To pump or not to pump...

Do I need to pump? 

What kind of pump do I need?

I started asking those questions as soon as I found out I was preggers with baby number 1.  Here is the GIST!  You will probably need a double electric pump if you plan to go out without your baby a lot, you are returning back to work and plan on continuing breastfeeding, or if you produce too much or too little milk.  I have a Medela double electric pump that was handed down to me.  Yes, yes, all those experts say NOT to share pumps but I replaced all of the membranes, valves, and bought all new breast shields and it has worked out perfectly!  I used it the first few weeks to help establish a good milk supply and pumped every time I was engorged.  (I have a huge long story that I will share later about bottle feeding while breastfeeding).  Back to the pumps...if you are a stay at home mom that will rarely leave your baby then you probably will not need to pump as often or ever, so therefore a double electric pump is too much for you. Go with a manual pump or learn how to hand express your milk.  With baby #2 I only pumped the first couple of days of my milk coming in to relieve pressure, I haven't pump since.  So the question you need to ask yourself is... why do I need to pump?

Medela nipple shield

My poor nipples...yup I'm going there.  My nipples were so used and abused that I couldn't bear anything touching them.  I was using Lansinoh nipple cream religiously but my poor nipples were still sore and even bleeding.  The hospital originally gave me the nipple shield because they thought the baby was having a difficult time with latching and he probably was but I didn't think a nipple shield would help.  That little piece of silicone was just another reminder that I didn't know what I was doing...or so I thought.  Four days later I broke that sucker back out and used it while nursing because I couldn't handle the pain any longer.  Ahhh relief at last!  They were a temporary fix while my nipples were able to heal.  Thank you nipple shield for allowing me to nurse my baby through the pain.

Everyone has that moment...

Everyone has that moment of...what the hell am I doing.  I remember thinking that I would never be able to feed my baby enough, my nipples would always hurt, I'm never going to get enough sleep, I'm doing this all wrong.  If I could to back in time I would slap that girl, make her take a shower, tell her she was a super hero for just having major surgery after 4 long days of a failed induction, and to give herself a break.  So if you're me 3.5 years ago please relax!  Your milk WILL come, you will feel normal again, and YES you can breastfeed your baby.  Forge on momma!

About me

Hi, I'm a mother or two who has been breastfeeding for three and a half years straight.  I've had my breastfeeding ups and downs just like everyone else.  When I had my son 4 years ago, I knew I wanted to breastfeed him.  I didn't realize that I would need help.  It's not that the nurses at the hospital didn't want to help, they just didn't know how.  Many of them didn't breastfeed and the others  tried the best they could in the time they had.  I was even seen by the lactation consultant at the hospital and she was great but she ran out of there like she had a million other new moms to see.  So there I was, sleep deprived, anxious, and all alone.  I was bound and determined and guess what.....that was all it took.  I made up my mind that I was going to nurse my baby no matter what....and I did for almost 3 years.   So if you've made a choice to breastfeed but you are struggling, I'm here to help.