Electric breast puns - worth buying before baby comes?

[alliemarg]

Hi there - I'd appreciate your help. I'm 36+5 and sorting all the last things we need to buy. I'd really like to breastfeed but I'm well aware it's no walk in the park and if we end up needing to bottle feed, then that's what we'll do.

I'm wondering whether it's worth spending £100+ on an electric breast pump before I even know if it'll work for me. I'm anticipating that I'll express for the odd bottle and emptying each breast after feeding perhaps. Of course manual pumps are cheaper but a lot of the books say you will get sick of them quickly.

I think I need to buy an Avent system to match our steriliser so renting from NCT is out. Any advice welcome!

No, don't do it. They are expensive and you might not need it. The shops will still be open once the baby is born and you are unlikely to have an immediate and urgent need for an electric breast pump - you can do it by hand in a pinch.

I wouldn't at the moment. I also don't think you need to buy one to match your steriliser - I've never come across anyone who's had this issue? Every steriliser I've come across fits all standard bottles and equipment.

Also, you don't need to "empty the breast" after a feed - your breasts make milk on demand, so you can never actually empty them. Expressing after a feed every time will encourage your body to make more milk and you might end up with oversupply, which is a pain. I would only express if you actually need to i.e. if baby can't feed direct or if you want to give a bottle feed regularly.

Only if they're really, really good breast puns.

I was given a avent manual for free. It doesn't have any bottles etc with it though and I planned to get the tommee tippee closer to nature starter with sterilisers and bottles. They don't fit annoyingly but you can get avent milk storage containers off amazon so will do that. There are ways to get round incompatibility.

I'm pretty sure you can hire the hospital grade ones if you wanted to express for a short period of time.

I would at most get a hand pump. I have the Avent and it works very well for occasional use (I just use it if I am full and DD is sleeping: so only once every couple of days on average). Goes in my Dr Brown microwave steriliser no problem.

Friends who have wanted to go the electric pump route have all found the hospital grade ones infinitely better than the more affordable home types. If you need to go that route you can hire hospital grade electric pumps from a company called ARDO who will get it to you next day: then you can try it out and see if it works for you rather than spending lots on something you may not get on with. I'm sure there are other companies too, that is just the one my friends have used.

So no need to get anything in advance I don't think!

Don't do it, we bought one before baby, tried bf but didn't work out as wasn't producing enough milk, tried expressing, still no milk so ended up ff, pump was a complete waste of money. See how you go with bf and then if you need to pump try a hand held cheepie and if that goes well then upgrade to an electric one but definitely save your pennies for the time being.

Personally I held out until our boy was born. Once breastfeeding was established I tried a manual to see if I could successfully express and to make sure he'd take a bottle. Thankfully we have sailed through expressing and bottle feeding. I will probably buy an electric pump before returning to work should I still be breastfeeding however while we are currently only doing the odd expressed bottle feed I'm sticking with the manual pump. Its not that much of an inconvenience.

I didn't buy anything feeding related before baby came and that has worked for me.

I wanted to ebf, so figured no point buying a load of bottles if I don't need them right away, and no point spending loads on a pump if I find that I can't breastfeed so end up formula feeding. I figured if I needed any of that stuff immediately 24 hr tesco sells it all so I'd be fine.

DS is 6 weeks now and breastfeeding has been reasonably easy for us (I'm very lucky I know and I count my blessings for that every day) and I've not needed to express yet (although I keep saying I will to give myself a night off at some point.)

I've now bought a manual tommy tippee pump which was reduced from £25 to £10 on amazon, but if I feel I need to express more or it doesn't work for me I may buy an electric one.

That was a bit of a ramble, but what I'm trying to say is wait until after the baby is born before spending that much money as you don't know what you'll need until then.

I agree with those who have said don't bother. By all means research them, but don't buy. If you have issues in hospital like a poorly baby, they have hospital grade pumps (obviously very low likelihood that will be relevant, but thought I would mention it). Generally it is best to wait a few weeks before expressing anyway.

Also, you don't need to 'empty' breasts after feeding. It works like a well, not a bucket too. If you keep going, it will keep coming (assuming you are someone who finds it ok to manage to pump, not everyone does).

Thanks everyone, that's really helpful. Must remember it's still possible to leave the house after baby comes, I keep thinking like we will be snowed in for six months solid.

I'd wait.
And whatever you do, DO NOT touch the Tommee Tippee manual with a barge pole! its next to useless, painful to use and left me with severe blockages in both breasts! TWICE! (I gave it the benefit of the doubt!)

I expressed 100% for 5 months because do was tube fed. I can very much recommend whoever suggested the Ardo, I had the calypso,;but they're very pricey.
Me delay Swing are also very good and you can pick them up barely used for about £30. To be completely thorough, you should replace the tubing and breastfeeding cup. This will cost about a tenner.

MEDELA SWING!

I would get a hand pump right before your due date and keep it in the box with the receipt so you can return if need be. I didn't have one (was planning on getting one but never got round to it) and Ds had trouble latching when my milk came in. I had to send DP out to try and get me one at 11 pm. If you do carry on with expressing then get an electric one once you've got in to it. I have the tomme tippe manual and electric and they're both fab. They both also come with little microwave steriliser boxes so you don't have to worry about them not going with your steriliser

I expressed quite a bit last time between weeks 5 and 10 or something because I thought I wanted dad to be able to give a bottle, to be able to go out, etc.

In truth it was far more hassle than it was worth and much easier, comfortable and convenient to just let baby feed whenever. I completely stopped by 3 months and never expressed again (and fed till 21 months, returned to work doing shift work, went out loads, went away for nights later on, etc). I think I lost my (manual) pump somewhere and am not getting another for baby no 2. If there are issues whereby I have to express in the early days I'll look to finding one then. Like someone said, the shops are still open!

I wouldn't buy it yet. As others have said, amazon still works once you've had the baby. If there are feeding issues in hospital and you need to express, they have proper hospital grade ones.

Once you get home, most people don't try to express for at least four weeks - some books advise not introducing a bottle before four weeks for nipple confusion reasons - and lots of people don't manage to express at all. Or it takes half an hour to get 1oz or something very labour intensive like that. I was lucky and used to get 7oz in about 15 mins.

If you express regularly then yes, an electric one is brilliant. I expressed twice a day, first thing on the unused boob (she never emptied both) and then at 845pm. Dh then gave dd a feed at 10pm, with me going to bed at nine. Meant I got to sleep from 9-3am or whenever she woke up, so I got at least once decent chunk of sleep. I find lack of sleep really really hard (one of the downsides of being an older mum at 37?) so expressing was very helpful for me in that instance.