PUMPING

I use an Ameda Purely Yours pump two times each day on workdays. And I've got a lot to say on the matter!

Ameda Purely Yours Electric Double Pump

I got the pump for free through my insurance (United Healthcare). Read more about getting a breastpump from your insurance company for free. I wanted a second pump as a backup to keep at home for the days that I stay home from work while my baby is at the babysitter (i.e. when I'm sick), or for times I want to amp up my milk supply. Lately I use it to pump after I nurse Sam so that I can mix the milk with his oatmeal for breakfast. The second pump I bought cheaply on eBay from someone who had gotten it from her insurance company and wasn't using it.

White valve

The pump works quite well. I can't really compare it to another pump because all I've tried before this was a very old Medela Pump In Style Advanced (PISA) that I got from my sister who was an exclusive pumper for over a year. So the pump had seen better days. Anyway, the pump is small and compact and weighs next to nothing so you don't have to lug it everywhere in a huge tote. Another great feature is that the tubing never touches the milk so you don't have moisture going into the pipes. The parts don't need replacing often, except for the small white valves. You know when you need to replace them because the suction starts weakening and you often hear a whistling noise. Sometimes you can see milk in the top cylinder piece where the membranes lie.

Ameda customer service is lovely. Whenever I had an issue - such as a suctioning problem, or a problem with the valves - they were always available and ready to help. They'd walk me through an extensive testing of the pump machine and motor to try to diagnose a problem. They'd quickly send replacement parts free of charge (more than necessary) when a part is suspected as being the cause of the issue.

Now, onto some pumping techniques. Probably the most important part of my pumping session is hand compressions on my boobs while pumping. Here's how I do them: After a letdown, I allow the milk to flow and don't do anything. But once the flow begins to trickle I squeeze my boobs from different positions. Sometimes it helps to press from the base of the boob towards the inside of the cone-shaped pump flange. Other times it's helpful to press on top of your boob (as you'd do when you have a plugged duct). You will immediately see a stronger flow when you're in the right spot!

How long to pump? Well in the good ol' days fifteen minutes was enough for a five ounce bottle. Now I need like half an hour for that (with 2-3 manual stimulations for letdowns after the initial one)! Why so long? Because now my supply is more tailor fit to Sam's needs, while earlier on my body just produced in excess and the more milk you've got inside you, the faster it all comes out. Basically I recommend pumping until you get what you need - that makes sense, doesn't it? Hopefully, you can get enough for a full bottle at each pumping session, but not everyone does. Some people just find that a plastic nurser is not as good as a human one. In fact, lately I don't always get a letdown from the pump and would have to manually stimulate for the initial letdown.

If you look online you'll see many recommendations for looking at pictures of your baby to help stimulate a letdown. It does not work at all for me. I have adorable videos of Sam eating, of him doing trouble, of him talking and giggling - but none of it seems to help my letdown let down.

After pumping, you should immediately wash your pump parts to prevent build-up of gunk. The truth is, I don't have time to wash out all my parts with soap and water after each pumping so I just rinse it under water and at the end of the day I wipe it all down with Medela pumping wipes. These remove the fatty residue but they can't clean a flange, so that's why the water is good for that.

Every so often, I boil all the parts for a solid cleaning and sanitizing. To do that, first wash the parts with soap and water. Then, simply boil a pot of water with about a teaspoon or so of vinegar (yes!) and drop your pump parts into the water for 5 minutes. The vinegar prevents that white chalky film that normally happens when you boil plastic in water.