Breast Pumping Exclusively Tips

It’s WORLD BREASTFEEDING WEEK! YAY! Shout out to all those moms that breastfeed their babies in any capacity.  And honestly even if you have made the choice to not breastfeed I salute you as well.  I did not breast feed Cameron, but I have with the other two.  And what have learned is every experience brings its own fair share of hurdles.  Breastfeeding is the most rewarding yet toughest jobs and takes much sacrifice.  I previously gave a full on breastfeeding guide, click here to read it.  Since that post I wanted to center this post today on all the pumping moms.

I have shared that Cyrus has never been a baby that likes to nurse long, to be honest he has always preferred the bottle.  Even after endless trips to the Lactation consultants, watching youtube, I could never get him to stay latched longer than 10 minutes max! And as Cyrus has gotten older his desire to nurse just continued to decline! So I have always had to pump on the side.  Which honestly helped stock up quite a stash of milk. Look at all the ounces. I was able to stock up during my maternity leave!

Kimono – Jeans – Earrings – Cuff

As Cyrus has gotten older he has grown to not want to latch hardly ever. I am almost exclusively a pumping mom. I wanted to share a few tips to those pumping moms or really any moms that are on that last half of reaching a year.  It can get challenging for some to keep that milk supply up.  Especially if you are exclusively pumping.

I understand that Cyrus would prefer eating off the bottle.  However, at least a couple times a day I will attempt to latch him.  Just to keep my body programmed that the baby still needs this milk.

I have been using the same pump that I used for Calvin so it is a bit old ad really has started to decline.  When I switched over to pumping exclusively I teamed up with Willow pump, to try this style of pump.  I fell in love with it because it was freeing, I didn’t have to be tied to an outlet plug. You get a coach that helps you with any questions you may have to assist you with learning how to use  the pump to be able to get the maximum amount of ounces during each pump.  I know that is what was tough for me before is when I switch to pump I just felt like I had to always go in my room and pump for an extended amount of time. Its freeing and convenient.

Once I made the switch I was able to pump more ounces.  It is important that regardless of what pump works best from you, just ensure that it is pumping efficiently so it does not affect your milk supply.

It can be easy to start stretching those pump session out further and further.  Especially if you have milk stored up.  Once that happens it will just slowly decrease your supply.  Set a timer to remind yourself to go pump.  Staying frequent with  pumping is essential! I pump every 4 hours now but used to pump about every 3 hours.

There are many options.  Pinterest help me with tips, click here to see lists of foods. I personally always drink Mother’s milk regularly, and drink LOTS of water.

I am not going to lie I was a little bummed at first with I made the decision to exclusively pump.  I also had many questions on would pumping exclusively work.  With the right tools and resources I have been able to keep up my milk supply!

If you are like me and no longer could nurse for whatever your circumstance may be.  Stay encouraged and keep pumping!