Exclusive Pumping Tips
Whether you’ve found yourself in the role of an exclusive pumper by choice or by circumstance, here you are. You want to provide breastmilk to your baby, but you will not be bringing your baby directly to your body to get that milk. Instead you will be using a breast pump to express breast milk, as well as build and maintain a milk supply.
For some parents, they may start out as an exclusive pumper - if their baby is born premature and has a long NICU stay, for example. For other parents, they might move to exclusive pumping if feeding directly from the breast was too challenging but would still like to provide breast milk for their baby’s bottles.
No matter what the journey to get here, today’s blog has our best tips for the exclusively pumping parent.
Use a Hospital Grade Pump
If you’re going to be pumping eight times a day, you need to be using a hospital grade pump, especially in the very early weeks. But this hospital grade pump might not be what you think it is. This is not actually the regular, double electric breast pump that comes standard with your insurance. This is not a Spectra S2 or a Medala Pump in Style (even though the manufacturers try to claim that they are because technically they can be used by more than one user).
No, this hospital grade pump is something like a Medela Symphony or Ameda Elite. This is a pump that is usually rented (because it has a $2000 price tag) and is intended to be used by multiple people. It has a more powerful motor and a much stronger strength suction and is intended to bring in a milk supply in special circumstances - such as when the parent and baby are separated due to something like a NICU stay, trying to bring in a full supply for multiples, or in cases where the parent will never bring the baby to the breast and is establishing a milk supply at birth with the use of a machine. These hospital grade pumps have special settings and programming to allow the pumping parent to bring in the best supply possible.
So if your milk making journey is going to start at the pump, make sure you are using the best possible pump for your feeding goals.
Create a Sustainable Pumping Routine
Exclusive pumpers from birth are normally told to pump every three hours around the clock in order to establish a long-term milk supply, which equates to 8 pumping sessions every 24 hours. But this can be exhausting and leave little time for other important things, like sleeping. Instead, an exclusive pumper can explore an alternative schedule that still allows them to get in 8 pumping sessions per day, but also helps maximize sleep.
A pumping schedule that looks like pumping at 6am, 9am, 12pm, 2pm, 4pm, 7pm, 10pm, and 3am still allows for 8 sessions but gives the parent a 5-hour stretch between 10pm and 3am to catch up on sleep. By shortening some of the windows between sessions to just two hour intervals, this routine also more closely mimics the feeding patterns of a baby that is eating at the breast or chest.
Invest in ALL the Supplies
Although pumping allows you to meet your goal of providing breastmilk to your baby, it is definitely not the easiest thing to do. It can create more labor when you factor in all the time spent washing pump parts and accessories. So set yourself up to do less of that by making sure you have enough supplies on hand that you don’t have to wash and prepare things after every pumping session.
Investing in 3-4 pump kits - the extra flanges, bottles, and other parts - will mean that you have enough on hand to only have to wash parts a few times a day, rather than eight. This is especially important for that middle of the night pumping session - nothing is worse than having to get out of bed, go to the kitchen, and wash and dry your parts to be ready for the next session at 3:00am. By having extra on hand, you can worry about the cleaning part later.
Other accessories that might come in handy include several hands-free nursing bras (you absolutely cannot be expected to just hold the flanges to your chest all day), tons of milk storage bags, microwave sanitizing bags to clean parts in a hurry, a good portable cooler to store pumped breastmilk in overnight, or possibly even a mini fridge in your bedroom. When you are pumping 8 times a day, efficiency is a must. You don’t have time to waste washing pump parts all day long, carting milk up and down the stairs at all hours of the night, or sitting there holding your flanges in place.
Maximum Efficiency Tips
Let’s be honest - for many people an electric breast pump just doesn’t elicit the same warm and fuzzy feelings that having a baby at the breast does. And this can mean less oxytocin and more stress, which is not great for your output. Sometimes people need a few extra tips to realize maximum breast milk output during a pumping session. Some things you can try include:
Breast compression and massage: While pumping, massage and compress the breast to manually help remove a little more milk from the milk glands and ducts, rather than relying 100% on the pump suction.
Visualization: By visualizing your baby at the breast or looking at pictures of them/watching videos of them feeding at the breast while you are pumping, the brain might be induced to let out a little more oxytocin. And more oxytocin ultimately means more milk flowing.
Olafactory Cues: During pumping sessions, keep an item of clothing or a baby blanket that smells like your baby nearby. Inhale a big whiff of your baby’s scent to trigger those olafactory cues and help more oxytocin flow.
Reduce Stress: The stress hormones in your body inhibit the natural flow of oxytocin, so anything you can do to reduce stress while pumping will ultimately help your overall output. Find a cozy spot to pump. Make yourself your favorite warm drink. Wrap yourself up in a big fluffy blanket. Anything that will block outside stress is a good thing.