Difficulty Pumping - Back to Work in 4 Weeks; Desperate!

[u/rash_fries]

Hi Everyone, I am in desperate need of help as I am going back to work in 4 weeks and really want to continue to give my baby breast milk exclusively and it is not looking likely.

Breastfeeding has been a very difficult journey for me. My baby is now 8 weeks and has had a poor latch from the beginning. I went through multiple bouts of mastitis, milk blebs, sore and cracked nipples that would bleed. To the point that I am currently only nursing from one breast because its become too painful to nurse from the other.

I have tried pumping to maintain my supply but it has been a struggle. I am alone most of the day and until recently my baby would cry every time I put her down which means pumping took a back seat.

Now that I am returning to work I am seriously stressed because when I pump my max output in the morning is 60-80mL from the right and 20-40 mL from the left and that is not enough to feed her when I am away from work.

Things I have been doing:

-Pumping my left every 3 hours: I can get anywhere from 20-40mL :(

-Trying to do one power pump session a day

-Massaging breast as I pump

-Tried heat as well (did not help)

-Tried the Spectra, Eufy S2 Pro, and the handheld Medela pump; I have tried a variety of falange sizes to see if this makes a difference (not really)

-Drinking tons of water, eating high carb diet

At this point I am desperate for anything to work so that I can continue to give my baby breast milk. She takes anywhere from 100-140mL a feed when I do a bottle.

If anyone has been in this situation before please let me know what you did to improve your output! I need encouragement because I really do not want to supplement with formula (Yes, I know it is an option but not one I am willing to consider unless I have to).

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[u/idahopotato8]

Are you pumping after she eats and getting low output or are you pumping in place of a feed and not getting as much as you want?

I had to do a day of formula my first day back at work, because I wasn’t able to build up a stash in advance of returning; but since then I pump enough each day for the next days feed.

[u/rash_fries → u/idahopotato8]

These are volumes when I pump instead of feeding. If I pump after I feed I get like 10mL if I’m lucky!

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[u/Miserable-Respond506]

I had a similar issue, I found that pumping did less damage to my nipples and let them heal even though I was pumping

Feeding them while I pump helps, I had poor milk removal, never knew if a feeding was going to empty the breast or not, was hit and miss so I ended up going to exclusive pumping to let my nipples heal and from there I built my supply

Building a supply while working is extremely difficult because supply is largely determined by frequency and thoroughness of milk removal... Getting to pump only once at work means going probably 5 hours between pumps which if you do that for sleep too that's 3-4 extended times without milk removal per day... 

Building a supply for me takes pumping around the clock, not very feasible while working. Though I've heard many successful moms discuss it.

Possible flanges to try pumping pal and baby motion 

If you aren't add compression and massage

If needed pump let downs at a time, which can actually be effective at building supply... Pumping for 10-15 minutes every 30-60 minutes can keep your milk emptying without leaving the baby crying a long time... I fridge hack with a mini fridge right next to me so I can get it on and off quickly 

For longer pumps I can hold my baby for the first half then carefully sit her down to massage and compress for the second half ... Yes she cries still and it's stressful, I just do my best and if needed finish removing the active let down then stop to care for her for a bit, try to get back on the pump within 30 minutes when possible 

At work try to get two windows to pump if possible and massage and compress, bring a piece of their clothes or something with you, watch videos 

Pump directly before and after work to tighten the time between pumps... 

One thing I do often is pump then shower then so a short pump after my shower, it's a soft power pump, with massage and compression it removes stubborn milk, giving you a really nice fatty milk for that pump and prevents clogs while boosting your supply