On the off chance that any of you read this soon - I need your advice. My boys will be born severely premature (sometime in the next 3 weeks - hopefully they'll wait that long) due to pregnancy complications. I will need to pump since I will not be able to b-feed. I have been researching pumps and have narrowed it down to three. My mom is taking me to a Dr. appt. this afternoon and is buying me the pump after so that we have it in case something happens sooner that we hope. So here are my three, if you have one can you please let me know what you think? I need something that will keep my supply up since I won't be able to b-feed.
Medela Pump In Style® Advanced Breastpump - Shoulder Bag
Medela Pump In Style® Advanced Double Electric Breastpump - The Metro Bag - Is this worth the money over the above? This seems to be the one I have seen talked about most on the sites dedicated to Exclusive Pumping.
Medela Freestyle Hands-Free Breast Pump - Is this worth the money for hands free? Does it pump as well as the Metro Bag?
Sorry to be so rushed. I wasn't expecting this wonderful offer from Mom (what would we do without them?).
I would recommend the hospital grade pump as well. They are more efficient and you tend to get more milk pumped in a shorter time.
My lactation consultant, Jeanne Cygnus in Mundelein sells pumps in her store. I would highly recommend calling her or going to see her, she will give you great advice. Her website is www.cygnuslactation.com . If you are planning to exclusively pump long-term it may be better to rent a hospital grade pump. She does do rentals as well.
Are you saying you won't be able to nurse because they are premature or for another reason? If another reason, I would also recommend getting a second opinion from Jeanne or another lactation consultant (an IBCLC, not just calling theirself a lactation consultant). There are only a very very few circumstances where a baby cannot nurse so maybe they will be able to find you a solution to that. Otherwise you may want to have a lactation consultant in mind to help you transition them back to the breast later if that is your plan.
Either way congrats in advance on your new arrivals and on making the decision to give them breastmilk- it is certainly the best thing you can do to overcome them being a little early. Best wishes.
Contact a lactation consultant now! They can be a valuable source of information and support that you will want to know now before you are super busy with your twins. Find one who has experience with preemies, ep-ing, and other issues related to your condition. Do not wait until they are born and do not rely on the hospital LC (all the ones I saw at Rush were uneducated ding-dongs...). Find someone with whom you can have a good relationship and someone who you feel will be a strong advocate for your decision to bf.
I EP-ed for 4 months and used the second pump on your list. It worked rather well for me. The lactation consultant will best be able to guide you. You're going to be doing a lot of pumping and becoming 'one' with your machine...you will definitely want something strong enough to 'milk' you and hands-free will be a Godsend!
My son was born 6 weeks premature and was unable to breasfeed without a nipple shield until he was 6 or 7 weeks old. It was almost like EP-ing. I used the Medela Pump in Style to pump the milk after he would nurse with the nipple shield. That way he was building up his ability to suck, getting nurtured at the breast, etc.. It worked fine but I wouldn't say that it was easy. Hands free is very important when you're EP-ing so that you can read a book, operate the remote, scratch an itch, change the music, etc.. I bought a hands free nursing bra at Be Bye Baby (corner of Lincoln and Roscoe.) If it wouldn't inconvenience your mom to pay a little more, I recommend the hand-free model. Or, you can buy the bra for $30.00. I don't know much about hospital grade pumps but if you can get one that's hands free, or buy the hands free bra to use with the hospital grade pump, that might be an even better option. Best of luck to you and yours.
Hi G.:
Sending warm wishes to you and your boys.
Here are my tips:
1) From my research from 4 months ago,I just double checked online to confirm, the metro bag and the shoulder bag are exactly the same pump but the metro bag comes with a cooler to put the bottles in and a work surface and the pump is easier to remove and has its own compartment within the bag. I saw no advantage to having this and just purchased the shoulder bag and I am thrilled with it.
2) As other posters mentioned, I also rented a hospital grade pump Medela Symphony to see how things went. 7 months later still going strong.
3)Lastly, I don't know where you are delivering, but be sure to get the attachments for the Symphony pump at the hopital. THEY ARE FREE.(At least at Northwestern) Whether or not you use the symphony in the hospital or not you will be very thankful for the extra attachments and bottles when you get home.
Take care of yourself and wishing you all the best.
A.
Hi G.-
I definitely recommend that you rent a hospital grade pump from the hospital that you deliver at. I delivered my twins at 30 and a half weeks, and the wonderful nurses taught me how to pump with their hospital pumps. Don't be surprised if you pump very little at first... even with a hospital grade. I pumped about only one tablespoon the first session. My nurses were so encouraging and things got much better. At the time, 7 yrs. ago... I paid 50 dollars a month to rent. I rented it for 3 months even though I stayed at home with them full time... I stored the breastmilk in the freezer so that my husband could sometimes feed. (My son didn't mind switching back and forth... breast to bottle, but my daughter had a strong preference for my breasts.)
Yes...according to the nurses I had they said.... babies don't have the capability to suck any type of nipple until approx. 32 weeks gestation. Babies born before this are almost always fed breastmilk or formula through a tube through their nose. YOu will get to eventually hold your babies while you feed them your brestmilk from a syringe type thing. They did have to give my twins some formula mixed with my breastmilk for the first week or so.
My advice... don't go buy a pump today. Use the hospital's pump and see if you like it. Chances are you will since they are the "cadillacs" of all pumps... the cadillac part was how a nurse described it to me:)
I hope your little ones stay inside of you for a bit longer. I don't know how far a long you are. The doctors injected me with some sort of steriod so that my babies lungs would develop quicker... they did stay inside for 3 more days... allowing the lungs to develop more.
My prayers are with you and your twins.
J.
What a generous offer from your Mom! I might consider phoning the Lactation Consultant group at your hospital for an expert opinion. Unfortunately, they might not be able to get back to you for a day or so.
One thing I know they will tell you is that the hospital-grade pumps are significantly more effective (in extracting and keeping milk up) than the personal pumps sold. I was strongly advised to rent the hospital pump at first, to make those initial weeks of pumping most effective...and then (assuming I would continue to pump) look into buying my own. I left the hospital with option to rent it on a weekly or monthly basis. Is this at all an option for you?
I wish you the very best on the birth of your two blessings!
G.:
congratulations on the upcoming birth of your boys..
a) there is no reason that you can not breastfeed them...
b) for the type of pumping you are doing you would be best off with a hospital grade pump ... one is the medela symphony.. it is a rental pump.... prices vary/ you can call around.
c) new pump coming out in the next two weeks/ won't be able to tell you much til I have moms try it.
P., RLC, IBCLC
Breastfeeding and Parenting Solutions
www.breastfeedingandparentingsolutions.com
I have the Medela Pump In Style® Advanced Breastpump - Shoulder Bag. It work great for me.
I know somone that had the Medela Freestyle Hands-Free Breast Pump - Is this worth the money for hands free and she had problems.
The only differnce between the sholder bag and the metro bag is the bag and that difference in price is not worth it. That is what they told me at the store.. that the pump itself is the same. But do go to target and the the one piece horn, it has a better suction than the two piecethat comes with the pump. You might need to use the two pice in the begining because of swelling, but then the once peice will be better for later on.
Congratulations on your twins.. good luck! I will keep you in my prayers that all goes extremly well.
on a side note. My co-worker had a little girl born at 26 weeks. She is 8 years old now. I am sure all will work out fine for you and your family. :)
Good luck with everything - i hope your little boys hang inside as long as possible. I suggest posting this on the yahoo group "pumpmoms" - there are a number of EPers there and when I first went back to work and was pumping for my son this group was very helpful.
Pumping is not fun but hopefully your babies will get strong and healthy and come home soon. As soon as possible I think it's really worth it to make a go at breastfeeding them vs EPing. Your life will be much much simpler if you can establish nursing with them (not to mention there's just nothing like snuggling up with your baby and not having to think about it). I would talk to a lactation consultant ahead of time about what you can do to be proactive and make sure this happens. Good luck with the birth and congratuations!
