP for many reasons and part of the process is coming to terms with the loss of the expected breastfeeding relationship; for some, this takes longer than others. This isn’t to say that those who pump for a longer period have had a harder time coming to terms with this loss, but certainly I think many work through this loss everytime they pump.
April 13th, 2008 at 1:33 pm
I am so thankful for this funny posting! We are warrior women for continuing to pump! I have felt so much guilt and frustration at not being able to get the “quilting nipple” (your nipple gets so torn and chewed up by your baby’s biting that your nipple eventually becomes numb to the pain). After having each of my nipples torn up for sixteen days in a row, I decided to pump exclusively. It’s been past two months, and I’m still doing it. I just tried putting him to my nipple yesterday, but my son is still biting! I just hope I can get to four months with the pumping. I’ve made it this far, and I can’t believe it. It is so much work to wash bottles, pump parts, and to keep a log of feeding and pumping times. It is enough to make you go crazy. But weighing him and seeing his chubby thighs makes it almost worth all of the trouble.
April 18th, 2008 at 5:42 pm
I gave birth to our 7th child in Feb. She is a “partial trisomy 18″ baby and has other neurological issues. Sadly, she cannot BF. I have been broken hearted about this, but have felt good about my decision to continue to pump for her. I have had a hard time maintaining my milk supply and keeping up with her, am currently battling nipple thrush, and often wonder if my age (43) is not a negative factor in all of this. I nursed my other 6 children for 2 years each, and desperately miss that connection with my sweet girl…it is a relief to know that there are others out there…struggling-and making it! Unfortunately I have had to supplement with formula at one or two feedings each day, but I still know I am doing all I can.
May 23rd, 2008 at 6:06 am
Thank you for this awesome article!! I have a beautiful, amazing 6-week-old daughter who I exclusively pump for. We had some trouble latching and sucking even though she was full-term and hungry! After many tears and a lot of anxiety the first week of her life, over breast feeding (which I REALLY wanted to do!), I started to pump. I have a great supply so far (45 ounces a day!) … and am praying that it lasts because I want my daughter to have my milk. I sometimes feel embarrassed that this is what I have to do, and I sometimes feel like I have to explain why - but I know that I should not feel this way. AND your article has made me feel more empowered, so thank you!
May 24th, 2008 at 11:36 am
My daughter was born at 26 weeks, weighing 1 pound 6 ounces. I have been pumping for the last 2 months while she is in the nicu. I plan on returning to work shortly and am wondering if the medela pump in style was your primary pump? I’ve been renting a hospital pump but am going to purchase a pump to bring to work. I’ve only left the house to visit the hospital up until now so I haven’t needed one. Would you recomend I continue to rent a pump for home or is the medela sufficient?
May 25th, 2008 at 9:14 am
Hi Jenn,
Unfortunately, there are no absolutes when it comes to pumps. I can tell you that many, many women have had success EPing with a personal electric pump such as the Pump in Style. A hospital grade pump is always the best insurance provided that it is working well for you now, your supply is good, and you haven’t had any concerns. The fact that your daughter was a 26 weeker may make you more prone to supply issues but this isn’t necessarily the case with every mom of an extremely early preemie.
If you haven’t had any concerns with your supply and you have a very strong supply (i.e. enough to feed your daughter at her highest intake needs plus a little extra) then you may be fine with a personal pump. Pumps are different though and your body may react differently to a new pump, so I would recommend you not get rid of your rental right away but instead ease into the new pump until you are sure your supply is staying put.
Best wishes to you on your return to work and to your daughter. You are giving her a wonderful, invaluable gift!
Stephanie
June 27th, 2008 at 9:04 am
I thought I was the only one doing this! My son is, as the lactation consultant said, a “lazy sucker” and would also just scream every time I tried to breastfeed him. I cried, he cried, and finally I began to pump and bottle feed him. He stopped crying and started thriving. I still feel a sense of loss about not breastfeeding him, but I feel good that he can still have my milk. I have been EPing for almost a month, and I have wanted to give up a few times, but I know it is best for him. I have also used the pump in style and it is great! I do feel like a slave to my pump though and I wish that when we were out in public I didn’t have to worry so much about when it’s time to pump or where I can pump at. Mostly we just stay home because of this. Thanks for the encouragement!
June 27th, 2008 at 3:01 pm
Hi I have been EP for 3 months. My son was a terrible latcher, and born at 10 lbs was very hungry and hysterical at every feed. The nurses, midwives and some family members all laughed at his antics but it wasn’t very funny at 2 am! It was very important to me to BF but I had to think of my 3 yr old too. I turned to EP and now we are both happy.
My supply is all over the place. At first I got 4 oz every time but now I get 2 oz at some and 3-4 middle of the night/early morning. I have to supplement a lot lately with formula which makes me sad. I had hoped to pump for 6 months. I have been taking Fenugreek and Blessed Thistle since he was 2 weeks. He is now 3 months. I pump 7x a day. I have tried to do more but it is so hard to squeeze it in. Is that the key for keeping it up - to pump more often?
Anne
June 27th, 2008 at 4:13 pm
ps I wanted to add that I also have a Medela Pump in style that works much better than the hospital grade for me. I was told that I should switch to a hospital grade but I think that is when my supply went down as I couldn’t adjust well to the different suction/rhythm. It works for some but not for all.
Glad to hear that Ep works so well for some and I am not alone.
Anne
July 12th, 2008 at 1:55 pm
Hi Anne,
If I’m reading your post correctly, you are getting varying amounts at various pumping sessions throughout the day? This is completely normal. Initially, your supply is very strong since it is controlled primarily by hormones, but after a few weeks things switch to the autocrine control which is local control or supply and demand. Your daily producion is also affected by the natural flucuation of prolactin in your system which tends to be higher in the night and early morning and lower in the late afternoon and early evening. It is very diffciult to give specific advice on supply concerns without detailed information but I can provide some basics.
Generally, the way to keep your supply up is to pumping frequently and remove as much milk as possible at each session. Milk allowed to sit in the breast will slow production and a full breast will also slow production. So again, frequent and complete milk removal is very important. Your own milk storage capacity will also impact this as women who naturally have a large storage capacity can often pump less frequently and maintain supply.
There are many other things that can affect supply and the early management of breastfeeding/lactation can also affect the long-term production.
When trying to fit in pumping sessions, remember that they don’t have to all be spaced at exactly the same interval, nor do they need to be exactly the same length. A breastfed baby certainly doesn’t do this
A very general rule is to aim for about 120 minutes/day of pumping.
I hope that answers your question.
July 16th, 2008 at 8:23 am
It’s nice to see this discussion taking place! My little girl is 3 1/2 months now, and I am EPing to keep her on breast milk. I have a Medela rental from the hospital that I tote with me everywhere I go (even camping!). I never even thought about not breastfeeding. I was breast fed, and it was just not even a question for me. Until my girl was born and wouldn’t latch on. 4 lactation consultants, countless tricks and techniques, 3 different sized nipple shields, and a whole heck of a lot of heartache and pain later, and the child was tongue tied and couldn’t latch on.
The best lactation consultant ever found it within 5 minutes of arriving at my house. We went to the ENT and had it clipped, hoping that at 3 weeks old she would now latch on. I have been pumping this entire time, bottle feeding, using techniques to try to keep her interested in breast feeding, and still…no latch.
To this day, we still work on the latch when I am home with her at night. But I have a good pumping schedule down (4 times a day) and am fortnate to produce more than enough to feed her and freeze a bit for when I start traveling for work again.
I guess I’ll pile on to the message that you can make this work. Don’t give up, don’t make formula an option. I’ve worked through thrush, blocked ducts, mastitis (oh, that hurt!) and blistered and sore nipples. But in the long run, it’s so worth it.
Thanks for reading my story, it felt good to tell it and I am even more resolved to keep it up for my girl!