The Pumping "Game"

When I nursed and pumped with Owen I always pumped only one breast so the other was available and full of milk for him. I could also tried to pump when my milk production was highest, in the morning. And use the pump on a different breasts because the way it tells your body to make milk is not as effective as a baby nursing. Oh, and pump till it is empty (breast) so you ody will know to make more and so the bottle will have the protein filled hind milk as well. This is also why it is good to have a full feeding on one breast so they can get the hind milk.

All this helped me keep my milk production high and pumping was never too much of a hassle.

Hi T.,
I am a mother of a 5 month old exclusively breadtfeeding. I started working two nights a week so was always stressing on making a couple of bottles. I now can easily make bottles. I wake up before the baby in the am, I drink a big glass of water and then pump. I pump both boobs at the same time. This took some practice, but they trigger eachother and I almost get double than with one boob. I tend to make more milk in the morning, and I tricked them into thinking it was a feeding so now their full in the morning ready to go.
Good luck
C.

I am knew to this site so I am not sure if you've already gotten plenty of advice, but here is my 2 cents worth. I have a seven week old little girl and she nurses around the clock and I was afraid I was running out of milk, but I too seem to have plenty. I also pump for reserves like going out for the day. I pump one side in the morning. You can actually get more milk if you breastfeed at the same time, however, it is awkward with the baby on one side and the pump on the other. I try to pump just one ounce and add it to my supply that way if she wants to eat again there is plenty. Good luck.

I exclusively breastfed until 6 months and pumped when I went back to work at 4.5 months. I also did not worry about keeping a schedule and just nursed when he wanted to. I think this helped maintain my supply. Anyway, before I went back to work I would pump at night after he went to bed, a couple of hours after he last nursed. Then I would do it again in the morning after he got up. When I went back to work I did it twice a day. I found that sometimes I pumped I would get a lot, and other times I would get only a couple of ounces. Try looking at pictures of your daughter when you nurse, and drink lots of water. Do you have a good pump? I think that makes a difference. Try to use a good quality, strong one like the Medela Pump in Style. If you have a used pump you can test the pressure (I brought mine into Day One and they had gauges).

During the day rather than wake her you can pump her when you feel "full" and get some reserves that way.

Your breasts will be the fullest in the mornings (even if you are doing night feedings). I found that my son would feed off one breast each morning when he woke for the day. There was plenty of milk in one to feed him. Then, I would pump the other and get a good 5 oz. out of it. Doing this every morning allowed me to get a freezer full of milk. Hope this helps!

Try pumping while your daughter is nursing. Having her there will help with your let down. Doing it is a little tricky. I found that the best way was to sit in bed with my daughet in the "football" hold with several pillows under her for support. This way I still had room for the pump on the other side. I did this about once a day for a week and my body learned to letdown at the sound of the pump going. Now I pump at work twice a day and I'm actually putting about 6 oz of milk in the freezer every week b/c I'm getting more than she can eat.

Good luck.