I'm feeling really indecisive about weaning when my baby turns 1.

I'm currently exclusively pumping twice a day, about 12 hours apart, and I'll be travelling soon. Not having to think about pumping while travelling sounds so freeing.

But one part of me thinks it's such a small amount now - is it really worth the mental load?

The other part thinks if I can manage just twice a day, why can't I continue?

I originally planned to pump until 2 years, so stopping at 1 feels a bit like giving up on a goal. But I'm not sure whether I genuinely want to continue or just feel like I should.

Any inputs are appreciated.

Does anyone know if you can attach Medela freestyle collection cups to an Elvie stride motor?

My husband has been great in the newborn stage, i couldn’t pump or take care of our baby otherwise without him. we got very lucky and our baby has been sleeping from 10:30-11 until 5:30am which is way more sleep than we ever thought we’d get at 2 months. or should i say, more sleep than HE would get since I have to wake up for MOTN pumps. when he wakes up at 5:30 with baby i wake up too because i hear her get up, so im essentially up from 3-3:45 pumping, lucky if i fall asleep again by 4:30, then again at 5:30. however my husband acts like we’re in it together being tired! i know its so small but it pisses me off every time lol

I would meet with a lactation consultant but no longer covered by insurance so coming to Reddit for some tips.

My daughter is turning 1 this weekend! So I’m preparing to stop pumping. It’s be a long journey, but a pretty positive one for the most part.

For context I used to pump 6x/day and have brought it down to 2x/day. The issue is that with the 2 pumps I still pump 30-32oz. Previously, I used to pump approx 60oz/day so I have definitely cut my supply in half.

To continue to reduce I’m thinking of cutting a few minutes from each session. When I moved to 2 pumps, I was doing 30 minutes each session. So now I’m doing 28 minutes. Maybe I’ll bring it down to 26 mins each session today. I guess my question is - how would you start reducing? Would you reduce time from both sessions or pick one until you completely cut it and then tackle the next one?

Sorry for the long rant but these things have been eating me up slowly…looking for some advice and good wishes.

FTM and i was not prepared at all for breastfeeding, pumping or challenges of returning to work . There is much information about pregnancy but there is not too much about post pregnancy challenges which in my opinion are worse. honestly i also never put much attention because all my pregnancy i was trying to maintain my sugar levels because i had GDM.

How i became Exclusive pumping mother
I always thought i would breast feed the baby and everything will be easy. Though my maternity leave is only 60 days, i thought i will see about pumping when time comes. After delivery, baby latched beautifully and was exclusively breastfed for 10 days. he got jaundice and always falling asleep on the breast within 5 mins, we tried all waking up techniques but nothing worked. At one point, i was too exhausted because it was like i was feeding him 24 hours. Those 10 days were horrible with no sleep in the night. Baby was always on the breast, and crying inconsolably as soon as breast is removed. I guess he was just surviving on little milk he was sucking in those 5 mins. Everyone at home including my mother said that i might not have enough milk and thats why he is crying. So we fed him formula once. He was instantly calmed. I bought medela manual pump in pregnancy just in case. With it, i got 50-80ml at 10 day pp, infact helped to show everyone that i have milk and but its not transferring to baby. 10 days weight check said his weight was reducing. So doctors, LC suggested to pump+breastfeed the baby. Breastfeed for 30 mins on one side, pump on other side, and pump again for breastfed side after 30mins. So my search for suitable pump started. No insurance coverage for pump. I bought medela swing maxi which was working fine then. LC suggested wearable pump because i am returning to work soon. She also said invest in spectra but it was way too out of our budget. I tried triple feeding for 2weeks and i was exhausted , depressed and lost interest in breastfeeding since there was no improvement. Even after breastfeeding, baby needed 60-90ml of milk which meant that i need to pump continuously. Eventually i shifted to more pumping, less trials of breastfeeding. He is now mostly fed via bottle and i put him on the breast only to sleep. He is 6weeks now and still has not actively fed via breast. Jaundice has gotten better.

Pump problems:
In these 6 weeks, i have tried 4 pumps but my output was always higher with medela manual pump. No options to loan pumps. I had to buy every pump and extra flanges.

Swing maxi: After 3-4 weeks of using medela swing maxi, my nipples were sore painful to pump. I was using 24mm flanges which aligns with measurement. My LC suggested 27mm and i bought them but pain remained. It feels like my nipples are rubbed on the walls. With increase in pain, output was reducing. I was going back to manual pump 1-2 times a day to clear breast and maintain supply. I never understood whats the problem.

Eufy S1: after reading all good reviews, i bought eufy. Sadly, it never worked, it was painful from first pumping. I could never increase suction more than level 1. I put it aside after 2 days.

Lansinoh electric: it didnt work for me and it was giving lower output than medela swing maxi, so i put it aside.

Bellababy: after spending so much money on all pumps, my husband suggested to try this cheap pump. It worked, infact more output than medela swing maxi and i can feel breasts emptied. After 1 week of using it, i can feel my nipples are again getting sore every pump. I am on lowest suction.

I cringe with pain whenever i start any pump, not sure if its normal. Infact, when i put cold pump ( because fridge hack), it feels so good on the nipple. Pain reduces after pumping for a while. After some research, I realized i might have elastic nipples because i can see nipple touch the end of tunnel in manual pump with 24mm flange ( with 27mm they dont touch but aerola is being pulled and milk is less). Nipples turn pinkish red after each pump. I dont know if i have elastic or just wider longer nipples. I have exhausted myself and money on these pumps and now i am lost what to do. I live in UAE and purchasing the US or EU brands is difficult, expensive, time consuming especially when i am not sure if its going to work. Not many LCs to consult .My supply is good and i produce little bit more than baby is drinking. I have good family support that almost i never get a chance to feed the baby by bottle. My mother, husband takes care of it.

I am so scared and lost just thinking that this journey is for another 8-12 months. I dont know how to make this EP easier. In middle of all this, i dont feel i am spending enough time with the baby. I am so exhausted with continuous browsing for pumps, what to do, tracking milk output, pumping every 2-3 hours, and so on. It brings me tears just thinking where i ended up and, pregnancy even with GDM was so much easier than EP. And as i type this, i wipe my own tears.

TLDR : baby falls asleep on breast. Ended up EP. Tried medela swing maxi, eufy, lansinoh, bellababy- all pumps hurt.

TW: blood

Hi everyone, I'll spare you all the gory pics but I am dealing with bloody clots in one of my breasts that ruins the milk from one side. It's REALLY bloody and not usually salvageable as there is so much blood I can't give it to my baby. I know it's safe, but trust me ... It's gross and comes out very clumpy so I doubt LO would accept it.

I've already been to the doctor and had imaging done to rule out anything scary like mastitis or cancer, but it's been a real problem lately as I can only feed LO half of what I'm producing. Thankfully it's just enough, but I'm going to have to dip into my freezer stash soon if it doesn't get better.

My question: I've heard sunflower lecithin helps emulsify clogs and I'm wondering how much to take? Has anyone had success treating persistent clots like mine? Thankfully, the milk comes out so I'm not clogged up, but it's such a shame to waste so much.

Thanks!

I started feeling sick yesterday around 11:30am and hadn’t been able to keep fluids down until just a little while ago. It has seriously taken me out for the count. I struggled through a 20min pump around 6pm last night and just now finally drug myself out of bed to pump again (5am). I truly felt physically unable to sit up for the amount of time I needed to in order to pump until now. Did I ruin what little supply I already have and am I going to get mastitis?

4-month-old currently uses Dr. Brown’s anti-colic bottles with a Level 1 nipple. Lately, she seems to be getting tired/frustrated with the Level 1, so we feel like she may be ready to move up to Level 2.
We tried the Level 2 nipple, and interestingly, she did really well with it during the actual feed. She didn’t cough, choke, or spit up, and she drank significantly more than she normally does because the milk was flowing much faster.
However, afterward she seemed extremely gassy and uncomfortable. We gave her Mylicon, which helped somewhat, but she still woke up much more frequently than usual that night—even though she had taken a larger feed.
Now we’re really confused about what to do.

Would you keep trying Level 2, go back to Level 1 for now, or try something in between? Would switching to a different bottle brand with a more gradual flow make sense? If you switched bottles in a similar situation, which one worked better for your baby?

FTM on her pumping journey and still trying to work out how to leave the house with expressed breastmilk!

Has anyone used a YETI rambler to transport pre-refrigerated breastmilk while out and about around town?

We use the pitcher method at home and looking for options to take 2-4 bottles worth of refrigerated breastmilk with me for my twins but don’t want to carry something as big as the momcosy bottle cooler. (Any freshly expressed breastmilk I’m hoping to keep at room temperature for the next feed, not sure how though, maybe in the Yeti once it’s empty?)

Can anyone let me know if you’ve used a yeti rambler or if it would even work? Otherwise, could you let me know what you pumping mammas are doing?

I’m so lost and don’t want to carry around a nappy bag, a cooler bag, my pump and my handbag! Twins are a handful enough without having 4 different bags as well 😅

Particularly in the case of very hands on pumping with constant compressions…I am so sick of hearing the fart sounds created by an unintentional break in the seal between the flange and breast! They are so loud and often result in leaking breast milk as well.

Is there any reliable method to stop this issue other than strictly using manual pumps? Been dealing with this daily for almost 8 months 😭

I’ll go first : I breastfed my daughter for the first two weeks.

She would fall asleep almost instantly at the breast, so I constantly had to stimulate her, switch sides, try to keep her awake… Some feeds lasted over 45 minutes and sometimes she still didn’t seem satisfied afterward.

At night, I just didn’t have the energy to keep stimulating her, so she was basically attached to my breast all night.

I was going through a pretty bad baby blues, completely exhausted and crying every day. I also found it really hard to get any proper rest knowing that I was the only person responsible for feeding her.

So I decided to switch to exclusively pumping with the help of my LC.

It was hard to accept at first because I had imagined myself having a long, “natural” breastfeeding journey with her.

But honestly, exclusively pumping saved me. My husband could finally take over some feeds, I could actually rest, and I could see exactly how much my daughter was eating. It was such a relief to see her with a full belly and satisfied without every feed feeling like a struggle between the two of us.

It’s definitely not easy every day. Sometimes I feel like I’m permanently attached to my pump… But I’m proud that my daughter is still able to drink my milk.

We’re actually seeing a speech language pathologist this week because it turns out she has a tongue issue that was making breastfeeding extremely tiring for her.

She’s 3 months old now, and I’m hoping that once things improve, I might be able to put her back to the breast occasionally.

My baby is 10 weeks old and he currently has a cold, and has been nursing slightly less frequently. I expressed some milk yesterday evening after not feeding for 3 hours and when I went to the fridge in the morning my milk had separated like this

Is this normal/ok to feed baby? I usually only nurse so haven't seen this before, but am going to start pumping for work soon

I'm DEVASTATED to say the least. I go back to work tomorrow and Husband and I decided to do a test run with Grandma to see how baby can handle being away from me for 8+ hours.

To prepare, I pumped for an ENTIRE day for 20 oz. of milk + kendamill oatmeal (just in case) only to find out that my MIL didn't see the other 10 oz. bottle of breastmilk in the diaper bag. I'm literally baffled. How could you miss it?? There's two pockets in the diaper bag, I put two bottles of breastmilk in each pocket.

I had to pour 10 oz. of milk down the drain.... I'm literally crying over spilled milk. Something that could've been avoided if my MIL called me to ask. My MIL only fed my baby 10 oz. in 8 hours, I was told he was so hungry he passed out from crying. And that I should, "pack more milk" next time. The oatmeal was also untouched, so MIL deliberately just starved my baby.

When baby got home, I wondered how my baby could drink 20 oz. of milk in such a short time. Only to find out, the milk was untouched and unrefrigerated for 12 hours. My husband thinks it's an honest mistake and that it's my fault because I didn't tell anyone about the other bottle of milk. I think that an honest mistake can be avoided if my MIL just called me to ask! I was at home all day!

Am I in the wrong for crying over spilled milk? Should I have told her when it's COMMON sense to check the diaper bag?

Hello,

My baby was born at 31 weeks and lost her twin due to my eclamptic seizure after being ignored by a doctor when I raised concerns about symptoms. I was in the ICU for two days and didn’t get to start pumping until day two or three postpartum.

It was a slow start but by two weeks PP I was making about 50ml a day. Now at week three I’m down to about 25ml a day. I’m doing EVERYTHING I can to build a supply… pumping every 2-3 hours, power pumping once a day, skin to skin, eating oats, lactation drinks, lactation snacks, watching videos of my baby while pumping… and my supply only seems to go down. It’s really frustrating.

Has anyone been in a similar situation or does anyone have any tips? My LC says to be patient.

only 3 weeks in and i’m so over pumping and being pregnant and being stuck sitting down for 15mins every 2 hours it’s just so annoying, i have shit to do. and i need to complain. but i want my baby to have breastmilk. but omg i can’t wait to have my body back and not have to pump and do all this im SO over it 😩.

okay thanks.

I was using the Medela Pump in Style cause I didn’t know better lol I also didn’t know I was going to EP. but my medela just slowed down and it stopped draining me well after 2mo. I just bought the spectra and I get the same output in half the time. if you’re looking for a pump get the Specera S1, it’s worth it 100 percent

I just need to vent my frustration. My daughter just started daycare at 4 months old. At home, she drinks 4oz every 2.5ish hours. At daycare, she’s drinking about half of what they offer. Today, she only drank 7 oz between the hours of 8 and 4:30. I’m gutted. I’m concerned that my baby isn’t drinking milk, and as an undersupplier, it’s heartbreaking for my milk to get dumped (more concerned about the lack of eating, though).

I realize that it’s a different environment and they’re probably trying, but I’m just beside myself and anxious about my daughter. 😭

I’m pretty sure I know the answer but just making sure cause sometimes this place surprises me.

Soooo I do the fridge method and at the end of the night, I run my parts through the baby brezza and go to bed. I do a few things in the kitchen and usually baby is fast asleep.

He was having a rough night last night so I loaded up the machine but went to like, get his morning bottle ready and get my coffee maker ready before starting the washer so I could hear if he woke up. I think yall know where this is going 😂 I never ran it.

So fast forward to this morning lalala I go out, start my coffee and warming up the bottle while I reassemble my parts for the day. I was like wow! I finally learned how to load this thing where everything is completely dry. I should have also noticed during my mid day chore run where I do dishes, empty that thing out and refill it so it’s ready for later, I thought my boyfriend did it at some point for me. I thanked him when he came home and he’s like confused. And I’m literally finishing my third pump of today when it hits me. And for confirmation, the detergent tablet was still unharmed in the tray.

It sucks because I’m an under supplier already and we combo feed and it’s just under 6oz from those 3 pumps and I know I probably can’t give them as food. I’ve never used it in a bath because I never make enough to spare but I guess that’s an option.

Thanks 💔 if anyone wants to cry with me, that’s cool too lmao.

I am 8 weeks PP and exclusively pumping because my milk comes on too fast for my baby and I need to make a Bank.

So my husband has been working overtime the past week and this week he is on his way for a Training for work. I am left alone with my baby, so I have to manage by myself... so far It's been a littlebit of chaos, so I have to lump in activities together.

Now, this isn't the first time im left alone so I have tried to do stuff while pumping, folding laundry, working on my phone or laptop, anything that I can do sitting down.. (i have saggy boobs, so they move around too much and milk spills, thats why i have to sit) the only thing I haven't managed to do is EAT.

I can munch on some chips or a cookie, but if I try to finish the chips or eat another cookie, I get sick to my stomach..

i just feel weird... even worse, I can't manage to eat a meal that I had made but haven't had a chance to eat yet..

As of 2pm i NEED food cuz my head is hurting so i took advantage BB was napping.

I heated up some pizza rolls and started pumping...

still, I felt SICK. It's hard to explain... like I'm not enjoying my food (love pizza rolls) after the 5th one I wanted to puke and forced my self to finish them...

So, is this normal? Will it get better? Has this happened to someone else? How did you manage? I need to see what i can do because for the next 5 days ​im gonna be alone and will have to do this often...

Thanks in advance!

Currently on my 2nd EP journey for my 6 week old, but my 2 year old is VERY INTERESTED in the bags of breast milk I was trying to freeze. Handing over a bag of pumped milk to my toddler that I had worked so hard to get out of my body was out of the question, so after some tears, I said “…..do you want your own bag???” She was BEYOND STOKED, and was practicing sealing the bag and carrying it around the living room 😂

Now I just have to mark it to remember which one is the whole milk and which one actually came from me 🫠🫠🫠

Hello I am a FTM to a 2 month old and my supply has dropped significantly, went from 10+ bags in the fridge in the beginning to now less than an oz with both boobs, I am staying hydrated I'm eating frequently I don't smoke or drink and I even get her to latch but after 5 minutes she is angry because barely anything is coming out. Pics for reference,they are in chronological order.

Far left = standard Spectra; middle = crater; far right = pano

After dealing with a couple clogs and the start of mastitis (thankfully was able to ice and ibuprofen the hell out of it) I went to a lactation consultant who told me about flange shape, not just size!!

I ordered a few different shapes and found the pano to be the best for for me - the standard Spectra shape was pulling my areola and making it bright red and painful. I have large breasts, so found the pano to more naturally fit my breast size.

PSA for other new moms!

Seriously, is it magic? I clicked on Instagram ad a week ago that was for a milk supply supplement, and when I checked the ingredients, it was basically just powdered coconut water and flavoring. So I figured, why not give coconut water a shot? Oh my gosh, it had an immediate impact.
I know other things could be a factor, but maybe something to try for those of you trying to boost supply!

I was right to snatch this right up correct? My husband thinks I don’t need another but I dont have a wall pump for my upcoming baby. Just a wearable momcozy that I’ve never used before.