medela pump not strong enough

[issywoo]

call me weird but i don't find this electric pump strong enough even tho' i have it on max - is there a stronger one around i could try? my milk is not plentiful and am hopeful its lurking way down and just needs some help coming out (ds has tongue tie and is not a great sucker)

Have you tried an Avent hand one, which I think does get a greater suction going?

Alternatively you could try hiring an Ameda hospital-style model to see if that works for you. It'll be pricey though. Ditto buying a Lactaline (which is the Ameda home model) - although personally I think that's worth it.

The Boots hand pump also gets a very powerful suction going but I think it's a sod to fit together. Cheap to try though, less than £20.

On the other hand, it may just be that you're not getting sufficient let-down to get the milk flowing in the first place. In which case a Lactaline might be worth investing in - it can stimulate the let-down very well - but first of all I'd try the different tips and techniques lurking around (from reading gossip magazines - Mears's tip - to poring over a pic of the baby in rather revolting manner) to see if that works.

HTH.

Can you express while feeding your baby with other breast - I used to do this - fill at least 1 bottle up and still be able to feed with dd with breast I had been expressing with. I did this until I got the hang of expressing - I am sure its psychological I couldn't use the Advent hand pump...I got practically nothing!

motherinferior, how pricey are we talking? and where can you hire from? will try hot flannels and expressing while he is noshing on the other but not sure how i will hold him and pump - won't i need 4 arms?

Ameda Egnell Elite (the hospital pump) is about
£45.00 for 30 days and £25.00 each subsequent 30 days: stockists: telephone 01823 336362

I don't sell them! honestly! I know all this because I had to test loads for a baby mag!

I never had any luck pumping at all. I had a "hospital grade pump"(that's what they call them in the USA,the type which hospitals use) where I am from and where I lived at the time) I had a lactation consultant, and tried everything including visulization, grooming my baby, smelling her clothes, taking fenugreek, drinking tons of water, plain relaxing, pumping while feeding etc etc etc, and I could never get even half a bottle. I managed to breast feed my daughter til 20 months, but could never pump!

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its plugged into the mains.am resorting to expressing coz ds cannot extract the milk effectively himself (i presume due to his tongue tie) and its rapidly drying up. i am worried that if i don't express it will have gone by this time next week. would like to try fenugreek but does it have any negative effects on the baby?

Fenugreek has no negative effects on baby. It is a spice that is used in Indian cooking, and also as a flavoring for artificial maple syrup(which I don't think is sold in the UK?) I took both capsules and drank tea. It did work for me interms of boosting my milk supple. There is a US website called mothering.com, they are a hardcore lefty website(discourage immunizations, encourage family beds and extended breast feeding) I don't agree with most of it but they have a discussion board about breastfeeding and cover a lot about fenugreek. You should check it out