Advice for Exclusive Pumping?

[katelm]

Flanges can stay in the fridge for up to 6 days because that's how long breastmilk can be in the fridge. At least that's what I do! I do not sanitize daily, I only sanitized before first use

[tkford216]

I have never once sanitized, lol. My kid is still alive. *shrug*

Once you get your full milk boobs, you'll need to find the right size flange. Look at pictures online from Medela or something to see what the proper fit should look like. I had several weeks of nipple hell until I finally got advice from other ladies and tried a smaller size. Magically, no more pain.

It helps to massage while you pump. At least I always got more that way.

Really, it'll just take time to get the hang of it. A lot of trial and error to see what works best for you and your boobs. As you get going, feel free to ask any questions here.

Oh, and my last bit of advice is to prepare for a lot of questions as to why you're not breastfeeding "for real." So annoying. At least in my experience, there is such a push for "breast is best" now that no one can understand why someone might not want to do that, or would want to go through the extra trouble of pumping. So, just a forewarning..

[tkford216]

. Most, if not all, of the people at the OB office and hospital seemed fine with it, but I can't tell you how many times I had to explain "I'm not breastfeeding but I would like to give breastmilk so I'm pumping exclusively. ... No, I do not want to try latching. ... Yes I know it can help milk production. ... No, I'm pumping because I don't want any boob action at all. ... Yes, I know it's more work. ... No, I think formula is fine, I just want to try this first. ..." Ha. I was ready to just write it on my forehead.

[tkford216]

Do you know which brand pump you're getting? I had the Medela PISA.

[tkford216]

Jan 5, 2017 23:34:04 GMT -5 . said:

Jan 5, 2017 23:33:06 GMT -5 tkford216 said:

Do you know which brand pump you're getting? I had the Medela PISA.

Is that the pump in style advanced? If so, then that's the one my insurance provides.

Yep. It's a pretty popular one so I'd guess others here had/have that too (though this board is pretty quiet). Advice for that specifically:

Let it run for a couple minutes after you've unplugged yourself from it. It'll get any excess moisture out of the tubing.

Make sure you have extra valves and membranes. If you somehow lose it in the sink, you are SOL, so a backup is good to have.

The storage bags are super handy if you're able to produce enough to get a freezer stash going.

And they make a car adapter plug for it, which I highly suggest buying. It comes in handy for traveling, or other unforeseen issues (like when our power went out and I was due to pump.. I just went and pumped in the car, lol).

[dancerspose]

. I'm currently EP not by choice since my little one isn't latching. Once I got the tip about not having to clean the parts after each pumping session it got MUCH easier to be a pumper. My supply seems pretty good so we've actually been able to start building up a supply to start freezing already (assuming things continue as is). There are definitely times when I wish I could just stick her on the boob instead of going through a feeding and pumping, but at least while DH is home it isn't too bad. I'm looking for a good hands free solution for when DH goes back to work so I can pump and feed her at the same time though. I have one of the bras, but it's so bulky with the cones and bottles hanging off it that I definitely can't use and hold the baby. The most it does is free my hands up to eat/drink/use my phone/etc.

I will say that I am still hoping to get her back on the boob, but the longer this goes on (it's been a week since I had to pull her off the breast due to severe nipple damage) the more I think I could do this long term if I had to.