Posted by
Slammy
18 yrs ago
Help! I have so many questions that I'm thinking I should divide it into two sections!
I am due in one month. I plan to stay home until the baby is three months, afterwhich I have to return to full-time work.
1. What sort of breast pump to buy?
Double is obviously faster, but I want one that is easy to carry around as I will have to take it to work... plus I want it to be easy to use.
2. When to start breast pumping before returning to work?
3. I read that in the first few weeks, you can introduce bottle feeding (using pumped milk) so that the baby will easily accept both breast and bottle?
4. Does anyone believe the information regarding the unsafe plastic bottles - which bottles are safest to use?
I think that's enough questions! I have many questions about pumping and returning to work but perhaps I'll post those later. Firstly, I need to decide what kind of breast pump to buy. I thought about renting, but the cost of renting is expensive so I may as well just get a good breast pump at the outset.
I really want to exclusively breast feed for as long as possible so I would appreciate any advice on how to make it easier on myself and keep up my milk supply etc etc.
Thanks very much!
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1. i bought the medela swing. it's electric and very portable. but where would you be pumping at work? the electric ones obviously need to be plugged in somewhere... this pump was very easy to use and quiet and i was getting a good yield (although everyone or boob for that matter is different!) i've heard the hospital grade pumps for rent are super efficient and fast but not sure about the portability...
2. actually, after you have your baby you will be inundated with all the answers you need!! the hospital will have a "well-baby clinic" where you can take bubs once a week and all the mid-wives there will answer all your questions. i would start pumping a couple of weeks at least before work starts so you get the hang of it and build up a supply in the freezer.
3. i introduced bottle with expressed milk after 1 month. but i'm sure you can start earlier.
4. i'm not sure what to believe but i would rather err on the side of caution. i've stopped using my advent bottles and now use B-free bottles and Green to Grow bottles. you can find B-free at Wing On and B2B and Green to Grow ones at ThreeSixty.
good luck!
:)
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Damn, my friend gave me a great Avent steriliser with six bottles that she had used years ago. I suppose I should look into replacing them?
Thanks for your advice!
Sam
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1. Medela pump in style. In any case a double. My wife never saw the point of a single.
2. Two weeks?
3. Absolutely. In fact our #1 could never breastfeed due to a cleft palate. She got all breast milk from a bottle. #2 was a lazy breast feeder (fell asleep after 5 mins) so she go the same treatment, but occasionally the breast.
4. Maybe. But the manufacturers have all fixed that now. Dr. Brown's work very well for us. They have a little info statement about the plastic on the website.
My wife had one pump at work and one at home. The one at work she ran with the Medela battery pack. She got a good month of use (once per workday) off 10 AA batteries.
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That's a good idea - leave a breast pump at work so I don't have to carry it back and forth! Thanks :-)
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Hi
I agree with previous posters- I use a PIS and have two (one second hand)- one at work and at home. Love it and could not do without it. I started pumping a month before going back to work, in addition to the breastfeeds. For example, first thing in the morning when "production" is highest and I could get a feed + some pumped milk, after feeds and at night. That was really useful to build up a supply in the freezer to tide me through days when I could not pump as much at work.
My baby had a bottle once in a while in the first 3 months.
And don't be discouraged with the meagre flow when you first begin pumping- your body needs time to get used to pumping. Somehow, even if your baby is drinking loads, you never seem to be able to produce much pumped milk at first, and then it slowly gets better. Getting a good pump is definitely the way forward! Good luck!
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didy
18 yrs ago
La Leche League would have all the answers you will need as far as breastfeeding is concerned. The group leaders in Hong Kong (Sarah, Maggie and the others) are tremendously helpful. Suggest you go sit in a meeting if you have not already done so.
Agree that everyone/every boob is different. I once rented the industry grade Medela Symphony but ended up using an inexpensive hand pump (Avent Iris) because it worked better for me. I started pumping a few days after the milk came in. I believe the first 6 weeks is key to establish a good supply. I pumped and froze a few ounces per day (usually no more than 4 at one sitting though) so #2 doesn't starve if I am not home.
I am currently b-feeding #2. By week 4(?) we introduced the bottle and #2 took it well at the beginning. However, we were not very consistent (i.e. at least one bottle a day) so he sort of forgot after a few days without bottle feeds. As I am returning to work in a few months, we had to "train" him to take bottle again. I read somewhere that if you introduce the bottle too early, there will be nipple confusion. And if too late, the baby may choose not to take bottle. So personally I believe it's a good idea to give the baby at least one bottle a day starting around 4-5 weeks.
We used Dr. Brown for #1. Currently using B-free with #2 and no complaints.
Breastfeeding has been such a wonderful experience for me. I wish you best luck.
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didy
18 yrs ago
La Leche League would have all the answers you will need as far as breastfeeding is concerned. The group leaders in Hong Kong (Sarah, Maggie and the others) are tremendously helpful. Suggest you go sit in a meeting if you have not already done so.
Agree that everyone/every boob is different. I once rented the industry grade Medela Symphony but ended up using an inexpensive hand pump (Avent Iris) because it worked better for me. I started pumping a few days after the milk came in. I believe the first 6 weeks is key to establish a good supply. I pumped and froze a few ounces per day (usually no more than 4 at one sitting though) so #2 doesn't starve if I am not home.
I am currently b-feeding #2. By week 4(?) we introduced the bottle and #2 took it well at the beginning. However, we were not very consistent (i.e. at least one bottle a day) so he sort of forgot after a few days without bottle feeds. As I am returning to work in a few months, we had to "train" him to take bottle again. I read somewhere that if you introduce the bottle too early, there will be nipple confusion. And if too late, the baby may choose not to take bottle. So personally I believe it's a good idea to give the baby at least one bottle a day starting around 4-5 weeks.
We used Dr. Brown for #1. Currently using B-free with #2 and no complaints.
Breastfeeding has been such a wonderful experience for me. I wish you best luck.
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"That's a good idea - leave a breast pump at work so I don't have to carry it back and forth! Thanks :-)"
NP. I believe the pump in style comes with a little cold pack and bag, making transport easy.
"One of the speakers (a well-respected pediatrician) at the antenatal class that I attended stated that he doesn't believe in nipple confusion."
Agreed. Have heard this from other pediatricians. Also our #2 went back and forth all the time without issues. Still, your results may vary.
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I was considering buying the Pump In Style - it was the top of the range one, very expensive. Then I went to Eugene Club - they don't even sell it. She said there were many fiddly bits and pieces - is this true?
The Medela Swing also seems to be a popular choice. Which would be quicker to use, given the "set up" time etc?
Thanks, all, for your valuable advice!
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Slammy, of course everyone has different opinions and impressions, but that doesn't sounds a pump in style to me.
"Set up time" for the pump in style is under 30 seconds. Very easy. In fact, our 2 year old had no problem setting it up all the pieces for mommy and handing her the collecting thingies. She would then turn on the pump when mommy was ready to go. 2 year olds can be quite handy. ;)
As for fiddly bits, the only criticism I have is the little plug that selects single or double pumping. It has a tendency to pop out after a while. Easily fixed with a little tape. Or I guess you can glue it in place if you always pump double as my wife did.
As for washing, you should buy the Dr. Brown's narrow cleaning brushes to really get in there. But not really an issue.
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I used the Medela Harmony, handheld pump at work, which was fine and quick. In fact, it was about as fast as the Medela Symphony I rented for use at home.
The Swing seems to be good too. My friend used the Medala Swing, and managed to keep her baby on expressed breast milk only for the 1st six months. Swing also seems more portable than the PIS, which I worry would be hard to carry around discreetly.
I agree that you should start pumping after your milk supply is well established, about two months after baby is born, and a month or so before you return to work. You need time to get used to it and you can also start a little stockpile of milk for those days when you don’t have time to pump or have little milk. It’s best to introduce a bottle before you go to work – my baby refused bottles of expressed milk for about a month or so after I returned to work! She would even cry at their sight.
Medela’s new bottles are all BPA free, but we used Bfree for feeding..
Finally, when you start pumping at work, you may do morning and afternoon sessions. I kept my pump, horns and milk in the fridge, so I didn’t have to wash or sterilize during the day.
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I also used Medela Swing. Works magic. But in any case, a double pump is definitely more efficient than a single one. And if you are determined to BF for as long as you can, I would suggest you either rent/ buy a double pump ie PIS. You can just place it in the office. That's what my colleague did after returning to work in the 3rd month.
I tried pumping in the hospital, a few days after my delivery. Don't be discouraged of how much you get. The supply will build up as long as you keep feeding. I got most milk first thing I wake up in the morning. Back then my baby could only finish one boob. So I pumped the excess out from the other side. So basically I could store up one extra bottle in the freezer every day. By the time I returned to work the whole freezer was stocked up for his use, so I needn't worry even if I missed pumping one time or two when I was too busy at work. My baby managed to take my breastmilk exclusively for 13 months.
I introduced breastmilk in a bottle in the 3rd week or so, when I was really too tired to wake up and feed. Like once or twice a day. No nipple confusion whatsoever.
I also place the horns and bottles in the fridge so I can keep them sterilized for a day. I use Avent sterilizer too.
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"I also place the horns and bottles in the fridge so I can keep them sterilized for a day. I use Avent sterilizer too."
We kept ours in the drying rack after washing them like normal dishes, and in a cupboard when dry. Just like the rest of the bottles, nipples, flatware and glasses. There really is no need for special precautions just because it goes in baby's mouth.
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Thanks for sharing your experiences.
If I leave a breast pump at the office, how do I clean or sterilize it - and how often is this necessary?
Thanks very much!
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you have to clean and sterilise before every use!!! there are may ways to sterlise using a microwave. either use the disposable bags (you can buy from the baby store) or the microwave steriliser thingy thing that avent has.
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Actually you don’t need to sterilize each time after you used the pump, it is ok to put the pump in the fridge between pumping sessions. Or, you can get another set of horns to use for the other sessions. I have been doing this for 5 months already, and my baby and my milk are fine. Of course, I sterilized when I get home. The instruction packet I got with the pump said only to sterilize once a day and just wash between sessions like axptguy38 said.
I think it would be very inconvenient for a lot of mothers to wash and sterilize their pumps at work. For me, I would have had to either do it in the washroom sink (not hygienic) or the pantry sink (too public)!
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"you have to clean and sterilise before every use!!! there are may ways to sterlise using a microwave. either use the disposable bags (you can buy from the baby store) or the microwave steriliser thingy thing that avent has."
No you don't. Hand washing like any other dish is just fine. We never sterilized ours. Neither kid got any bugs from the pump. In fact both our kids were surprisingly healthy until #1 started preschool and the expected microbial firestorm began. In my admittedly anecdotal experience babies with cleanliness obsessed parents tend to be sicker than other babies.
Sterilization is a method introduced decades ago when what we understand today as normal sanitation was by no means common. The easiest way to teach proper sanitation for babies was to tell mothers to sterilize. If nothing else, proper detergents didn't exist and the easiest way to really clean something was to boil it. In industrialized societies today standards of cleanliness are typically way higher. High enough.
If nothing else, as soon as you touch your sterilized bottle with your hands, that bottle is no longer sterile. Pediatricians and nurses in the US told us that sterilization is overkill and not really needed for baby bottles. Boiling once a day should do for proper cleaning, and we never even did that.
For the work pump, my wife solved it by just using it once at work and bringing home the dirty stuff in a ziploc bag to wash for use the next day.
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If you do need to sterilise at work, a container of water and Milton tablets works too. The packet recommends 1 tablet to 5 l of water, so you could do 2.5 l of water to half a tablet?
But keeping the pump clean should be sufficient. And BTW, I'm getting incredibly thick-skinned about walking down the length of the corridoor at work holding a horn and a bottle of milk. The men most often don't notice or, if they do, look embarassed. But hey!
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BTW the Medela pump in style is very easy to clean. The pump itself never has any milk in it so you don't need to be that careful with it. The air and milk "circuits" are separate. I normally opened it up and used an antiseptic wipe all over the inside and out. Then I used a compressed air bottle (the kind for cleaning computers) to blow any crap out of the tubes.
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didy
18 yrs ago
Nicher and others - If no sterilization is necessary, could you just put the used pump in a ziplock bag and keep it in the fridge (without washing or rinsing)? If I pump in the office, I'd also be reluctant to wash the pump in the toilet sink or in the pantry.
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Didy - what I did was I brought extra pairs of horns instead of washing the used ones in office. I wanted to make sure they were really clean. Back then I only needed to pump twice during working hours. So I brought 2 pairs of horns and bottles with me in ziplock bags. I put them in the fridge first thing I got to work. Take out one pair for use when it's time to express. Then took all the horns back home to sterilize them when I left. Believe me, it wasn't that bulky.
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"Nicher and others - If no sterilization is necessary, could you just put the used pump in a ziplock bag and keep it in the fridge (without washing or rinsing)? If I pump in the office, I'd also be reluctant to wash the pump in the toilet sink or in the pantry."
As I said, there really is no need to wash a pump like the pump in style very often since the milk never touches the pump itself. As Nicher says just bring an extra pair of horns. They're the only part that gets dirty (apart from the bottles themselves).
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A word of warning on Dr Brown's bottles. Only bottles manufactured from Jan 2008 are BPA free (according to the Dr Brown website).
The 3 main shops I have looked at in HK are all selling old stock - date of manufacture 2006/2007. Info on manufacture date can be found on the box the bottle comes in, not the bottle itself.
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RachRobin - thanks for that point about Dr Brown's bottles - I'll watch out for that.
Also, a question to others - I wasn't going to ask this at first because I thought I would figure it out once I bought a breastpump... but... What are Horns?
Thanks!
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"Also, a question to others - I wasn't going to ask this at first because I thought I would figure it out once I bought a breastpump... but... What are Horns?"
The things that go on the boobs. They look like funnels. The milk goes in them and down into the bottles (which attach to the horns).
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Hi,
Just wanted to revive my thread with a couple of extra questions. My baby is now one month, and I've been pumping just in the mornings for nearly 2 weeks. I'm going to try pumping three times a day to increase my milk supply.
Some questions/clarification:
1. When I return to work, I will probably have to pump more than once a day. So after pumping, there's no need to rinse the horns/valve, I can just put into a ziplock bag and put in fridge?
2. The thing that's been preventing me pumping more than once a day is cleaning/sterilizing the pump after the morning session. Once I clean it, then it takes ages to dry. If it's not properly dried, the PIS tubes get water droplets inside. If I clean the horns after the morning session, how to dry them out?
3. In my morning session, it takes me 15 minutes using a PIS double pump, to get one measly ounce from each breast. My daughter's 4.1 kilos now and I'm sure she's drinking more than 1 oz at each feed!
2 oz's is a tiny, tiny amount - is this normal???
Thanks!
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Hi Slammy,
I would recommend you buying extra pairs of horns so you don't need to wash them and let dry after time. You can sterilize them all at once at night, keep them in the sterilizer and take them out for use whenever you need the next day. That's the way I did. Saves you a lot of work.
As for the amount of milk you can get from each express session... it's just one month after your baby's born, so give yourself some more time to build up the supply. Relax, a lot of rest and fluid. Remember, the amount you can pump out doesn't equal to the actual amount your baby can suck out of it during nursing (your baby could get a lot more via direct nursing).
Good luck!
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"1. When I return to work, I will probably have to pump more than once a day. So after pumping, there's no need to rinse the horns/valve, I can just put into a ziplock bag and put in fridge?"
Yepp. Wash them later. Much easier. Get an extra pair of horns.
"2. The thing that's been preventing me pumping more than once a day is cleaning/sterilizing the pump after the morning session. Once I clean it, then it takes ages to dry. If it's not properly dried, the PIS tubes get water droplets inside. If I clean the horns after the morning session, how to dry them out?"
Get an extra pair of horns. That way you can wash it all at home. Sterilization in a home context is really a misnomer. It's just washing by another method. As soon as you touch the things, they are no longer sterile. Unless you use surgical gloves, sterile procedure and a "clean room"
"3. In my morning session, it takes me 15 minutes using a PIS double pump, to get one measly ounce from each breast. My daughter's 4.1 kilos now and I'm sure she's drinking more than 1 oz at each feed!"
She's probably drinking much more yes. That doesn't sound like a lot. You could try pumping more often. Frequent stimulation helps.
"2 oz's is a tiny, tiny amount - is this normal???"
Normal is a very subjective term. It is low, but not abnormal.
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Average intake of expressed breast milk is about 25 to 30 ounces, so you divide that by the number of feeds. If you feed e.g. 10 times a day, you don’t need to give that much per feed.
1. Yes, putting in fridge is fine.
2. The tubes are fine with water as there is always some water in them after sterilizing. I actually wonder if we need to sterilize the tubes.
3. I read that you should target to produce about 1 ounce of milk every hour, which is about 25 ounces per day. So, how much you need to pump will really depend on when you pump. For myself, I only targeted to pump 4 ounces or so each session (for a total of three sessions of pumping while I nursed directly in the mornings and evenings), which was more than enough for my baby.
I pumped in the early morning too. If you do this, do it before you feed. It will be easier to pump and you will have enough milk to feed your baby too since the pump is not as efficient as your baby. I also pumped 2 more times at work, for a total of 3 sessions with a total of 12 ounces of expressed breast milk a day. This was more than enough, with extra for freezing.
You can easily increase your milk yield by pumping more. At first, I was quite low too, and by adding sessions, I at one point had an oversupply with too much milk– which made me easily very engorged and my milk became too powerful for my baby! So, 4 ounces per session was a good amount for us.
Finally, the amount you get at each session is not as important as the total amount of milk you produce per day. I know one mom that pumped 10 ounces per session, but she only pumped twice a day. Another mom pumped constantly, but relatively less milk each time. Yet another mom had so much extra milk that she used her breast milk for bathing her baby!!
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Has anyone tried hand expressing? My wife read something about it and tried it for a bit, then ditched her pump. She found hand expressing much much easier and faster. There is a technique involved, though, so research it a bit first, so you don't end up frustrated.
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Hi Jenny,
Thanks for your informative post. It gives me an idea of how many pumping sessions and how much I should get out in order to feed the baby! That's great - thanks.
So in the mornings you would pump 2oz from each breast before feeding the baby?
By the way, I never sterilize the tubes - I think there's no need because they don't touch any of the parts that have milk going through them.
Also - Hualaan - I have heard that hand expression works well for some people but I imagine I might make a messy job of it!
By the way, does anyone know where you can buy extra horns for medela pump?
Thanks,
Samantha
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My wife says the hand expressing was a bit messy when she was trying to do it in a tight space, like a public toilet. On the other hand, though, trying to use a pump in that space was very awkward. The main benefit of hand expression, according to her, is that it is much much faster and obviously more convenient.
On a related topic, we never sterilised anything, other than the breast pump maybe once a week for the first few weeks. And on the advice of the public health nurse, we never warmed up the expressed milk; she said there's no need and baby's actually prefer it cold. Aiden had no problem with it, either warm from the breast or cold from the fridge.
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To Samantha: in reply to your question on where to get extra horns/ tubes for your medela pump, you can check out from Celki (www.celki.com) They are the main distributor of Medela products in HK and they have most of the spare parts available.
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