EPers - How much are you pumping a day?

[bookworm87]

I won't be a lot of help because I don't exclusively pump. But I pump at 8:00 every night while my husband feeds him a bottle and I get 8-10 oz every night just from that one time. So I feel like if I kept a good schedule and didn't slack off, ruining my supply, then I could probably exclusively pump without problems. Maybe most people just assume that you EP because you had problems with your supply??

[2jelplus1]

I'm no longer exclusively pumping (did it for a few weeks) but when I was I was close to 40oz a day-- I started bc of problems relating to oversupply. I am in two mommy & me groups where average baby is oct/nov and a number of EP moms who started. out with great supply saw it dwindling around 3mo mark and a few switched to EFF. There are several still making enough at 4mo. Don't mean to be doom and gloom but if EBM is important to you, it's a good idea to monitor production so you can address decreased supply if necessary!

[abenson3]

I don't EP for this LO, but did for DD#1 and had an output of around 40oz a day. My moms likes to joke that my breasts could feed a small village.

[2jelplus1]

I didn't pry into specifics but I have read that it helps to have skin to skin as much as possible when EP. Presumably something hormone/pheromone that baby near boob helps juice milk production-- plus good for bonding!

I type this mostly naked w baby passed out between boob and arm.

[nbateman5]

I EP and track the amount I yield and its about 35-40oz a day and LO eats about 30oz so I'm able to freeze the rest. Fortunately I'm always ahead and always have at least a few bottles at the end of the day and don't need to give LO milk right away after pumped. I told the pediatrician that LO took a 6oz bottle a few weeks ago and she was surprised I could pump that much at a time but really 6oz is pretty normal for me to pump throughout the day. I hope I can keep my pumping schedule when I'm back to work so LO can have BM as long as possible.

[birch113]

I'm going to throw the EP stats off! I started EPing at 2.5 weeks. LO had latch and transfer issues (tongue and lip ties, tongue thrusting) At 1.5 weeks after one good weighted feed, my LC had me aggressively drop post-nursing pumps (drop one every other day over a week). Turns out the one good weighted feed was a fluke, and my supply ranked over that week because lol wasn't transferring. I've been busting my boobs (haha) to get my supply up ever since, and just this week I've been consistently averaging ~ 25 oz. Depending on the day, I have only had to supplement 1-2 oz with formula, or haven't needed formula at all. I'm hoping to continue to increase so I don't need any formula supplementation, and can build up a stash. LO starts daycare on 3/2, and I'm really stressed about having enough milk to send in.

ETA: MOTN typos.

[pdxlaurens]

I'm EPing and can barely stay ahead of LO. I'd say I get 24 to 28 oz a day so we need 0 to 4 oz of formula on any given day. Transfer and supply are the reasons I'm pumping though. I just rented a hospital grade pump for a month to work on my supply, cross your fingers for me that it will help!

[serejane]

I EP and supplement for twins. I get anywhere from 30-37 oz a day. For a while I was pumping 8x a day and only getting 25 oz which made me want to quit! As long as I am making more than half of what they eat I feel happy considering the significant time commitment pumping takes.

[birch113]

Feb 14, 2015 9:02:16 GMT -5 pdxlaurens said:

I'm EPing and can barely stay ahead of LO. I'd say I get 24 to 28 oz a day so we need 0 to 4 oz of formula on any given day. Transfer and supply are the reasons I'm pumping though. I just rented a hospital grade pump for a month to work on my supply, cross your fingers for me that it will help!

Hey, pumping twin! We seem to have the same issues with supply and transfer. My fingers are crossed for you! I switched to a hospital grade pump almost two weeks ago and stereo taking all the supplements and lactation foods. I've seen a bit of an increase so far. Most notably, I had a drop yesterday and panicked, but I realized I hadn't eaten nearly enough the day before. Make sure you're eating enough!