How do you know if pumping is for you. Here are a list of reasons why you would want to look into pumping:
1. You have problems breastfeeding. Baby has latch on issues that don’t seem to be resolved. Baby not extracting enough milk
2. You can breastfeed, but you want to increase your milk supply or have additional milk in the freezer for when you like to go out, or you’d like to express so your husband can give the bottle
1. Pump at least 7 times a day.
Best would be if you can get somewhere around 9 pumps in the first days. In my case I had started out with 7 pumps and got just a little milk out. I then increased to 10 times for a few days and then cut back to 9 pumps for about two weeks. This seemed to make a big difference in my milk supply.
2. Make sure you have a good pump and all necessary accessories.
Check your horn size. Most women need larger shields so make sure your shield is the right size for you. A good site that provides you with all your pump accessories is pumpingpals.com. They also offer a nipple measuring tool that helps you decide whether or not you need to go for a larger horn. Also make sure that you have a good suction with your pump. Some pumps when utilized so much by exclusive pumping mothers tend to loose the suction they had at the beginning. To get your suction back you need to change the membranes. Buy additional membranes in advance. If you are not sure if your pump is loosing suction just test with the new membranes. You will probably need them anyhow so this is a good investment.
Continue reading ’10 tips to increase your milk supply’
The general recommendation that seems to work for most women is that for the first 12 weeks to pump around 8 to 12 times a day. The length of each session should be around 15 minutes or 5 minutes past your last let-down, whichever is the longest. In order to get your 8-12 sessions in one day, that means that you will pump each 2 or 3 hours in 24 hours. You can have closer pumping times during the day and longer stretches during the night.
These guidelines will help you increase your milk supply. By pumping so often what you end up doing is sending a signal to your body to produce more milk. Every time you empty your breasts, they start producing again.
The first 12 weeks are important as it is believed that during this time your supply is more easily influenced as your Prolactin levels (hormone primarily associated with lactation) are highest.
There are various ways to freeze your milk, some of these are more costly than others. Here is a ranking of different ways to freeze your milk from the costliest method to the least costly
1. Medela freezer bags
2. Lansinoh bags
3. Ice cub trays and then transfer to Ziploc bags
When you want to defrost your milk best is to take it out of the freezer and defrost in the fridge. It generally takes about 12 to 24 hours to defrost. The defrosted milk should be used within 24 hours. You can then warm it in a bottle warmer.