Pumping and Dumping for a Whole Month

I had preemie twin boys who were unable to breastfeed until they were almost 6 weeks old. Except for the first 2 weeks when I was only just gettting my milk in, I only pumped after every bottle they had. Once they were finally able to breastfeed I had no problem with having enough milk and did so until they were over a year old. Keep with it! It's a pain in the backside but well worth it!

There aren't too many antibiotics that are safe for breastfeeding moms. They may loose the effectivness and it is bad enough that you will get the yeast infection from being on them for a month already. Stick with what they gave you, but stay on your pumping schedule. Breast milk is supply and demand. If you decrease the demand, then the supply will decrease. Pump and dump as usual. You may have some difficulty going back to breast milk for the baby but because it is the most natural and the favorite he will not turn it away. That is what he loves. Follow your gut about your baby. You are the only one that knows him best. But I say pump and dump and stay on schedule. Good luck! Feel better!

Your plan will work. I had to do the same thing.

Who told you that you have to pump and dump for a whole month? May I ask the name of the medication you will be one? I can look it up in my Hale's book if you want. It's what the doctor's are SUPPOSED to have available for breastfeeding patients, but many do not. It is possble that the medication is unsafe...unlikely, but possible. Its possible that you were given false info, so better to check and be sure before you chance the interruption of your breastfeeding relationship. Too many women have been incouraged to wean or pump and dump when it really isnt necessary. If it ends up being necessary, there are ways to maintain your supply and yes it is possible to resume breastfeeding when this ia ll over. It will be a bit more work, but it can be done. Contact me through private message with your drug's name and I'll type out what Hale's book says. Hang in there!
~Tara Breastfeeding Counselor, Buffalo NY

I would get in touch with your local La Lecha League leader because you don't always have to stop breastfeeding with antibiotics. Some doctors are misinformed in regards to medicines and breastfeeding. Any LLL leader will beable to tell you which are ok and which one's aren't. www.llli.org
Good luck!!

Hi M.,

I am not sure who told you that you had to pump & dump? I know that I was on antibiotics and that it was perfectly fine to still nurse. I recommend you check with your doctor and the baby's pediatrician before you dump! You can also call the breastfeeding offices to see what they say as well. By the time the baby receives the milk, anything you eat or drink will have been broken down to barely anything.

Hope you feel better and good luck!
S. :-)

Hi, M.. I needed to pump an dump for a week after I had a problem with a pre-existing kidney condition. I pumped according to my daughter's feeding schedule for a couple of days before I increased the amount of time between pumpings. Pumping every four to five hours should be fine. According to one of the nurses at the doctor's office, as long as you continue to drink an adequate amount of water, your milk supply should continue at it's current level. It sounds like you have a go handle on trying to keep an adequate milk supply. I hope that you get better quickly. Kidney infections are not fun.

I had to have surgery 6 weeks after my son was born and only needed to pump and dump the first batch after surgery. Did your doctor advise how often you should pump to keep up your supply? I would try pumping every 3 hours during the day and if you can stand to get up once in the night (even 1 am.) and pump, and then again at 6 or 7, I would think that would be fine to keep up your milk supply. I would ask the doctor though. Good luck. So sorry to hear you've had such trouble when you should be enjoying your new baby! Congratulations!

On meds for the whole month?
Wow, My daughter and i both had nasty kidney infections with severe fevers, but 10 days of sulfa did the trick...You must've had a real whopper. I'm glad to hear you are ok now.
If your on Sulfa it shouldn't be taken while breast feeding....I think it risks grey baby syndrome and severe diarrhea. Not worth risking the baby. There are few nastier antibiotics like chloramphenicol, very dangerous for the baby, but I don't think that's what they gave you for a kindey infection.

Every woman is different and have different supply. I seemed to have a sensitive supply. I started pumping just to bottle it while I worked and my supply desreased no matter how much I pumped. There was just no such thing as an efficient pump, I had to manually express it. I pumped more often than I would have been nursing and it still decreased. I worked 4 days on 3 off (12 hrs)...that three days was not enough to keep the supply up and I eventually gave it up.

Some people are more like milk factorys. Everybody is different, it may be fine for you to decrease and inrease again. Or, it may cause more problems. The risk is there to jeopardize your future nursing ability if you decrease, so long as you know before you take that risk.

Nobody knows your supply better than you do.

After i took Antibiotics I dried up. So, if that works for u do it. Good Luck & God Bless:)

I agree with previous posters....find a antibiotic compatible with breastfeeding. you can talk to an LC or go to Kellymom.com and look up antibiotics and it will tell you which ones are safest. but keep pumping you will be happy you did. If you are just 5 weeks post partum pump at least 7-8 x's a day for about 20 minutes each session. you can pump every 3-4 hours. I know that seems like alot but it's only 4 weeks and it's so worth it for your baby! Good luck.

I found as soon as I decreased the amount of pumping, I could not get the milk to start back up regularly. I had a very curious 4 year old boy and when I was home with just the 2 kids I found it hard to pump or breast feed my baby daughter. I would only be able to pump or feed every four hours during the day. By the end of two weeks, the night time supply was not there to feed my daughter and within 4 weeks I had to switch to formula. Just try to keep up with the pump and dump, I know this is diheartening, but you will thank yourself in the end.

Pumping is absolutely no fun, so I'm sorry that you have to go through this, but if it gives you peace of mind that you're making the best choice for your son, that's your answer. I think your idea of pumping every four or five hours is a better one than every two. I am always surprised that the milk supply will increase or decrease with the baby's need for it. Your son, when he begins nursing again, will naturally bring your body back to more frequent nursings. Did you check with your ob/gyn that this antibiotic means you definitely have to dump the milk? Maybe you can continue to nurse your son once a day so that he doesn't have a hard time latching back on when it's time? I've heard of people pumping and storing while their child is in the hospital or something, but can't imagine pumping and dumping for any length of time...I give you a lot of credit. Good luck.

wow-a whole month of antibiotics! Don't forget to eat lots of yogurt as the antibiotics will be wiping out your normal flora in part, which you need. (ie; You increase your risk of yeast infections!)
I have "pumped and dumped" and it is heartbreaking the first few days, you may have a hard time dealing with the waste of it all, but I'm glad you realize how important it is to breastfeed. Press on! You can get away with pumping less frequently but for longer amounts of time, because that is what your baby would be doing anyway. Toward the end there are also things you can eat, medicines to take (ask your doctor-I don't want to advise on this), if you have problems getting your milk supply back in. JUST DON"T STOP/or pump too infrequently, as your body may shut down on you- as mine did toward the end. And remember your baby may be a little fussy about moving away from the bottle after the month is up-be prepared but don't give up.
Good Luck-It's always worth the effort!
M. P

Have you checked with Medications and Mothers MIlk to be sure you need to pump and dump? Most antibiotics are compatible with breastfeeding. And there is almost always a breastfeeding compatible alternative.

Feel free to contact me - I can help you find the info.

L. Anne O'Connor, IBCLC

Hi M.,
I completely understand what you are going through. When my baby girl was 10 weeks I too was hospitalized with a staph infection. I was pumping and dumping for about two weeks, while being on medication. It was realy hard to pump every 2 hours. I started to spread it out more like every 4 or 5 hours. The only problem that caused was less milk production. I went back to work at 16 weeks, so I was able to breast feed her in the morning and at night but I know she wanted more. I eventually stopped nursing when she was about 7 months old. It was really hard for me because I nursed my first daughter until she was 18 months old. Now my daughter is 10 months old and has no problem with the bottle. If you can pump and store as much as you can, I would highly recommend you do this if you can. I wish I was producing more to do this. I think cutting down the number of hours in between pumping might have brought my milk supply down, but no one really can say. I there are some vitamins you can take to increase your milk flow. I would check with wild oats or at the vitamin shoppe.
Best of luck.

K.
35 yr old mother of Kelly, 3 1/2 and Ashley 10 months old.

I know exactly how you feel.. I had pneumonia when I was pregnant, and was on amoxicillin, which did nothing ... I had to start on IV Keflex the day after my daughter was born. So I was able to nurse her for only that day, so she got the colostrum but I couldn't continue. "Pumping and dumping" was not only heartbreaking, but exhausting as well. I was ill, and having to wake up every 2-4 hours to give her a bottle, and then pump my milk and wash it down the drain was awful. I cried and cried.
Because of my fatigue, I chose to continue bottle feeding. I just had to sleep,, I had no energy and a 4 y/o to go home to. I felt terribly guilty because I nursed my older daughter for eleven months, and it was a wonderful experience...and I wanted that with my little one too. I ended up being on antibiotics on and off for four months while the pneumonia resolved. So in retrospect it was the right choice for me.

Now my daughters are 17 and 13, and there is no difference in their health ( well, my older daughter actually has had more colds and ear infections than my younger daughter) and my bond with my little one is just as strong as it could ever had been, nursing or not.

Don't beat up on yourself. Do what you can to take care of both yo and your children. No matter what you choose to do know that it will all turn out fine.

I had to pump-- notto dump but store for three weeks when my son was 4months old as he had surgery and then a feeding tube. It is difficult, and I really wondered if it was worth it. Over time ( over the three week:-) I slowed down my pumping and my milk supply did drop as a pump doesn't bring in as much as nursering and is more stressfull and then personally had trouble getting my milk back. I had a great lactation consultant from the hospital who knew all that was going on and was great support during that time and when my son was medically ready to nurse again. My pediatrican was too much " do what you want" and really wasn't much support but the lactation consultant knew what my body was dong mentally and physically to help make it as smooth as possible.

I read one of teh other resonces from a consultant-- don't be afraid to contact them/her--- they know more about this aspect of our bodies than most peds and physicians

First, are you sure you have to pump and dump on your current antibiotic. You may want to check with a lactation consultant. Doctors frequently tell you that you can't breastfeed while taking medications that are perfectly safe. If not, can they switch you to something that is safe. Cause that is a huge pain for you. If not definitely pump, it'll be worth the effort in the end.

Dr. Christine Smillie at Breastfeeding Resources is the best. Her number is ###-###-####. I highly recommend you at least call her. She is in Stratford, CT but will also do phone consultations. She has been a wonderful resource for me. Good luck!