Problems Pumping Breast Milk

I exclusively pumped for 9 months due to latch issues with my daughter. I had huge supply issues at first. I'm not sure how often you are nursing, but you should pump on a schedule. This allows your body to make more milk and eases your let down to the pump. Inability to let down to the pump is one of the biggest reasons people can't get milk. I pumped every 3 hours for my daughter, but I was pumping every drop she drank. For my next child, I hope to nurse and pump for work. So if everything goes well with nursing I plan on pumping 3 times daily, 6 hours apart, so like 6 am, noon, and 6 pm. Your first pump should be right after your first morning nursing session. This way your child has already made you let down, and this is when you have the most milk. The volume of milk you get at subsequent pumps will decrease as the day progesses. You will always have less milk at night.

In regards to pump time, do both breasts at the same time, for 20 minutes. There is no benefit to pumping longer than 20 minutes in a row. If you have an hour, you should power pump. This helps alot!!! Power pumping is when you pump for 10 minutes, break for 10 minutes, pump for 10 minutes - and continue alternating for 1 hour. If I were you, I would choose 2-3 times per day you want to make your pumping times and power pump at those times for a week. By the end of the week, you should have your production up, and turn each time into a 20 minute pump.

Also, you NEED to relax and STOP milk watching!!!!! I know it is tempting, but turn on a movie, grab a book, talk to a friend on the phone, but don't consentrate on your pumping or you will not get anything worth mentioning. In order to let down to a machine, you have to relax and that is really hard to do when you are stressing about how many drops hit the bottle of the pump.

Massaging the tops of your breasts while pumping can also help your milk move down.

The key is to be consistant and keep trying - it will come, but it does take persistance. Good luck!!! If you have any more pumping questions, feel free to message me!!!

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Hi C.,

Here's an excerpt from a response I posted a little while ago. Some of the info may not be relevant for you, but I wanted you to see the whole thing in context, so here it is:

"take a picture of your baby with you and if you want some moms find it helpful to take a recording of their child crying or making baby sounds (some moms get really creative and record the sounds their baby makes while nursing) and it really helps. You could probably use your cell phone to do this, or if you have an iPod Nano, you can use that too, so you shouldn't need to purchase any special equipment. Imagine let down and visualize it. Visualize your baby nursing. Before you start each side give that breast a firm brief massage toward the base (where all of the milk glands are). All of these things will help you pump the absolute max amount of milk."

One thing I will add for you is that sometimes I noticed it was difficult to pump if my nipple was dry and hard going into it, so if you can express just a drop or two to rub in, or even use your own saliva to soften and moisten the nipple it can help right from the start. Oh and don't forget to drink tons of water!

BTW, the visualization really, really helps. Give it a shot. What have you got to lose? I've posted about this before too, so let me know if you're interested and I'll message you that post too.

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this sounds just like me! I might even have the same pump! I did the same thing: keep buying new parts bc it must be the pump....then I finally called a LAC (lactaction consulant) and she told me that it was not the pump it was sadly just that some mom's cant pump some can only nurse as a pump can never empty you out like a baby can. i realize that is not helpful to you and not the answer you need bc you clearly need more milk for you LO (I am a sahm so it did not phase me I just ditched the pump as I was just doing it for back up) anyways.....is there anyway at all you can leave work and go nurse him? that is my best suggestion besides try to contact your local LLL or LAC bc they are super helpful and they will be the best ones to help you out: they offer lessons on pumping and advise for working nursing moms.....mine was amazing and if I had to work and was not just pumping for backup she would have come over and helped but i told her no so we did not get into it any further. I have been nursing almost 18 mo now w/ little problems and when I do have them i call her. I wish you luck bc this can be so so stressful! Oh and you might get a lot of advise to suplment, I am not against formula so that is not where this is coming from but I was told if you do then it will eventually lower you milk supply bc your body only produces what you need and if you are usign formula then your body thinks you dont need milk and it will slow down. I hope you get some really helpful advise and i wish you all the best.....LLL and LAC is my best, sorry!

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I have to totally agree with Dyreka K! My son was a preemie and hospitalized for 6 long weeks. And I had to pump for him the whole time. I was able to build a good supply by pumping alone. But there were sessions where it was tough going.

If I was stressed, keyed up or in a rush it was very tough to get things going. Visualization really, really helped me. As weird as it sounds what worked for me was to get set up, take a deep breath to relax and start pumping, then I would visualize little flood gates opening and milk flowing. Sounds silly but it was what worked!

You can also try expressing by hand. It does take longer but some women have better luck with that. Check out kellymom.com for tips on hand expression.

The other thing you are dealing with is your body is probably used to baby nursing to stimulate your let down and not the pump-very different things.

I would check to see if La Leche can help, a competent lactation consultant at one of your local hospitals or even see if there is a specialty shop in your area that sells pumps and see if they can help with your fit and tips to get you going.

1 mom found this helpful

It sounds like the problem is that your milk is not letting down. With my first baby, the milk would just pour out and I would get 6-8 oz in a matter of 10 minutes. With my second baby (he was a constant biter), I simply could not let down with a breast pump. I think sometimes the body really gets used to your baby's feeding style and knows the difference between nursing and pumping.

Try stimulating the opposite nipple while pumping. This should induce let down. If that doesn't work, the only way to pump successfully may be to pump on one side while simultaneously nursing on the other side.

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I generally find that I have the most milk early in the morning. When do you normally pump? Is your son drawing out sufficient milk when he nurses? You might benefit from having a LLL leader or a lactation consultant see how you're set up with your pump. They should be able to see ways to adjust things to make your pumping more productive.

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For me, I got more out of using a hand-pump. In my case, it was the Avent hand-pump.
I tried the Medela... I didn't get much at.all. out of my breasts.

all the best,
Susan

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I was super frustrated at first as well. It worked best for me when I pumped in the morning, drank TONS of water (like more than I thought humanly possible), nursed as often as possible, and RELAXED. The more you stress the less milk you will get out. Statistically, you will have less milk in the afternoon and evening than in the morning. It will work, it just takes time. I had a medela and it was the only one that worked. I had to use the largest shield part which helped tremendously. It takes a little time. Be patient, try not to get frustrated. It will get easier.

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Rent a Medela Hospital Grade DOUBLE breast pump with alternating suction that can be controlled by YOU.
Good Luck

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I had problems using an electric pump most of the time and had to use the hand pump that came with my breast pump. I also remember that being tired and stressed didn't help me either I had to relax listen to music and just not worry. I also agree too with the other ladies that you should call the lactation department of your hospital. Those women work wonders. I thankfully had my midwives and a lactation nurse to help me. After a few hiccups I was able to pump successfully until I quit breast feeding at 7 months because my production dropped.

But if unfortunately none of this works for you and you do need to supplement with formula make sure you get some Gripe Water and Gas Drops cause he might get a little bit of an upset tummy. My daughter though for a few months was supplemented because she just ate too much and she has been a healthy happy baby the whole time with the help of the Gripe Water and baby GasX. ( gripe water by the way is All Natural and I found it at wal greens)
If you have any other questions I'd be happy to talk. I am a SAHM

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Have you tried pumping one side while your baby nurses on the other? It takes advantage of let down and saves time too! It takes a few tries to get the positioning all worked out, but it really works once you get the hang of it. Another mom told me this when I was struggling with pumping and I thought she was way more coordinated than I'd ever be- but then I got desperate and tried and it worked like a charm. Good luck!

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Have you tried pumping in the middle of the night or first thing in the morning when you are full? Also, it sounds like you are stressed about it and that can cause tension that fights the release of milk. Really try to relax. I sit in a recliner, look at pictures of my babies and relax. Before I know it the milk flows! If I am rushing or stressed, it takes a long time and some soreness to get an ounce or two out.

The last thing that really works for me is to pump while nursing. The letdown is easy and no effort and before I know it, I have filled up a 4 or 6 ounce bottle. Used to be able to do 8 ounces or more, but it's hard to keep up with the growing demand of twins.

Make sure you are gettig plenty of fluids and rest too! Your body needs nurishment and rest to produce milk! So good quality food is vital to more milk production.

The last thing, make sure you are pumping or nursing regularly. This will start a time cue for your body and make letdown easier. So say every 2.5 or 3 hours make sure you are doing one or the other no matter what! I found a couple nights of getting up to pump helped boost my milk supply and make pumping easier too. It tricks the body into thinking it's supplying a growth spurt.

Hang in there!
A.

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Oh dear, how stressful!
My best suggestion would be to get into a lactation consultant today! Maybe try one of the rental pumps to see if the pump is the problem, and if it is, try exchanging your Medela.
also, for me, stress affects how much milk I am able to pump. I have to very consciously go through a relaxation exercise and work to maintain relaxation while pumping, or it just stops.

I know this might be hard to do, but maybe if it is stress/production related, you could try pumping in the wee morning hours, like 4 am. You would still be relaxed from being sleepy, and prolactin is highest this time of day, producing the most milk with the highest fat content.
I'm sorry to hear about your troubles, and I hope you get it resolved soon!

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I would pump first, several times a day BEFORE feeding the baby, so that by the time it's time to go to the sitter, you have enough milk to do so. The baby is much more efficient about getting milk out than the breast pump. Then, this also will up your milk production. I loved my Medela breast pump. It helped me keep my daughters in milk while I was teaching. However, I would pump 3 - 4 times a day to get the milk I needed.

Also, I would check how much suction the machine is doing. Too much suction hurts, turn it down just a little, and you get more milk. Make sure the section is high enough to work for you.

I think you might be stressed out, ;) that can stop your milk flow.
If your baby will nurse, I would try that and when your milk lets down , then try to pump, with your baby next to you.

Good luck!!!

Some people just can't pump - it's as simple as that. It's probably not the pump, but you, I'm sorry to say. I know lots of women - myself included - who could hardly get anything by pumping but were able to breastfeed successfully. (For the record, I used a home pump and then a hospital grade pump - and they fitted me with the correct parts - and had the same results with both). I spoke to a few ladies at the breastfeeding clinic at Evergreen Hospital about it and they said that the baby suckling and the breast pump are two very different things and that most people never get as much with the pump as you do breastfeeding. You can try taking fenugreek tablets (I took three capsules three times a day, which helped). This might increase your production a bit, but you might just have to supplement. Nothing wrong with supplementing with formula. Your baby will still get all the goodness of your breast milk, but he'll get fed when you're not there, too. Best of both worlds, if you ask me.

try here....

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/pumping_decrease.html

Some moms, ( like me) never can get milk from a pump. I have always had plenty when I hand express, but not a drop when pumping.

To increase milk supply, switch sides often, drink plenty of water, nurse baby very very frequently when you are together. Nurse just before leaving him and as soon as you are together again. Try expressing milk on on side while nursing on the other. Do not schedule nursings when you are together and take advantage of the evenings when you are together and sleep with your baby while he nurses so that it does not cut into your time for other things. Night nursings help make up for time away, are good time management and increase milk supply.

I also would suggest mother's milk tea. Be sure you have plenty of water, veggies and protein.

I pumped a lot ( several times a day for months with each child) since both of my babies did some NICU time. I never got a lot per pumping (not more than 2 oz) but I did get used to it. (I had trouble building a milk supply because I was pumping exclusively.) I found that in order to get a good seal I had to hold the flange for the first minute or two until I had a little moisture and it made a good seal between the breast and the pump flange. You might also want to check all the tubing and connectors have a tight connection so you are not loosing suction. As the beginning start with a low to medium suction and turn it up after the first 2-3 minutes (breasts are more sensitive at first). I always got more milk first thing in the morning and less at night (especially when really tired--and what new mom isn't?). Find a comfortable place and relax as much as you can (I got to the point where I could fall asleep sitting up with the pump on, held in place by a pumping bra!) Good luck. But even if you can't get enough breastmilk and you need to supplement it is not the end of the world. If the baby is nursing several times a day he will be getting most of the benefits of the breastmilk. Mine got a good immunity boost from just one feeding of breastmilk a day and the rest formula..

Hi C.,

I am a birth doula, and part of my services are to assist moms with breastfeeding. That said, I would suggest a few things for pumping. First of all, I would make sure you drink a TON of water. Just when you think you have drank enough, have another glass. Also there is Mother's milk tea, Fenugreek, and a beer, all of which help increase milk production. Some mothers find it helpful to have baby in the room. I personally recommend feeding on one side and pumping on the other. This way baby gets the hindmilk and it should leave you with more milk for pumping. Some Mother's have found it helpful to nurse on one side and pump on the other side simultaneously before the trigger to stop production is activated.

Good luck, and let us know what helped the most won't you?

T. Nelson CD (DONA)