When do you pump?!

[LookingFour]

Hi everyone,

My baby is 4 weeks old and I’m exclusively bottle-feeding her expressed breast milk. Lately, I’ve been finding it really difficult to find time to pump. Does anyone else struggle with this?

By the time I’ve fed her, burped her, changed her nappy, and settled her to sleep, I feel like I only have about an hour before it all starts again.

People keep telling me to “sleep when the baby sleeps”, but between pumping, cleaning bottles, and trying to keep on top of housework, I don’t really get the chance to rest. It’s starting to feel quite overwhelming.

I’d really appreciate any tips or advice on how to better manage this stage — how do you all balance pumping, sleep, and everything else?

Is there a reason you're exclusively pumping? I EBF and that was hard enough... You are definitely doubling the work and I can't imagine how hard that must be, but I know people do it for various reasons.

I think lots of people pump pretty constantly with the ones that strap on to you. So pump while you're feeding the baby, while you're burping, while you're washing the bottles etc.

I tried breastfeeding, but I just couldn’t get on with it. I was so sore because her latch wasn’t great—so for both our sanity, I switched to expressing.

Maybe I need to find a better pump and try pumping while I’m doing other things, like you mentioned. The one I’ve got now is supposedly hands-free, but unless I want milk dribbling down my front, I have to hold it in place!

I EEd when breastfeeding didn’t work out.

I was alone with DD 5.5 days a week. I did zero housework. Knock that on the head.

It was before the wearable pumps and I needed to pump every 3-4 hours. (I had one I could take out with me.). I did this for a year.

Have enough bottles that they only need washing and sterilising once per day.

Pump while she lies sleeping next to you then have a nap yourself.

Definitely get and invest in a wearable pump there's many more options these days now that aren't horrendous..I pumped a lot with my first and only Elvie were really a thing then now it's a different ballgame, looking back I don't know how I did it. I remember it well though and it does get better. Have you support? Get husband to help with housework or is a cleaner an option even for a couple of months. The sterilising can be endless, what about investing in some extra bottles to give you a bit more flex on timings. I also like my house reasonably structured especially when you're home all day it's annoying isn't it.

Have you got the right advice about cleaning bottles and pumping equipment?
It's over a decade ago that I pumped, but I struggled until I realised that equipment for breastmilk didn't need sterilising and pump parts could go in a sealed bag un the fridge and get cleaned every 24 hours I was run off my feet.
Find a breastfeeding specific resource to get the best advice on this, and good luck!

Are there any support groups in your area?. If you can get support to improve the latch and check for tongue tie, it will be game changing. I rememberhow horrific the pain can be so you have my full sympathy. I had what I now believe to be blocked ducts on one side with my first, I would be in tears feeding on my 'good side', knowing the next feed would be on the 'bad side'. In desperation I tried expressing and some thing changed, perhaps the more regular action of the pump cleared the ducts. In the end we got through it I did continue to pump once a day, after building up a stash, and he took that expressed bottle 24 hours later as his last feed before bed. Maybe the work you've put in expressing up till now has done the same for you.

It's a few years ago but I exclusively pumped for first 11 weeks of LO's life as he couldn't latch. Thankfully he magically latched around 11 weeks and then I was able to to ease off pumping.

I highly recommend keep trying to get LO to latch. It is a game changer and so much easier!

I was pumping every 3-4 hours for 30 mins at a time. I had a double Madela breast pump. I had the bra's so techincally I was handsfree but I used the mains so I was attached to that. Sometimes I'd put baby next to me in bouncer and fed him.

During the night, DH would feed and change baby whilst I pumped.

I pumped first thing in the morning or in the early hours of the morning (think 5am - 8am) because that's when I had enough supply to pump and also feed. If you're not breastfeeding you should be able to do it at other periods in the day I suppose. You could even pump while you're feeding the baby with one of smaller electric pumps?

It's tough, it was draining and it took it out of me. Pumping is no joke!

Give yourself some grace, something in that list has to take a backseat if you're pumping. Whether that means someone holding the baby, leaving the housework (my house was a mess!), or your partner/family stepping up a bit?

You need to pump every time you feed the baby ideally.

Have you had help from an IBCLC (qualified lactation consultant - not just a midwife or health visitor)? They can work on baby's latch etc and get you breastfeeding. It's so very much less work than pumping.

IBCLCs sometimes run free or low-cost support sessions. Failing that, look into a local La Leche League meeting. The help isn't as high-level as an IBCLC but it is experienced and knowledgeable and sometimes even the smallest adjustments to how you hold your baby can make the absolute world of difference.

And yes, presume you've already talked to a lactation consultant? If not then please try to, direct BF is usually stressful for mum than pumping.

@ThreeplusII’m going to pop by our local support group next time it on to definitely look to see if they can help with latch etc… or any advice on expressing. I latched her on this afternoon and it didn’t feel anywhere near as terrible as it did, so maybe my nipples have ‘tougher up’ haha or maybe I had a similar experience as you!

Thank you for your help!

I exclusively pumped for 5 months & then switched to formula.

Firstly, big hugs, it feels hard because it is. Sounds like you’re smashing it already.

Top tips:

• Invest/borrow/buy a decent breast pump. We got handed down a spectra s1 & bought new tubes/parts. If I was to do it again I would also get a hands free one but be mindful they don’t drain you fully so I’d exclusively pumping I wouldn’t recommend in only using them to avoid mastitis.
• There is potentially going to be a point when you’re ‘done’, that’s okay. I got to this point at 4 months but my daughter took a while to settle on formula (had to try a few different brands) and this was the hardest point as it stopped feeling like a choice. If I was to do it again I would start trying her on occasional formula earlier.
• We found out later on that the reason she wasn’t breast feeding properly was due to a neck tightness/birth injury. I would recommend osteopath / paediatric chiropractor.
• Try and get into a routine, first it was 6 times every 24 hours and it included just before bed, a 3am one while my husband bottle fed baby & when I first woke up. By month 4 it was 4 times a day 6am, 11am, 3pm, 9pm. A proper breast pump will help with ‘draining’
• Husband is in charge of cleaning & sterilising, honestly exclusively pumping is a lot and you need to be a team on this

I’ll have a think and add more if I think of any!

I exclusively pumped for a year, I pumped every time the I gave a bottle in the early months to mimic the cluster feeding. After the supply settled it was every four hours and then less as time went on and then three times a day after weaning.

There is a really useful Facebook group called Exclusively Pumping UK Mums where you’ll get lots of good advice and support.

I used the modela (sp) double pump. Cut holes in an old sports bra to keep it in place

I'd second the advice on keep trying to get them to latch, if they can feed "directly" it cuts out all the faff of pumping and bottles etc.

Otherwise, can you pump while feeding? I had to pump and supplement my DS when he was tiny, and I'd breastfeed him on one boob while pumping on the other. Can be a bit tricky to hold everything though!

There's also no judgement in switching to formula if that's best for you. Again with my DS I supplemented by pumping for a while then got fed up with it (I HATED pumping) and switched to combi feeding (formula in bottles and breastfeeding directly), and did that with no problems until he was 11 months old.

I pumped for 2 years.
have enough bottles so you don’t need to keep washing them up
place pump parts in a bag and out into fridge (only need to wash once a day/24hrs
get a good pump- 30min pump use to get me over 200ml (obviously different for different women) I used a medela and a mom cozy. Get a double pump/wearable.
pump when baby is playing- sit next to them and it’s easy.
pump when taking baby for a walk.

good luck- it’s isn’t easy but well done. You e got this.

It remember- do stop if it gets too much. Formula is fine for a bit of a break if you need it.

get husband/partner to do all the washing of bottles and parts.

@Fee4tea that’s a great idea! Thank you

@Limonatamumthank you for all your points! Really appreciate all of it

I have a six week old and am triple feeding - so breastfeeding, topping up with expressed milk and formula and then pumping for the next round. Just last week moved from doing that every three hours. I’m now pumping just five times a day including two hour long power pumps and only one during the night.

it has almost killed me, physically and emotionally and I hate that pumping stops me from holding my son as much as I want to. I am only doing it to try to increase my supply so I can EBF.

So I entirely understand where you are coming from! It is horrendous and only doable with a very strong motivation to provide breast milk.

Things that have helped me:

1. Getting a proper hospital grade hands free pump as well as my main one. I now have an Elvie Stride and a Spectra C2. Neither need me to be attached to a plug. I find I pump just as much from the Elvie and it means I can move around.
2. Fridge hack - which I discovered on mumsnet and my midwife confirmed is safe. Just wash and sterilize pumps once a day - between times they can go straight back in the fridge in sealed Tupperware or ziplock bag. So much less washing up!
3. Bebello washer sterilizer dryer, which I’ve rented from Baboodle. My hands were bleeding from the washing up so this is a game changer.
4. Agreeing an exit strategy. Know how long you will do this for (and if anything you can do to exit earlier - have you spoken to your local hospital infant feeding team? They may be able to talk to you about nipple shields etc to help with the latch).
5. If you have a partner ask them to do some of the bottle feeding so that you can pump at the same time and get to sleep sooner.

Hope some of this helps. You are doing something amazing for your baby.

I pumped exclusively due to medical reasons. I rented a hospital grade pump from Medela, it’s not hands free but I was able to pump in half the time of any conventional pumps.

everything else you mentioned… welcome to motherhood! No time to rest for the next 2-3 years!

@RhubarbRockswow, you’re doing amazing! And thank you so much for your comments. I will see if I can get a more powerful pump or potentially a second. I currently only have 1 and taking me about 40 mins to drain each boob! Someone else mentioned the fridge hack and that sounds like a MASSIVE game changer, so will 100% be implementing that.

Thank you so much for all of your points & kind words

I pumped for the first 4 months, but I never produced enough for a full feed, so all expressed milk over 24h was combined into 1feed. Then we used formula for the rest.
It was exhausting but I got used to it. 2 sets of sterilising equipment were useful. Steri bags that go in the microwave were really helpful too.
I did feel I missed out on holding my baby as always trying to pump. I had spreadsheets with amounts from each boob. We approached it as a scientific effort. Hubby did well with sterilising.

I would definitely persevere with trying to latch and seek support if you can.
With my youngest we left hospital without him latching on and he was being fed a mixture of formula/EBM with a bottle. I found pumping really time consuming as well. I watched YouTube videos on how to get babies to latch and had a zoom meeting with an infant feeding support person (there was no one available face to face). I kept trying and then one day it just clicked into place where he was about 5 weeks old, by 7 weeks he didn’t have a bottle at all and was solely breastfed.
The biggest tip I were given was to try and latch them on before they were super hungry because if they are crying and cross it’s going to be harder and makes you panic and to practice on the side you find easier to begin with, I’m right handed so found it easier to get baby into position to feed on my left side.
The last big piece of advise I have is that if you can’t continue your BF journey, then that’s ok too. With my eldest I gave myself the hardest time because despite my best efforts he never got to grips with BF at all, I had loads of support from various places and we just couldn’t manage to BF.
I let it spoil those early weeks a little until a very wise HV said that if you put a bunch of toddlers in a room you would not know who was bottle fed or BF and that as long as babies were fed, loved and cherished it didn’t matter. Wishing you lots of luck

I'm an exclusive pumper too as she wouldnt latch.

Wearable pumps have been a saviour so I can feed and pump at the same time. Then I put both pumps into the fridge until the next time and just wash and sterilise alternate times otherwise you're washing up all day and night.

Good luck, it got a lot easier for me after about 6 weeks I found. I can express less times a day now my supply is established

Agree with all of this. I pumped until we managed to get BF sorted (9 weeks) Could not have done it much longer!

Keep putting baby to the breast - apart from anything else it will help your baby to convey (via saliva) its needs from your breast milk. One of the major benefits of breast milk.