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Childbirth

Breast Pump

16 replies

cinqueterre · 30/08/2011 18:43

I am thinking of buying an electric breast pump. Does anyone have any idea which one is good - quick in expressing, less painful, etc.? Thanks a lot for your advice!

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AngryGnome · 30/08/2011 22:55

I've got the medela swing - its great. I tried a Tommy Tippee one first, and it was bobbins - the swing is much much better Smile

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cinqueterre · 31/08/2011 01:31

Thanks AngryGnome. How many minutes roughly does it take to express say around 5 oz milk? Also, will the milk go down to the tube?

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AngryGnome · 31/08/2011 08:40

Hi *cinqueterreI found it would take me about 40 mins to pump a 5oz bottle - but my body does not do pumping well, even with the super pump in hospital it was taking ages! I haver friends who have used the medela and most of them managed a 5 oz bottle in about 15-20 mins. It's not v dignified sitting hunched over your breast pump (!) but didn't hurt at all.

You probably already know this, but just to say that the amount you can pump is not a good indicator of your supply, babies are much better at getting milk out than an electric pump, so don't worry if you struggle to express at first - it doesn't necessarily mean your supply is running out!

I found that the best time to express was first thing in the morning. I would bf DS in the night from one side, and then express from the other side first thing in the morning.

Also, you can freeze breastmilk for up to 3 months (lansinoh do breastmilk storage bags).

Hope that's not information overload and is useful to you!

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Sn0wflake · 31/08/2011 13:03

Medela swing is ace.

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helsbels999 · 31/08/2011 20:46

Another vote for Medela

Whatever you don't bother with a hand pump - I had a good milk supply (my party trick was to spray rest of room with other boob or when she came off me as she had had enough!) but I still struggled to get much from a hand pump.

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Chynah · 31/08/2011 20:50

Medela Swing here too!

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EldritchCleavage · 01/09/2011 14:07

Medela-not the swing, the bigger, double one. I hired it.

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PANCHEY · 02/09/2011 22:40

Double Avent pump was great. But also found manual avent good too. Hated Medela. Best way to get milk to flow (I found) was to relax and not stress out about how much milk is coming out. I fed all EBM and kept flow going by bottle feeding EBM and pumping at same time (hence in end manual pump was better), it just saved time. HTH

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seaweed74 · 02/09/2011 23:38

Hi. I used manual Avent pump and could fill 4oz bottle in about 10 mins. No pain. I expressed once daily and then fed this bottle to DD next day. I was determined that DD would take milk from breast and bottle!

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chipmonkey · 02/09/2011 23:47

avent here too!
In fact, I have just had dd very prematurely at 28 weeks so am exclusively pumping using my Avent double electric. Have had to explain countless times to hospital staff that I never did get on with Medela and have always used Avent. Seems a foreign concept to many of them!

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MaMattoo · 03/09/2011 00:02

I used the Avent manual pump and got repetitive stress injury and carpal tunnel syndrome from it. I vote for Medela swing - useful, small, painless, silent, efficient and also of course all small parts and pieces can be bought separately to replace if needed.

PS> Disclaimer - i ebf via pump for 6 months as baby did not figure out a latch. So i really did test out the pumps capacities..6-8 times a day for 6 months!!

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PANCHEY · 03/09/2011 07:31

Hi I too expressed exclusively for 6 months and found medela really uncomfortable. Whatever works best for you I think.

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PANCHEY · 03/09/2011 07:32

sorry said this last night,

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cinqueterre · 04/09/2011 14:40

Thank you all for your useful advice!!!

*AngryGnome - the more the merrier _, thanks!

EldritchCleavage and PANCHEY - thanks! is it easy to learn how to handle the double pump? Some reviews on Mothercare said that one probably needs to have an extra hand...

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EldritchCleavage · 05/09/2011 00:40

I didn't find it difficult. It did feel like the milking parlour of a small farm in our kitchen at times, but I just did it sitting at a table to provide a place to rest on.

Note (since quite a few have said they found Medela uncomfortable) I did buy a different size of cup, or whatever those cone-like things you put on your breasts are called. That made a big difference.

Frankly, you do it so often you can soon do it on autopilot.

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chipmonkey · 05/09/2011 21:31

I didn't fine the Medela uncomfortable, just didn't get very much milk with it. Never found double pumping too difficult with the Avent double and it's over in half the time!

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