Pumping every 2hrs vs. 3hrs

[asyouwish79]

Hi All,

I hope you lovely ladies can give me some advice. I went back to work last week and I'm trying to figure out the best way to pump and maintain or possible increase my supply while at work. My baby boy is 13 weeks old and as of now I'm barely pumping enough at work to keep up with what he is eating. This is what a typical day for us is like just for some background. 

He is up and nurses between 1-2am, then nurses again around 5am. I pump when I get to work between 8:30/9am then pumping at 12pm & 3pm for 20-25min each session. I pick him up and either nurse him around 5:30 when I get to my moms or if he is not hungary around 6:30 at home. He will then eat one more time just to top off around 7:30/8pm then go to bed. Then I pump again around 9pm before I go to bed. I am working on moving his bed time earlier since he is now up at 7am for the day so that last session at 6:30 may end up being his bed time one. 

I was talking to a friend of mine and she suggested that I try pumping every 2hrs at work so 8:30/9, 11, 1, 3pm for 30 min to see if that will help boost my supply. Has anyone done that and noticed a difference and if so how long did it take to see the increase? 

He is eating anywhere from 11-15oz while I'm at work and I'm only pumping about 10-11 at work and then another 2 before I go to bed. My mom and I are still trying to figure out how much he really needs while I am gone. I drop him off with her at 7:30am then am back to get him at 5:30pm. 

During the weekends we nurse on demand and he will go 2-3hrs between feedings depending on the time of day. 

Thanks for any tips you may have. I might also post this on the breastfeeding board, would that be okay?

[Shoe Crazy Me]

I would say post on the BF board, since this board is more for women who don't breastfeed and only pump. You. Will probably get more advice over there? GL!

[Widget123]

I will answer this question as I have a lot of experience from pumping at work with my DD. Pumping at work can be a distraction even if you are hands free and it is not unusual for meetings to come up that require you to adjust your schedule. I think pumping 4 times during a work day is unrealistic and you are more likely to get more milk if you pump after feeding your LO in the morning (such as the other side) before you leave for work since prolactin is the highest in the early AM.

[madalynw]

My LO has refused to nurse since she got sick (rsv) at 2m old. She's now 3m old and will only nurse at night when half asleep. She has very similar feeding times and wake up times as your LO. Feeding 2x at night, then 8,10,12,2,4,6 and 8 before bed. During the day she wants to eat every 2hrs so I have to pump every 2hrs. If i wait 3hrs I can't produce enough to meet her needs. I'd say try for s few days, if you have the time at work, and see. It mught work.

[asyouwish79]

Thank you Shoe Crazy Me, I will try posting there as well.

That is a good point Widget123, I will try and fit in a quick pump in the morning before I leave for work. I think I can do one right after he does his 5am eating since he goes right back to bed. It is a bit crazy to think of pumping that many times at work, but it might be doable for me for a couple of weeks till I get this figured out.

Your baby sounds a lot like mine madalynw with the eating schedule. What size bottles does your LO get since she is eating every two hours? Are you able to keep up with her needs with the every 2hr pumps? How long do you usually pump? Sorry so many questions! This is all new to me since I was never able to nurse or pump enough to keep up with my first son.

[bennieangel]

When I returned back to work I pumped 4 times so my schedule was similar to your proposed schedule & it worked for me. We didn't move to EP until 9 months.

[madalynw]

I give her 3oz, unless she wants to eat a lot sooner than 2hrs. Or if somehow the 6pm feeding gets shifted to closer to 7pm, then at 8pm I'll give her 2oz. Currently I am able to pump what she needs, but I have to pump every 2hrs. I have just barely enough supply. I know some women can pump several oz after a morning feeding or instead of a feeding. Well i pump like 4oz max in place of that most productive morning feeding. So then if I give her 3oz I have some leftover to cover a deficit I am always running in the afternoon/evening. Typically throughout the day I will pump about 3oz every 2hrs-2hr15min (yes i track it that closely...) but in the pm it's more like 2-2.5.

[madalynw]

Oh you also asked how long I pump. Typically 12 mins and mostly on the fast 'let down' speed. For some reason I respond better to that. And I don't get letdowns after about 12 mins plus I just can't do it any longer so that's that....

Another similarity between us - I never had a full supply with my 1st. Had to supplement her all along. I bf/combo fed her for 7 months. After that I had had enough and went all formula. With this LO by some miracle I EBF, or pump if you will, and have 100% but it won't last as long as I would like. As soon as the weather gets nice I won't be able to stay inside and pump all day long... Maybe I'll make it to 4 months...

[mesmrewe]

When DD & DS were small I found I got more "milk for the pump" if I spaced the time out. It's just how my body reacted. You've got to experiment a bit to find out what works best for you. I found fewer times for slightly longer duration produced twice as much for me than when I pumped more frequently, even for the same amount of time each session. Test it out and do what works best for your body!

P.S. You're doing AWESOME!!!! Pumping can be incredibly stressful to add into the mix of an already busy day, you'll find a groove that works for you!