Breastfeeding:Exclusively Pumping

What do I need to pump exclusively?

Many women want to provide breastmilk to their baby but, for a variety of reasons, are unable to actually breastfeed. Although you may have planned on nursing your baby rather than pumping, you should be proud of yourself for providing your baby with the very best nutrition. Exclusively pumping breastmilk for your baby still provides all of the vitamins, minerals and immunities as it would if you were actually nursing your baby from the breast.

It is important to select a quality breast pump that will keep up with the daily demands of pumping. It is best to find a hospital-grade pump that will allow you to pump both breasts at once. The breast pump is going to be a critical piece of equipment that can ensure your baby gets all of the breastmilk they need to develop and grow properly.

If possible, begin pumping within the first six hours after delivery of your baby. If you do not have a quality breast pump, ask the hospital staff if they have any for rent or sale. Try to pump atleast 8-10 times in a day. Ideally you should be pumping every 2-3 hours, just as a newborn infant would nurse. You should not go any longer than 5 hours without pumping, especially in the early weeks. Before the actual milk comes in, aim to pump each breast for 10-15 minutes. Once the milk comes in, you should aim to pump for approximately 20-30 minutes per breast. You should be able to pump approximately 25-35 ounces of milk a day. The more often you pump, the more milk your body will make. However, the less often you pump, the less milk your body will make.

Common Problems:

Breast Tenderness & Engorgement: Pump more often to drain the breast completely. Full breasts can become sore, engorged and even infected if not cared for properly.
Slow Milk Production: Decrease the amount of time between pumping sessions. If you are pumping every 4 hours, begin pumping every 3. If you are pumping every 3 hours, try to pump every 2 hours to increase milk production. Make sure that you are using a quality pump that can handle the demands of daily pumping.
Too Much Milk: Increase the amount of time in between pumping sessions or decrease the amount of time spent pumping at each session. Having too much milk is better than not having enough, Excess milk can be stored, or frozen, for later use.

A Fussy Baby: Because what you eat and drink is passed through the breastmilk, pay close attention to your diet. Avoid spicy and greasy foods that can cause your baby to have gas. You may notice other foods that cause your baby to be fussy. Eliminate these foods from your diet so they are not passed through the milk.

Comments: Breastfeeding - Exclusively-Pumping

Comments 1 to 24 of about 98.
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Heather12 - 16 days ago.
Oh man.....If I ever had that happen I would just get back on schedule and a couple days later I would be back up again.

NatashaMc - 16 days ago.
So I got over confident! I missed two pumps, that's it and now the past few days I'm pumping 8 oz less! Grr, just when I thought I had no pumping worries....

NatashaMc - 20 days ago.
Right now the goal is 10 months. O.k. it really is a year, lol. I've been trying to trick myself for the past six months by saying o.k. I met my three month goal, now it's six months, yeah I met that goal now it's eight months but really the entire time I'm thinking I really want to go a full year. Just makes it less daunting I guess!! Maybe it's time to just admit it...four more months...nope I still can't do it, two sounds so much better!

Heather12 - 20 days ago.
NatashaMc that is awesome. Keep up the good hard work! Do you plan on pumping until she is 1? Gosh I am so glad that I dont have to pump any longer. but I would do it again if I had to.

NatashaMc - 22 days ago.
Almost eight months and still going! Just thought I'd post something coz nothing has happened here in a long time :)

brandyq - 57 days ago.
oh ivehad a clogged duct before but this doesnt feel the same

Heather12 - 57 days ago.
brandyq sounds like to me you have a clogged duct. I used to get them a lot. You need to pump and pump and pump. I would pump for about 30 minutes and massage the entire time. You will know as soon as it becomes unclogged. Immediately it feels better. thats the only thing that helped me.

brandyq - 59 days ago.
Just out of curiosity why would my breast become tender again....I mean to the point of touching them hurts....

NatashaMc - 84 days ago.
lisseth82 - Same thing happened with me and six months later still pumping. I have to say I don't like pumping at all but do like the reassurance that he gets enough as well. How old is your little one?

lisseth82 - 84 days ago.
I am so glad to have been recommended to this forum. When my LO was born she lost more than her 10% weight. I was strictly breastfeeding and she just kept fighting the breast, so the Dr had me do ten minutes each breast then the rest suplement for 4days. After she gained her birth weight I went straight to breastmilk again, but I found that I liked pumping the milk better and it reassured me she was getting the proper ounces.

4thtimearoundat36 - 93 days ago.
when my second daughter was 6 weeks old I had to go into hospital for emergency appendectomy. I expressed milk as soon as I came round from surgery, although I had to throw the milk away for 24 hours, after that DH took it home after visiting me every night. It meant she only had to have formula for the first day and was glad to latch back on as soon as I came home.

campimama - 97 days ago.
brandy- Gotcha, I can't imagine pumping with the chicken pox, I was curious though...thanks for answering. BTW, it is entirely possible for you to relactate and get your supply going again. It'll take some work, and a lot of pumping, but if you want to you can. I also have a whole list of things you can do to boost supply (Check out the 2 blogs I wrote). Best of luck!

brandyq - 97 days ago.
oh the reason i didnt pump was because i had chickenpox all over my breast. it was extremely painful to have the pump pop the chicken pox blisters everytime i pumped...which also increased risk of infection....I also was having to pour out the milk i pumped because of the meds they gave me in the ed for the chicken pox. Even though last night I had a great amount of milk today I have had none...so I did dry up. we will be using our frozen supply until it runs out which I am hoping will last a few months.

Bri - 98 days ago.
I agree, usually when you feed milk while sick it does pass on the immunities. It's a wonderful thing even though breastfeeding while having the chills and throwing up isn't much fun. Neither is getting up 10 times in the night. Although, chicken pox can be dangerous. Unless baby has had all his/her shots they may come down with it themselves by being exposed. I wonder if you can pump and have someone else feed baby while you are sick? I wonder if the milk wouldn't be safe? Definately consult your doctor (if you haven't already) and follow those orders. Or contact your local LLL and see what they think.

campimama - 98 days ago.
brandy- I'm just curious...did Doc tell you not to feed or pump while you were sick? My understanding was that is was better for baby to have that bm because you pass your immunities on that your body is making. I'm glad you had a good pumping session though and was just wondering why you hadn't continued pumping. Hope you are feeling better.

brandyq - 98 days ago.
So I stopped pumping on Wednesday cause I got really bad chicken pox......my baby is going through the frozen milk I have...not fast but too fast for my likings....so I am attempting to pump for the first time since Wednesday morning. (it is Saturday night) and so far so good.....I just got 125ccs in 10 minutes and still going for 10 more minutes so we will see how it goes!! :)

lilli1317 - 99 days ago.
Totally got sidetracked, we were talking about letdowns. Anyway my letdowns definitely got less powerful since I pumped way more often than nursed. Then it was frustrating because on the weekends when I didnt even want to LOOK at the pump I would try to nurse but it just wasnt fast enough for him He refused to work at it so on a Saturday afternoon I had to break out the pump again. Or wait like 7 hours to let him nurse, then he would get milk quicker because it had accumulated.

lilli1317 - 99 days ago.
The older my son got the less powerfult my letdowns were. I have been back to work fulltime since he was 3 months old and once he started solids he never wanted to nurse the times I was available so after about 6 months he only nursed in the mornings. He is almost 11 1/2 months. Almost to a year and that was my goal!! Pumping I think takes soooo much more dedication than nursing. At least when you are only nursing you have your baby's cues and CONSTANT reminders of why you are doing it and who you are doing it for. When you are at work and have to drag the damn pump into that room and then sit there and force yourself to relax when you are in the middle of a workday... then it takes a little more strength and endurance I think. Congrats to all you mommies who still have their eye on the big picture. My goal hasalways been a year and I am soooo determined to stick to it!! Soooo close! Keep it up new mommies its so worth it in the long run to not have to use formula. I wouldnt even know how to make a bottle since I only have ever dealt with milk.

babyofdeployment08 - 100 days ago.
Natashmc~ I was like that. During the 2 letdowns I would have during each pumping session it would spray but then it would slow down. I got to where I pumped about 25 mins. at a time. Just make sure you are draining each breast every time you pump just to make sure you don't get a blocked duct. :)

NatashaMc - 100 days ago.
I was wondering if any of you ladies who are exclusively pumping have noticed that all of a sudden your milk is coming out much slower? It's strange, it just sprays out at few spots and only drips out of the rest. My milk ducts aren't blocked, I know what that feels like and I have the same amount, it is just taking a lot longer to drain. It's like my let down isn't as strong. I've checked the pump, I did have a tear in the one valve but changed it now and it's still the same. Hmmm...

Heather12 - 101 days ago.
Jess Yes the nurses will help you at the hospital. i always had a hard time making sure my babies were latched on properly. I would suggest nursing your babu for as long as you can. I started around 4 weeks and completly stopped nursing at 6 weeks. You have to make sure that you are pumping every 2 to 3 hrs at the most. I would pump every 2 hrs around the clock. Its alot at first but so worth it.

nikki3kids - 101 days ago.
hey ya jess just to give you a heads up they will help you latch baby on for the first few feeds and then after that if you are doin well leave you to it. it is best not to start pumping till round 4weeks to let your breast get used to engorment or you will get mastis. also. trust me on this one after the midwifes and doctor see you giving birth breastfeeding in front of them is the lastthing on your mind. lol. and also depends on what type of pump you have if you dont get a letdown like you do when baby feeds then you may not make enough milk to just pump alone. so you will start to dry up and in the end wont have milk this can happen in a matter or days weeks mths. so yea just see how you gowhen baby gets here. im a mum of 3 and have b/f all 3 of mine and am still doing so since my 3rd is only 5mths

jessnmike99 - 101 days ago.
So i have acouple questions ladies...someone please help. It says you should start pumping about 6 hours after u give birth and then again every 3-3 hours, so are you suppose to store that milk in the hospitol, if so how? Also, What if I cant get used to breastfeeding, can i just pump and feed my baby that way? when I get to 5 or 6 months or when they start cutting teeth, can i just pump and feed that way and use my milk ive stored for the last couple of months?? one more...do you just start breastfeeding by yourself in the hospitol or do you wait for the nurses to tell you to or how does this whole process work here? i want to do it on my own, i dont want people watching me and stuff, can someone clue me in here?

brandyq - 102 days ago.
I am not sure how long the supply will last...Bailey is only eating 30-45 ccs at a time (1 ounce and a little bit more). I was hoping to do it for a year, but I can not for the life of me get this yeast infection to clear up and lucky me I now have chicken pox. Bailey already gets formula. The NICU put her on it. I basically use my milk as the water ingrediant for the formula. For example I am supposed to mix 4 ounces of water with 2 scoops of forumla so I use 4 ounces of breastmilk with 2 scoops of formula..I'm just not sure if I should keep it up or not.....

Heather12 - 103 days ago.
Brandy there are so many benefits for you and your little baby to continue to pump. I know that it is sooo hard I did it for a year and there were many times that I wanted to quit. I have 4 kids and a full time job. But every time i got frustrated I would think about how I was giving my baby the best thing for her and for myself. It does reduce your and your babies risk for cancer and other health issues. And Formula is so expensive, I can't imagine having to pay for it for a year. My BF has a 5 month old and he is having a hard time with the formula. She has had to switch it several times and ended up using the most expensive can $26. I had a lot of milk stored also. Ended up throwing most of it away. I was lucky had a good milk supply up until the very end. Hope you hang in there but understand if its to much. Good luck and if you need any encouragement or advice we are all here. I don't think that I could have made it the entire year if it weren't for this site.