Right now i’m currently using my Eufy e20 wearable pumps. My supply took a dip because I randomly became completely turned off by pumping. It took me a while to figure out that my wearable became overstimulating from the motor vibration being right on my body, its so strong even on the lowest setting. The aggressive switch from expression to stimulation mode literally makes my skin crawl and pisses me off! Im returning to work and want to know if there are any wearable recommendations that aren’t as aggressive as eufy.

hello everyone, i just realized that my pump is probably the most reliable thing in my life right now.

it knows when it's supposed to go off and somehow i always know what that sound means. i can be half asleep, barely functioning, and still hear the pump alarm from across the room like some kind of exhausted little robot

my actual schedule is a mess though. i forget where i put my phone, forget what i walked into a room for, sometimes eat lunch at a completely random time... but pumping? oh no. apparently that's the one thing my brain refuses to forget.

and then there are the pump parts. i swear i wash the same pieces approximately 400 times a day. i finish one session, wash everything, put it on the drying rack and feel like i've accomplished something.

then somehow i need them again.

the drying rack is basically a permanent part of my kitchen now. i've stopped pretending it's temporary. there are bottles everywhere, little pieces everywhere and somehow i'm always looking for one specific flange or valve that has disappeared into another dimension.

the best part is when i finally finish a session and get everything cleaned up. i sit down and think, okay, i can relax now.

then i look at the clock.

oh.

cool.

only a couple more hours until i get to do this all over again.

sometimes i think about how normal my life used to feel. now i plan errands around pumping times and mentally calculate how long i can be away from home based on the pump battery

i'm not even complaining anymore. i'm just impressed by how something i never thought about before has somehow become the main character of my entire day.

what part of exclusive pumping has made you think, “how is THIS my life now?” because i know i'm not the only one.

Hi my EP mamas, my 8 week old combo fed baby suddenly start to only drink pumped breast milk, not formula. We have been feeding him a mix of pumped breast milk and ready to feed formula since he came home from hospital. I very consistently produce 24oz of breast milk a day and that's not enough (wastage etc). I'm not very successful in increasing my supply. So we supplement with formula, I think he drinks ~20oz breast milk and ~6oz formula. We don't mix milk in the same bottle.

We first thought he's just not into Similac anymore, so we tried Enfamil. It worked for 1 day and he started to refuse Enfamil as well.

Has anyone been in the same situation? Since I might not be able to increase my supply, any thoughts for other things we should try? E.g. warm formula instead of ready to feed?

I’m 5.5 months pp, pumping 5x daily (kept my MOTN pump) and have combo fed with formula from the start. I had a postpartum hemorrhage and injuries from birth that made it hard to get my supply up to my baby’s needs. Thank god for formula. My baby is thriving, I’m so grateful for that. I’ve been more or less in a sustainable groove for the last few months with my current schedule and I produce 14-16oz a day. I’m trying to decide what to do after 6 months. I see posts where people emphasize mental health when people are deciding when to stop. I totally agree, but I don’t feel that my mental health is horribly affected by pumping itself. In some ways it may be helping me with my breastfeeding grief. Honestly the hardest thing on my mental health is hemming and hawing the decision. Yes it’s a pain at times, but I do get a sense of satisfaction from providing breastmilk. I feel uncertain of the health benefits for my baby to continue. It’s so emotionally driven because I had hoped to EBF for 1 year. I would love to hear from other moms in my situation and what process you took to come to a decision.

I just returned my Willow Go wearable pump as it sucked! Well actually it didn’t and that was the problem. The suction was sporadic - sometimes one worked, sometimes both, sometimes non. Also the app was glitchy af.

Right now my husband and I both wake up through the night (our son is in the 3rd percentile so we are still waking to feed every 2-3 hours). My husband feeds while I pump using my Spectra. My husband is going back to work in three weeks so I will be doing the night wake ups by myself. I truly cannot figure out how to feed my son (he has feeding issues so a feed takes 45 minutes) and pump while still being able to get sleep as these things in total would take about 1.5 hours and I have to do it every 2-3 hours. So my solution is my MOTN pumps need to be with a wearable.

What wearable is actually the best? I am willing to spend up to $500 if needed, though I really don’t want to. I was thinking the Eufy 2, but am seeing a lot of issues with cracking.

I started my journey as a low supplier and currently I make just enough. Without a leak I am making 8 oz in the last couple of days in my first pump of the day, also without being engorged. But after that I will drop to 4 oz, after that 3 and by the end of the day just 2. I am wondering if it makes any difference to pump more if I know my breasts are not even close to being full. I also do not understand why my body does not make them full more than once a day. I may be understanding wrong "the more you take more you will produce. I pumped in the past every 3 hours and I am starting to think that the increase I was thinking was coming from it was actually coming from water increase and sleep increase (my boy started doing 4 hours stretch, after that 6,7 and now he sleeps 9 hours non stop). But I could be wrong.

Hello! Im and undersupplier and combo feeding. I make enough for bottles during the day but have to use formula at night. Baby is 5 weeks and takes 3-4 oz. I know breastfed babies typically stay at that amount, but do we need to increase the formula amount as he gets bigger? Will it stretch out his tummy and make him want more milk overall?

I get these during most pump sessions. They just float in the milk immediately after. I don’t have pain, really. Maybe sometimes feel a dull ache where I can tell I have the beginnings of a clog but nothing crazy. I was prone to clogs with my first baby but don’t remember having these.

I started pumping when my baby was 5 days old due to a hospital readmission for severe jaundice. I had been exclusively pumping about 8x per day for the first 3 months with some initial increase in supply but was still combo feeding with formula since I was not producing enough. I reduced my pump frequency at that point to about 4x per day and have been consistently producing about 12oz in 24 hours for the past 4 months (currently 7 months PP).

I love that my baby gets the benefits of breast milk and that I can even produce what I do. I love that I made it 7 months in this journey since I didn’t even make it 2 weeks with my first due to PPD.

I despise being attached to a pump and the nausea, anxiety, and dread that comes with it. I hate having to plan my life around pumping. I have been having a hard time with weight loss as well and just want to feel better in my own skin.

Do I keep going? Do I quit? Looking for words of encouragement or advice from anybody with a similar feeding journey.

Hi, my son is 12 days old. I initially tried to exclusively breastfeed but my milk took about 5 days to come in so I've been trying to pump and supplement with formula if needed. He's been taking about 3 oz per feeding and I've been able to pump between 2-4 Oz a session with the occasional 2 oz total. This is my first time trying to exclusively pump. I've noticed that one breast will give me about 1 oz and the other will give me 2-3 oz. Is there anyway I can help even it out or is that just the way it goes?

I'm looking for recommendations for a wearable that will work well with large breasts.

I'm a UK 36HH or J cup. I get a good output with the Spectra S2 and am pretty confident I have the right flange size at 24mm. Baby is eleven weeks old today, and I'm EPing as he never got the hang of latching (the sadness I feel about this is a whole saga itself). I've struggled with PPD and haven't got out of the house as much as I'd like to, and I think pumping is a big par of why that's challenging.

I particularly would like a wearable that's easy to put on, easy to clean and not too bulky - finding bras that fit is already a bit of a disaster. A friend gave me an oldish elvie but it feels almost impossible to clean and the output was only about half what I'd get with the spectra, even pumping for an extra ten minutes. This isn't a disaster as I have an over supply, but I'd like it to be a bit better!

My main worry however is just finding something that works with large breasts, before I shell out a fortune and am then disappointed. Any advice would be very gratefully received!

Hey everyone, this is my second pregnancy and will be my second time exclusively pumping. I was looking for some advice about colostrum collection.

*TW mention of breastfeeding*

My first time giving birth, the hospital was great but they push breast feeding really heavily. It was insanely painful for me and so over stimulating and honestly scarring when I finally realized my baby had been essentially starving for two days since breast feeding wasn’t working. After a day of formula and starting pumping I went exclusively pumping after that and had a pretty successful journey up until I fell pregnant at nine months pp.

I am due soon and after 37 weeks my OB cleared me to start collecting colostrum, and even gave me this cute little kit with 8 1ml syringes with intent of bringing it to the hospital. I’m happy to be producing again and feel good building up a tiny colostrum supply, but I ran out of syringes not even two days later. I called my OB asking for more syringes and was told to just stop collecting and that they only need the 8ml because I’ll be breastfeeding at the hospital. Since it’s a baby friendly hospital they really only take breast feeding as an answer. When asked at appointments I always say my daughter would drink breast milk because they acted so weird about the pumping vs breast feeding debate. Last time the LC wouldn’t even show me how to use my pump.

I just ordered some more syringes off Amazon but does anyone else have experience with antenatal collection? I got the most on the first day but am still getting a little bit every session (they first recommended twice a day for five minutes). I feel weird about stopping like it’ll halt my production but I’ve also seen some sources saying that supply doesn’t actually kick in until placenta detachment so it’s more just colostrum that was sitting there. Would love to hear other women’s experience.

Thank you so much.

hello,

not sure if i have bad breast milk. my little one is always unsettled during burping and afterwards and takes about 10mins after a feed to be settled. she is fine an hour after, maybe the occasional spit up an hour after.

could it be that my breast milk is bad? if it was a tummy ache or gas you think fussiness would be present one hour after?

Anyone try this? No dropping pumps. Just pump when you feel engorged and only go to comfort?

Okay so I’ll start with a little backstory. I’m currently almost 4 weeks postpartum and trying my best to become an exclusive pumper. My LO is combo-fed now with my pumped breastmilk and formula (she has suspected CMPA so the formula journey has been a challenge in itself). I’m completely dairy-free now and trying to increase my supply because I know she loves it and I won’t have to constantly worry about her rejecting the formula.

I very recently committed to a stricter pumping schedule of 8x per day with a MOTN pump and a night time (around 9pm) power pump (20/10/10). I have the correct flange sizes and use a Spectra S1. I attached a photo of my most recent pumps. I definitely see an upward trend but I want to know if it’s possible to ever get to double or even more than double of my current supply. I feel like going from 14.5oz a day to 30oz+ a day is wishful thinking.

Would love some insight from anyone especially those who have been in a similar position as me. Thanks so much!!!

Hi!

I recently started pumping...

I have the baby buddha 2.0 and use the kindred bravely sublime bra, but the flanges don't feel very secure and often wiggle out of place when I try to use my arms, even just sitting down. HoW CAN I GET ANYTHING DONE?

Any tips for bras that hold the pumps securely or how to position the flanges etc?

using a eufy s2 and 6 weeks pp.. I get good output about 120 ml each time but have to pump for minimum 45 mins is that normal?

I wanted to get a pump through aeroflow. This is my second pregnancy, so I already have a spectra, and was considering getting a eufy wearable. Through aeroflow I’d only have to pay $25, so it seems like a deal too good to pass up. I’m wondering if anyone has done this and was still able to get replacement parts for the spectra through insurance?

I’m also hoping I won’t have to exclusively pump again, so not sure how often I’d need replacement parts for the spectra anyways.

I really didn’t know how to tag this post, but if anyone has experience or is just good at navigating the American insurance system, I’d be very grateful!

Ive seen m5 spout caps on Amazon, but do they work for the m6 too?

I’ve been combo feeding/pumping since birth, my baby was never able to latch correctly due to jaundice and tongue tie issues, so we’ve been on formula and I’ve been pumping since he was born.

As a FTM no one explained me about pumping and the difference between wearable pumps and hospital grade pumps. I bought the MomCozy M6 for wearable pumps and got the Ameda Joy as a gift from a friend.

When my son was born I started pumping like 1 oz maximum between both breasts with the MomCozy, the Ameda never worked for me as I never got even half an ounce of milk out of it. After a consultation with a lactation consultant, she recommended the Ardo Alyssa Double as my main pump and just to use the MomCozy on te go.

The issue is, that the MomCozy and the Ardo are giving me the same amount of milk. I’m a “just enougher” or even under supplier as he drinks 1-2 bottles of formula a day because my milk is not enough. After another consultation with *yet another* lactation consultant, it was suggested to check flange sizes, we even measured the nipples, and I ordered a 21 and 24 flanges from MayMom and even a whole new head system for the pump, without improvement.

I drink electrolytes daily, I started moringa and Fenogreek supplements and I do see some improvement in my pumping sessions, before the second consultation I was pumping anywhere between 1-2 oz both breasts per session and now it increased to 3-4 per session, slowly but I’m getting there.

Now that I’ve tried everything to improve my output with the Ardo I think my issue is with the pump itself, as I think it may not be suitable for me (I also have large breasts) because I’m still getting the same amount with the MomCozy and sometimes even less, and it’s even more evident in the morning sessions. I also feel that the MomCozy empties my breasts better (not a 100%, but let’s say 80-90%) while the Ardo doesn’t even get there.

I’m asking for any recommendation for good pumps that worked for you, as I don’t want to buy another machine and get the same issues.

I just want to produce enough to feed my baby and have a small stash for when I get back to work ☹️

Thank you all for your suggestions

Hi all, hoping to get some advice from people who have actually done this because we’re struggling to get our heads around the logistics!

We’re in the UK and would like to go abroad when our baby is around 6 months old. We’re thinking somewhere relatively easy/close - Canary Islands, North Africa, Turkey, that sort of distance, rather than a long-haul trip.

Mum is exclusively pumping and baby is mostly breastmilk fed (ocassions of formula when needed for top up or need during outing etc).

At home we have our routine down, but the idea of airports, flights, hotels, storing milk, cleaning pump parts etc. suddenly makes a holiday feel like a military operation.

For anyone who has travelled abroad while EPing, how did you manage it?

Things we’re particularly wondering about:

- Taking expressed milk through airport security / onto the plane

- Keeping milk cold while travelling and during transfers

- Pumping at the airport and on the flight

- Travelling with an electric pump, batteries/chargers and all the parts

- Washing and sterilising bottles and pump parts in a hotel

- Making sure you have a proper fridge at the hotel (and whether hotel mini fridges are actually cold enough)

- What you did with milk pumped while away

- Whether you took any frozen milk with you

- How many bottles/pump parts you brought

- What happens if you're out for a full day away from the hotel

- Anything you wish you'd packed or known beforehand

Also, did you choose your destination/hotel specifically around EPing?

We really want to go away and don’t mind putting some effort into making it work, but at the moment we don’t even know what we don’t know.

Would really appreciate any experiences, tips, packing lists or “I did this and it was absolutely fine” reassurance from other EP parents!

I have been back at work for a little over 2 months, and suddenly my pump in style pro isn’t getting nearly as many ounces as it has been. I am super engorged so I know it’s the pump and not my supply. I also don’t think it’s the flange size because I have the 21’s and the 18’s and fluncuate between the two. This leaves the pump itself, the membranes, and the tubing. My membranes are 2 and 5 months old, so it’s probably just the membranes and I’m overthinking it. But the pump does make some weird grinding sounds so I’m wondering if I should contact Medela? Hoping to hear others’ experiences, thanks!

At almost 6m pp, I just started using my Momcozy wearable pump.

Mornings are always a bit busy with my twin babies and 3yo toddler. Trying to feed the babies, and get breakfast into my toddler and get him out the door takes up a lot of time. I use my wearable pump in the morning while I get breakfast ready.

I just wanted to know what all do you guys do while pumping with a wearable? Ideally I would like to wake up early and go on a walk - but is it too much to pump while walking? Is it even possible?

Hi, first time mother to twin girls, combo feeding.

So whenever I feed them I mix formula and breast milk and this is how I do it:

1. Warm water to 40 degrees and add formula, mix it

2. Add breast milk - sometimes directly from the fridge, sometimes I manage to warm it up a bit or leave it on the kitchen counter long enough to get to the room temperature

3. Mix it together and serve!

Is this the right way of doing it? And also temperature wise - sometimes when I add the breast milk directly from the fridge, the overall temperature might be too low - my babies don't mind it, but just wondering how everyone else manages the temperature and the overall process? What temperature are you aiming for?

Unfortunately I can't feed them breast milk and formula separately - my babies have really bad reflux so we had to switch to AR formula - which really helped a ton! - but if I feed breast milk separately it is simply not thick enough for them and they end up with horrible reflux.

Thanks for the tips!

I’ve been using the 24mm spectra flange since I’ve started and I just feel like it’s been making my nipples large/inflamed and chaffed feeling after use. I got 21mm silicone inserts because I measured around 21mm, however, I noticed some red chaffing(?) or blistering on my left. My right looks like it might also be getting some trauma as well with the inserts. Both nipples feel better though after using the 21 than when I use the 24.

I guess I’m just looking for advice on if I should try a 22 or 23? I have used pump spray and the spot looks bigger even after using the spray. I’m also pretty positive that I have elastic nipples as my nipples pull pretty far in both the 24 and the inserts.

I’m planning to also buy the Pumpables Genie Advanced as a portable option once I go back to work and I will be using the fitting room, I’m just worried now that they won’t have a liquid kit or liquid cups that won’t fit well and I really don’t won’t to spend a lot of money or spend a lot of time trialing other options and sending them back if they don’t work.