I am officially finished pumping. Whoohoo!! You can read my previous entries here.
I EP'ed for a total of 6 months. At first I had very mixed feelings about weaning. I was very excited to be done, but on the other hand I felt guilty for quitting. Now that I am completely done I am glad I made the decision to stop.
My weaning process took a total of 8 weeks. I was pumping 5 times - 6, 10, 2, 5, & 9. Here was my weaning schedule.
-Starting 5 pumps a day
-Dropped 5 p.m. pump - total of 3 weeks. Full pumping session.
-Dropped 10 a.m. pump - total of 2 weeks. Full pumping session
-Dropped 2 p.m. pump - total of 1 week. Pumped for 10 minutes each session
-Dropped 9 p.m. pump - total of 1 week. Pumped for 10 minutes each session
When I was down to one pump per day I did this for about 4 days. I went 2 days without pumping, then pumped just enough to relieve a little pressure. That was my last time.
It feels amazing to have my life back! I feel like I can fully enjoy my son now without trying to figure out how I'm going to entertain him while I'm pumping.
At 6 months here are my stats:
* I spent a total of 330 hours pumping
* I pumped an estimated 9000 ounces
* I have a freezer stash that will last me 3 months
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Way to go Kylee! We all celebrate when an EP mom makes her goal!
Showing posts with label Schedule. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Schedule. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Friday, September 2, 2011
Ixelle and Thumper - Checking in
Time sure does fly, Thumper just turned 6 months old! I did some calculating and assuming every month had 30 days, and I spent 120 minutes a day pumping I've already pumped for the equivalent of 15 days. I'm still planning on continuing until he is a year old and that will mean an entire month of my life will have been spent hooked up to that pump! Wow. Honestly I still haven't decided whether I will pump till he is a year or pump until I have enough of a freezer stash to last him to a year but ideally the former. I now pump 4 times a day for 30 minutes at a time, whenever I wake up 7am-ish, 11am, 4pm and 11pm. Once I dropped my 7pm pump the 3am pump followed really soon after. My supply dipped for one day when I got my period again (didn't miss that at all) but the next day was back up to normal so I guess I can now thumb my nose at the stories I kept hearing about milk drying up at 6 months. Granted, my supply isn't what it once was but I am still often freezing 4-8 oz a day and am back to a full freezer of milk that I need to give away or donate again.
We've also started on solids and while he wasn't a huge fan of baby cereal, Thumper has been taking his veggies like a champ! He's tried carrots, peas, sweet potato and green beans so far and likes all of them. However he is still drinking as much milk as he was before so I'm not relaxing about supply yet.
One of my main frustrations now is having to warm up milk that was in the fridge (Thumper won't take it cold) since the gap between pumpings is so wide. The other is having to wait till 11pm to pump when I'm tired and Thumper goes to sleep at around 8. Considering how things could be much worse, I really don't have anything to complain about.
In non-pumping news, I never knew a baby could keep me so busy day in and day out. I feel like I never get anything done, but the time I get to spend with Thumper is so worth it!
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Tips - use a timer to keep on track
In the early days, when you are in the depths of sleep deprivation and awake around the clock, it can be hard to keep on top of a pumping schedule or remember when you pumped last or should pump next.
One way to make it easier, is to get a cheap battery powered kitchen timer for your pump bag, something like this:
When you pump, you can use it to time your session - i.e. if you will be pumping for 15 minutes, set and start it when you begin pumping, and then you have one less thing to keep track of when you are already juggling pumping + entertaining baby + telephone ringing, etc.
Later on I continued to use the timer method when I was pumping at work or on my own. I found that when I was able to zone out and watch TV, read a book, or otherwise NOT focus on how much milk was adding up, I tended to get much better production than when I was stressing about it. Also, sometimes when I was nice and relaxed on my lunch hour, I'd forget when I had started if not for the timer going off :)
When you finish, you can set the timer for the remaining interval until you need to pump again - i.e. 2 hours and 45 minutes, and toss it back in your pump bag. When it goes off, you'll know it's time to hook up again, even if you can't remember what you did 5 minutes ago, let alone 3 hours :) Especially in this day and age when clocks and watches are disappearing, a timer can be VERY helpful!
What pumping tips do you have to share?
One way to make it easier, is to get a cheap battery powered kitchen timer for your pump bag, something like this:
When you pump, you can use it to time your session - i.e. if you will be pumping for 15 minutes, set and start it when you begin pumping, and then you have one less thing to keep track of when you are already juggling pumping + entertaining baby + telephone ringing, etc.
Later on I continued to use the timer method when I was pumping at work or on my own. I found that when I was able to zone out and watch TV, read a book, or otherwise NOT focus on how much milk was adding up, I tended to get much better production than when I was stressing about it. Also, sometimes when I was nice and relaxed on my lunch hour, I'd forget when I had started if not for the timer going off :)
When you finish, you can set the timer for the remaining interval until you need to pump again - i.e. 2 hours and 45 minutes, and toss it back in your pump bag. When it goes off, you'll know it's time to hook up again, even if you can't remember what you did 5 minutes ago, let alone 3 hours :) Especially in this day and age when clocks and watches are disappearing, a timer can be VERY helpful!
What pumping tips do you have to share?
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Schedule & Equipment - Janna
I have been exclusively pumping (EPing) since my daughter was 3 days old. You can read about how I came to that decision in my first post here. For the first three months I tried to pump at least 8-10 times per day. I didn’t worry about the spacing as much as making sure that I got the correct number of pumps in per day. I tried to space them as evenly as possible and not go more than 4 hours between pumps. I ended up dropping the middle of the night pump when my daughter was just over a month old because I just couldn’t do it anymore. I would stay up really late and pump around 11pm and wake up about 6am to pump. I would usually be really uncomfortable and engorged, but I felt like I needed this extra sleep to function as I was continuing to feed my daughter throughout the night as well. As long as I continued to maintain 8 pumps per day, I didn’t see any decrease in my milk output. When my daughter was just over two months old I started experimenting with dropping pumps. My goal was to get down to 4 pumps per day by the time I returned to work, so I needed to taper. I basically just dropped 1 pump per day each week and re-spaced my pumps as evenly as possible throughout the day. I was finally beginning to feel like exclusive pumping would be possible long term and amazingly, I did not experience any drop in my milk supply as I dropped pumps. In fact, my supply increased when I returned to work when my daughter was 3 months old!
When I initially started pumping at home I used a Madela Symphony to build my supply. From what I have read, a hospital pump is absolutely essential to building your milk supply if your baby is not nursing. When I first started pumping I was not making a lot of milk (about 12-16 ounces per day). I had to work really hard to build my supply. I found the most useful techniques were to pump for at least 30 minutes (if you baby is not nursing at all), using heat packs, and breast massage. Also a hands free bra is absolutely essential! Once I made these changes to my pumping regimen, I saw a drastic increase in the amount of milk I was able to pump. I bought a Madela Freestyle so that I could pump on the go (in the car!) and to use when I returned to work. The portable pump allowed me a lot of freedom that I didn’t have with the hospital pump.
On the days that I work, I pump at 5am, 10am and 3pm at work, and right before I go to bed (usually about 10pm). I like to sleep in on the weekends (if my daughter will let me!), so my first pump is usually about 7:30 am and then I pump again around 12pm, 5pm, and before bed. I started out with 30 minute pumping sessions, but recently I have gone down to 20-25 minutes. I did see a slight drop in my milk supply, but I’m still making plenty to meet my daughter’s needs. I also developed mastitis about 2 weeks ago which may have contributed to the decrease in my supply as well. As a side note, mastitis is extremely painful and takes quite a while to recover from. Take good care of your nipples if you are EPing! I had not been using lanolin on a regular basis and developed sores and cracks which I think may have been the cause of my mastitis. I now put lanolin on my nipples before I pump to help reduce the friction. I have heard that some moms use olive oil and that works well too.
If you aren’t able to pump enough milk to meet your baby’s needs, she is still going to benefit greatly from whatever amount you can provide. Feel good about what you are able to accomplish and try not to compare yourself to other moms. Take EPing as far as you want to go and try not to feel guilty if/when you decide to give it up. EPing is a lot of work and is a huge time commitment. Please know that you’re not alone. There are a lot of moms who end up in this same situation and choose to pump exclusively. It is one of the many options to feed your baby. If you can make it through the first 3 months it truly does get easier!!
Here are some of my favorite internet resources that I found to be instrumental to my pumping success.
http://newborns.stanford.edu/Breastfeeding/MaxProduction.html
http://newborns.stanford.edu/Breastfeeding/HandExpression.html
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
My Non-schedule Schedule - Rachel
Many of the EPers I have come across have a specific schedule they pump by. However, that has never worked for me. I began pumping every 3 hours (8 x per day). I would feed her and then pump right afterward. (My supply was greater than her demand from the beginning, so I am able to pump after she eats instead of before.) I didn't pay attention to the time I pumped, I just pumped after she was fed. After about 2 weeks I began holding her and cuddling with her after she ate, pushing my pump sessions further back. I started pumping every 3-4 hours during the day and continued to pump with her feeds at night. At this point I was pumping 5-7 oz per session.
Once my body began to feel back to normal after my labor and delivery, I had an increased desire to get out of the house and have some adult interaction. With increased outings, I started testing the limits of how long I could go between pump sessions. I quickly realized I could go 4-5 hours and continue to maintain my supply. With this new schedule I was pumping about 7-10 oz per session.
Hannah is now just shy of 3 months and I am usually pumping 5 times/day. I have no set times, just whenever it fits into my schedule. Sometimes I will pump after 4 hours, sometimes after 7 hours. I return to work next week and plan to maintain my non-schedule schedule. Being a nurse, my breaks come whenever they come. I will not be able to say "it is 10 o'clock time for me to pump." I plan to pump when I wake up before work, 3 times at work (12 hour days), and then when I get home before bed.
I am a very relaxed EPer. I have never kept track of exactly how much I am pumping. I know that I continue to make more than Hannah demands by about 6-10 oz per day. I have 450-500 oz of BM in the freezer. My ultimate goal is to get Hannah to 1 year on BM. If my supply maintains with my return to work, then I plan to drop to 2 pump sessions at work when she hits 5 months. I hope to get a freezer stash adequate enough to stop pumping before we hit that year mark.
Some people find they need the consistency of a set schedule. That just has never worked for me. I plan my pump sessions around my day, not my day around my pump sessions. There are a million different ways to be an EPer, find out what works for you. There is no wrong way way.
Once my body began to feel back to normal after my labor and delivery, I had an increased desire to get out of the house and have some adult interaction. With increased outings, I started testing the limits of how long I could go between pump sessions. I quickly realized I could go 4-5 hours and continue to maintain my supply. With this new schedule I was pumping about 7-10 oz per session.
Hannah is now just shy of 3 months and I am usually pumping 5 times/day. I have no set times, just whenever it fits into my schedule. Sometimes I will pump after 4 hours, sometimes after 7 hours. I return to work next week and plan to maintain my non-schedule schedule. Being a nurse, my breaks come whenever they come. I will not be able to say "it is 10 o'clock time for me to pump." I plan to pump when I wake up before work, 3 times at work (12 hour days), and then when I get home before bed.
I am a very relaxed EPer. I have never kept track of exactly how much I am pumping. I know that I continue to make more than Hannah demands by about 6-10 oz per day. I have 450-500 oz of BM in the freezer. My ultimate goal is to get Hannah to 1 year on BM. If my supply maintains with my return to work, then I plan to drop to 2 pump sessions at work when she hits 5 months. I hope to get a freezer stash adequate enough to stop pumping before we hit that year mark.
Some people find they need the consistency of a set schedule. That just has never worked for me. I plan my pump sessions around my day, not my day around my pump sessions. There are a million different ways to be an EPer, find out what works for you. There is no wrong way way.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Pumping Challenges: Living Arrangements - Ixelle
It really takes a special kind of perseverance to pump exclusively, naturally there are many challenges along the way. Here is one of my struggles.
Living arrangements.
Although my husband and I have a place of our own, we rent out a room to a friend of ours and also have been providing a room for my brother to stay. So it's always been a house full of guys and lil ol me. This puts a big restriction on where I can pump in my own house. For the first 3 months I was pumping in Thumpers room, and between pumping, skin to skin time and trying to get nursing going, I was basically a prisoner in the nursery. Once I went hands-free I started trying things like feeding Thumper, or changing him while I pumped, or sorting his laundry. For 2 months I re-read some of my favorite books (and would usually look up at the clock and realize that I pumped for too long). For right now I see my pumping time as 'me' time where I can do things that I want to do whether it's read, do chores, spend time with Thumper or even type up blog posts. Thinking about something other than pumping helps tremendously. In the past week, I moved the pump into the master bedroom (which has been in dire need of a good cleaning) and have been able to fold laundry, use my laptop to access the internet instead of just my phone, clean a little, relax a little. Just having a change of scenery is great for my mental state while pumping. I don't have to look around and be reminded of only baby things. This also means that I can use the master bathroom instead of having to worry about covering up to go use the bathroom or go wash up. I'm still cautiously exploring other places to pump and have successfully pumped in the car once (not while driving), and will need to do that again this weekend. A change in scenery makes quite a difference when you are getting frustrated or burnt out with pumping.
Living arrangements.
Although my husband and I have a place of our own, we rent out a room to a friend of ours and also have been providing a room for my brother to stay. So it's always been a house full of guys and lil ol me. This puts a big restriction on where I can pump in my own house. For the first 3 months I was pumping in Thumpers room, and between pumping, skin to skin time and trying to get nursing going, I was basically a prisoner in the nursery. Once I went hands-free I started trying things like feeding Thumper, or changing him while I pumped, or sorting his laundry. For 2 months I re-read some of my favorite books (and would usually look up at the clock and realize that I pumped for too long). For right now I see my pumping time as 'me' time where I can do things that I want to do whether it's read, do chores, spend time with Thumper or even type up blog posts. Thinking about something other than pumping helps tremendously. In the past week, I moved the pump into the master bedroom (which has been in dire need of a good cleaning) and have been able to fold laundry, use my laptop to access the internet instead of just my phone, clean a little, relax a little. Just having a change of scenery is great for my mental state while pumping. I don't have to look around and be reminded of only baby things. This also means that I can use the master bathroom instead of having to worry about covering up to go use the bathroom or go wash up. I'm still cautiously exploring other places to pump and have successfully pumped in the car once (not while driving), and will need to do that again this weekend. A change in scenery makes quite a difference when you are getting frustrated or burnt out with pumping.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
My pumping schedule through 6 months - Heather
One of the most common questions I see from new EPers on message boards and forums is "When do you pump?" It is often followed up by "...and for how long...and when can I drop a session...and what will happen to my supply?" While everyone's experience is different, hearing those experiences and their outcomes can help an EPer make their own decision on pumping schedules. Some of our Pumping Moms included their schedules in their "Intro" posts, and some others (like me) will offer an entire post about pumping schedules.
Most online resources (Kellymom, iVillage forums - see links at right) recommend pumping for 120 minutes a day total, and I loosely followed that guideline. At the hospital, the lactation consultant started me pumping every 3 hours around the clock for 15 minutes per session, a total of 8X a day and 120 minutes.
I had a severe problem with sleep deprivation the first week after going into labor, to the point I was actually hallucinating on the car ride to The Cupcake's first doctor appointment. I realized midway through a conversation with nobody that I was not all there. I went into labor on a Monday night after working all day and being up since about 7am, slept zilch that night, and got only a few 15 minute naps in the next two days of my hospital stay. Even when I sent TC to the nursery she was brought back to try feeding on demand any time she showed a hunger cue, and we've already discussed how frustrating those first attempts were. The first night home was perhaps the most stressful of my life so there was NO chance of sleep there...I absolutely understand now how sleep deprivation can be used as torture. Though my dear husband and mother tried to offer me some respite by taking on TC's care, I didn't really get over it for quite a long time.
This is a long way of explaining that something had to give, and I dropped the 3am pumping session at 1 month. I still had to feed The Cupcake every 2-3 hours, but it was much easier to give a bottle than try to pump also. If perchance she was sleeping at that point, I could get back to sleep quicker myself. I had built up 3-4 days of "fresh" milk in the refrigerator and a few hundred ounces in the freezer already. So for the next month I pumped 7X a day for about 17 minutes, which was still around 120 minutes per day. She was eating about 42 oz per day, which is way off the charts at any of the sites I mentioned above, but the pediatrician didn't bat an eye and she was "wasting" a lot with reflux. While I didn't keep track, looking back I estimate I was making upwards of 50 oz per day at that point
At 2 months I cut down to 5X a day for 20 minutes each session, 6, 10, 2, 6, & 10. Still covered what she ate + added to the freezer every day. My output was not noticeably different. I headed back to work just before 3 months, though I didn't experience the drop many women do when returning to work. I actually found pumping at work to be relaxing, it was certainly much easier than pumping at home and trying to entertain The Cupcake at the same time, plus it was a nice twice daily break from a less than exciting job :)
Once I was certain I wasn't going to have the back to work crash, I started itching to drop another session. While I didn't mind pumping at work, I had cut down to part time soon after returning, and on my days as a stay at home mom I felt greatly restricted by my pumping schedule and it was hard to leave the house or get anything accomplished. So at 3 1/2 months I changed my schedule again so that I pumped 4X a day, roughly 6am, noon, 5pm, and 10pm. 25 minutes per session, a little longer in the morning as my let down seemed to drag a bit. At this point I was still replacing everything TC ate in a day, and freezing 4-8oz additional, so again, around 45-50 oz per day. My deep freezer was full. I had farmed out storage of 2 large boxes, about 400 oz to my parents' house, and had yet to touch any of the frozen milk. At this point I had pretty much decided that 6 months was my goal, so I held my breath and took another big leap...
At 4 1/2 months I cut down to pumping 3X a day, every 8 hours. 30 minutes per session.
For the first two weeks everything was still great, I was getting 15 oz per session so I continued to produce everything my kid ate in a day and occasionally froze 4 oz here and there. I had a few more clogged ducts than the previous times I'd cut down, but that was to be expected when going 8 hours between sessions, I figured my body would adjust...
And then at about 5 months, my supply tanked.
TANKED. I lost 1/3 of my daily production. And TC seemed exceptionally hungry, despite the addition of rice cereal to her diet. In the next 2 weeks she consumed everything I was making daily plus a big chunk of the fresh reserves from the refrigerator, so all of a sudden my buffer was gone!
The Cupcake is just a few days away from 6 months old, and I started defrosting frozen milk for the first time tonight. Even if I completely stopped pumping TODAY, there's over a month of milk in the freezer...so we should be okay...but I feel extremely anxious. I'm definitely ready to "get my life back" and stop being a slave to my pump...my family is nothing but supportive...but I can't help but feel nervous about this next big step.
Wish me luck!
Most online resources (Kellymom, iVillage forums - see links at right) recommend pumping for 120 minutes a day total, and I loosely followed that guideline. At the hospital, the lactation consultant started me pumping every 3 hours around the clock for 15 minutes per session, a total of 8X a day and 120 minutes.
I had a severe problem with sleep deprivation the first week after going into labor, to the point I was actually hallucinating on the car ride to The Cupcake's first doctor appointment. I realized midway through a conversation with nobody that I was not all there. I went into labor on a Monday night after working all day and being up since about 7am, slept zilch that night, and got only a few 15 minute naps in the next two days of my hospital stay. Even when I sent TC to the nursery she was brought back to try feeding on demand any time she showed a hunger cue, and we've already discussed how frustrating those first attempts were. The first night home was perhaps the most stressful of my life so there was NO chance of sleep there...I absolutely understand now how sleep deprivation can be used as torture. Though my dear husband and mother tried to offer me some respite by taking on TC's care, I didn't really get over it for quite a long time.
This is a long way of explaining that something had to give, and I dropped the 3am pumping session at 1 month. I still had to feed The Cupcake every 2-3 hours, but it was much easier to give a bottle than try to pump also. If perchance she was sleeping at that point, I could get back to sleep quicker myself. I had built up 3-4 days of "fresh" milk in the refrigerator and a few hundred ounces in the freezer already. So for the next month I pumped 7X a day for about 17 minutes, which was still around 120 minutes per day. She was eating about 42 oz per day, which is way off the charts at any of the sites I mentioned above, but the pediatrician didn't bat an eye and she was "wasting" a lot with reflux. While I didn't keep track, looking back I estimate I was making upwards of 50 oz per day at that point
At 2 months I cut down to 5X a day for 20 minutes each session, 6, 10, 2, 6, & 10. Still covered what she ate + added to the freezer every day. My output was not noticeably different. I headed back to work just before 3 months, though I didn't experience the drop many women do when returning to work. I actually found pumping at work to be relaxing, it was certainly much easier than pumping at home and trying to entertain The Cupcake at the same time, plus it was a nice twice daily break from a less than exciting job :)
Once I was certain I wasn't going to have the back to work crash, I started itching to drop another session. While I didn't mind pumping at work, I had cut down to part time soon after returning, and on my days as a stay at home mom I felt greatly restricted by my pumping schedule and it was hard to leave the house or get anything accomplished. So at 3 1/2 months I changed my schedule again so that I pumped 4X a day, roughly 6am, noon, 5pm, and 10pm. 25 minutes per session, a little longer in the morning as my let down seemed to drag a bit. At this point I was still replacing everything TC ate in a day, and freezing 4-8oz additional, so again, around 45-50 oz per day. My deep freezer was full. I had farmed out storage of 2 large boxes, about 400 oz to my parents' house, and had yet to touch any of the frozen milk. At this point I had pretty much decided that 6 months was my goal, so I held my breath and took another big leap...
At 4 1/2 months I cut down to pumping 3X a day, every 8 hours. 30 minutes per session.
For the first two weeks everything was still great, I was getting 15 oz per session so I continued to produce everything my kid ate in a day and occasionally froze 4 oz here and there. I had a few more clogged ducts than the previous times I'd cut down, but that was to be expected when going 8 hours between sessions, I figured my body would adjust...
And then at about 5 months, my supply tanked.
TANKED. I lost 1/3 of my daily production. And TC seemed exceptionally hungry, despite the addition of rice cereal to her diet. In the next 2 weeks she consumed everything I was making daily plus a big chunk of the fresh reserves from the refrigerator, so all of a sudden my buffer was gone!
The Cupcake is just a few days away from 6 months old, and I started defrosting frozen milk for the first time tonight. Even if I completely stopped pumping TODAY, there's over a month of milk in the freezer...so we should be okay...but I feel extremely anxious. I'm definitely ready to "get my life back" and stop being a slave to my pump...my family is nothing but supportive...but I can't help but feel nervous about this next big step.
Wish me luck!
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