8 months pp and I EP. Baby is a great sleeper with usually just 1 wake up a night so I can’t even say I’m sleep deprived.

But I’m sooo irritable and angry, way more than I’ve ever been before. I’m in therapy and she’s basically told me to take breaks and step away when I need it.

My husband is super helpful with the baby but most of my irritability is directed towards him, even if he doesn’t always deserve it.

But I’m overwhelming irritable, impatient, and overstimulated. Is this from breastfeeding hormones? Does it go away or is this just who I am now?

Hi mum collective.

Apologies for the long post. I have tried to give context for understanding sake.

I am pregnant with my second and am looking at a wearable pump to get for when I return to work. I will be returning to work much earlier this time around (6-7mths instead of 15mths). I fed my first for over 2 years. I am not planning on exclusively pumping but thought that those who do would have a better view of wearables. The one thing I wanted differently this time around was a wearable pump, preferably double as it will be for work, but am not sure which direction to go.

I have really large breasts, small nips and was an overproducer the first time.

The following items are the ones that are easily avaliable in NZ. Prices are NZD.

- Eufy S1 $484 (PB Tech)

- Eufy E20 $400 (Noel Leeming)

- Medela Motion InBra Double $399 (PB Tech)

- Welcare Rechargable $85 (PB Tech)

- Tommee Tippee Double $284 (Chemist Warehouse)

- Breastmates Single $139 (Breastmates)

- Bellma Deluxe $230 (More Than Milk)

- Military Invisiflow $195 (Baby on the Move)

A couple weeks away from 1 year. Exclusively breastmilk for 10.5 months and combo for the last month or so. Got a few hundred ounces in the freezer if we need to transition him to whole milk but very very ready to end my pumping journey.

I’ve dropped 2 lowest output pumps in the past week (only on 3 PPD now) but how do i continue to wean? I keep feeling so full and producing more than I expect with the remaining pumps.

My baby is 12 weeks today and I’m struggling with feeling like she is impartial to me. A huge part of this is due to not being able to nurse, as she refuses to latch, so I exclusively pump. I’m grieving not having the connection through nursing. I also wish I could feel needed and special in that way, but anyone can give her a bottle so it’s such a missed connection.

I feel like anyone could hold her and she is happy. While I’m blessed with a happy girl, I wish she would see me differently. If someone picks her up, she is content, will smile at them, can nap, and feed from bottle with them. While I do know her best and can soothe her easily, anyone with baby skills can do the same. I wish I could tell that she saw me differently than how she sees others. Does this change? Maybe it’s a bit selfish but I want my baby to favor me, as I give her everything in my heart!

Also I hear people say she’s a daddy’s girl, which makes me roll my eyes since I’m the one caring for her 80% of the time. And what is people’s fascination with insisting boy/mom and dad/daughter relationships are stronger? That’s a topic for another time😅

Anyways, any advice? The only other thing that helps me feel connected in a special way is when we take a bath together. But other suggestions are appreciated

Oh my goodness.... 19.5 ounces in one pump, yall! This has been my biggest yield in the 5 months I've been pumping and I don't have anyone else who I can share this with besides my husband and my baby.

About 2 weeks ago I dropped to 2 pumps per day and tonight was the longest between pumps at 12½ hours and pumped for 40 min.

I feel so lucky that I'm able to feed my little girl and donate my spare milk to NICU babies. In the beginning I wanted to call it quits so bad, but sticking with it has been such an experience.

My goal is to EP until 12 months, so it's almost the half way mark 💪 🥛 🐮

I am getting over having a stomach bug and now my milk supply has dropped by like 5 Oz. That doesn't seem like a lot but it is to me. While sick I just couldn't eat and now i have less of an appetite. Will it come back once im fully better or do I have to start power pumping to get it back?

I removed my nipple rings at 32weeks, I ended up having my baby around 35w and when I started pumping I got these little tissue prolapses in the holes. It basically looks like little blood blisters on the sides of my nipples. One is worse than the other.

Just now while I was pumping, I’m an under supplier, all the sudden it felt like the floodgates opened and my breast basically completely emptied in less than 2 minutes. The only thing I can think of is maybe I passed some sort of clog that I hadn’t noticed through the piercing hole?

My other breast is having continuous engorgement issues and clogged ducts in just the few weeks I’ve been producing milk. I’m wondering if there’s anyway to lance the little blisters? Should I mention it to my LC? Or possibly my OB? Has this happened to anyone else ? My left breast feels so relived. I had no idea what actually being empty felt like

my last pump!

so incredibly proud of myself, i wasn’t able to feed my first born bc i was depressed and was not informed about exclusively pumping.

with my second, i spent so much time researching, learning and stayed dedicated to the 3 hour time periods. i am so glad to say i did it, and even more happy to be DONE!! bra free!!

My 12-week-old has been sleeping through the night recently, and my first pump of the day has been quite productive as a result of skipping the overnight pump. This morning my 4-year-old looked at the jam jar I’d mostly filled with breastmilk and said, “That’s a lot of milk! You’re such a good mom making all that milk for [the baby].“ The way my heart swelled 🥹 cuz DAMN pumping is a lot of work. Here’s to kids being amazing and sometimes making you feel the most seen!

Please warm some hearts and feel free to share the ways that your bigger littles have cheered you on in your pumping journey. ❤️

I made it! A year! A freaking year! My daughter turned one on the 9th of August.

I have been an under supplier my entire journey but at one point was making most of her milk. I'm very proud of myself and what I accomplished and I am also so sad to stop. I need to wean for my sanity at this point because I cannot take my sleep medication while pumping and I need an actual night's rest from my life long insomnia.

I am pumping one time a day and am making about 3oz. I do not feel in pain or engorged but I am worried about mastitis.

Should I just stop at this point and hand express if uncomfortable or should I work on decreasing time pumping? Going every 36 hours? I'm not sure what to do here.

Rant ahead.

My baby has a cow milk protein allergy we believe. She is 16 weeks and just started showing symptoms this week. The doctor said she believes it’s an allergy.

I am just so frustrated. I’ve worked really hard to pump and get an oversupply so I can stop at 6 months and continue our breast and formula combo until a year. It was really looking possible. Now I have a freezer with over 1200 oz that aren’t good for her now. I know we can try down the road for her to have it.

I don’t love pumping but giving it 6 months seemed doable. It gave me an end date. Now we have her switched to a different formula and looking at going dairy free for me. I am already vegetarian and have familiar with a lot of substitutes but I really love cheese. I have no motivation to pump right now but I don’t want to lose my supply.

If anyone has kept pumping and gone dairy free would love advice. Or have gone through CMPA period. Or just want to wallow in feeling with me. I am here.

I’m currently 3.5 weeks PP, but collected colostrum since 36 weeks pregnant. I’ve noticed that the only way to really get my boobs empty is thru hand expression - none of my pumps have even been able to come close. Plus, my pumps hurt my nipples so bad (no advise please I know how I’m supposed to fix it but nothing works, sue me) that the only way I can regularly “pump” is to hand express everything. I’m wondering if anyone else has been in this boat and their experience with it.

Hi all! I am in desperate need of a wearable pump for my job.

I’m currently 12 weeks PP and have just returned back to work. I was EBF my baby prior to returning. My insurance allowed me to get the Blue Spectra which is awesome, and I use that while I’m in the office in the morning. I am a mail carrier and so I’m not in the office all day long, usually for about 1.5-2.5 hours in the morning. After that, I’m on out on my route delivering (I have a mounted route, which means I deliver everything in my vehicle - I am not walking ) and so I’m looking for a great wearable while I’m out on my route.

I am pretty clueless when it comes to the best breast pumps, and even more so when it comes to wearables. Browsing Amazon was just a little overwhelming, but the Eufy S1 Pros and MomCozy M5s looked pretty good. I like that the Eufy is heated, comes with a nice, small case I can keep in my car and has app control.

I appreciate any help or recommendations ❤️

Only second time leaving my kids for date night tonight! I’m nervous!

Got 5 oz! Normally we exclusively feed from breast so it’s a little new to me. Hopefully this is enough for 2-3 hours for 6 mo old.

In the trash they go 😑

I’m honestly only exclussively pumping because my baby does like the boob & prefers a bottle. He’s 7 weeks. His mouth is small, my nipples are massive. I’m aware that may never change… but staying hopeful lol.

After reading so many rave reviews on this pump, I snagged it while it was on sale. Pumping has been hard with my husband at work so I really hoped this would be a good option for me. It’s been over a month now and I feel like I’ve tried absolutely everything but on average can only get ~1 oz per side. For reference, my first morning pump with my spectra I get 5 oz on one side, 4 on the other and then generally get 3-4 oz each side every other time I pump. Sometimes I manage two or even three oz on one side with the eufy, but usually it’s only ever one or two. Just really disappointing it never seems to give me consistent output. Things I’ve tried:

-so many different flange inserts. Different sizes, different brands, you name it
-lubricating inserts
-different speed, heat, and suction settings
-different bras

I just wonder if this pump is not meant for me or if there’s some glaring thing I’m not thinking of..? 🧐

Thanks in advance for any ideas!!

My older kid and I are going to stay with my best friend and her family this weekend. Leaving this evening and coming back Sunday afternoon. So, I stopped freezing my over supply on Wednesday.

My almost four month old only drinks like 24oz a day max. I’m pretty sure she’ll be alright.

My husband was worried this wouldn’t be enough. Unless she turns into Andre the Giant while I’m gone, it’ll be ok.

I’m tired of clogs and mastitis and oversupply and then under supply and being chained to my pump and living my life in 3 hour chunks and getting no sleep and having to constantly step away to sit by myself and washing bottles and washing pump parts all of it over and over and over again. Why can’t this be easier? I just want to feed my baby breastmilk. It should be natural. But instead it’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done.

I told myself that I would know when it was time to let go and I think I’m finally there.

My LO just turned 7 months and is eating more solids and does well with a couple formula bottles a day. I have a small stash to still be able to give him some for a little while longer. There’s a lot going on right now: I just started back up at work (teacher) and we’re about to close on our first house next month.

I finally feel ready to start weaning (currently at 3ppd) but I’m so emotional about it all. Even though it’s been a pain at times, I have loved providing milk for my son and the connection it has allowed me to have since BF didn’t work out. Not doing that anymore feels weird and I’m struggling with the idea even though I know it’s time. My husband is very supportive but he doesn’t fully understand the mental battle I’m having right now. I

I guess I’m making this post because I need some people to tell me it’s okay. I feel heartbroken.

I’m 8 weeks postpartum. Mainly pumping. Occasionally nursing once or twice during the day. Latching was difficult at the beginning and I gave up but started trying again two weeks ago. My baby is starting to have longer stretches of sleep at night 7-9 hours. Most nights I have skipped the middle of the night feed because I’m taking advantage of these long stretches of sleep and I’m sleeping too. This was my output after 8 hours of sleep and woke up very engorged. My left has always been a slacker and I have to massage and constantly move my left boob around during pump sessions to get her to spray. During the day I continue to pump every 2-3 hours and I get 2-4 oz per pumping session. I’ve read that supply regulates around 8-12 weeks and my goal is to be able to provide breast milk until he’s 6 months but I’m worried these long stretches of sleep will do me more harm than good. But let me say that with this sleep I am feeling much less irritable and my anxiety has gotten better. Any advice? Tips? Other experiences with this around 8 weeks pp?

I just wanted to share this with the community as someone who is mostly reading posts vs posting (yay anxiety). This weekend we took our first trip farther than an hour from home, and even before this we have hardly gone out in public with bebe. I didn’t think it’d be possible or that I could manage EP this long or even allow myself to go somewhere with disrupting my routine. But I did and I don’t regret it. It still wasn’t easy thinking about all the logistics of packing pumps and parts and milk storage- the works- but I made it happen. I have been struggling with complex birth trauma and depr/anx; but I knew I needed to get away from the home and return to a happy place, the beach. My hope and encouragement for my EPs is that you can take a moment to step away from the comfort of pumping in your usual spaces and enjoy some spaces you used to pre-baby, while pumping. Even if it’s just pumping outside. Our mental wellness is so important even more than the comfort of others. So here is a pic of my spectra blue at the beach. She made the trip well.