pumping issues

"PK" wrote in message
oups.com...


Also, I'm drinking 2 liters of fluids per 24 hours, eating fenugreek,
cress seeds etc. I'm even occassionaly engorged if baby does not feed
for 5-6 hours (usually at night).

I just wanted to mention, you might want to increase your fluid intake. I
drink about a gallon (3.78 liters) of fluids per day. About half of that is
water, the rest is a combo of skim milk, one diet coke, one cup of coffee,
and juice. If I go lower than this, my supply dips. If you are peeing
regularly and the urine is light in color, your intake is fine.

Betsy

Anne Rogers wrote:
I get along great with my Avent Isis --- even when I'm
away from DS for 9 hours MWF. He's been drinking about
15oz during that time and I've been pumping about 16oz.
I find that if I'm having trouble, looking at pictures
of him helps. YMMV of course.


that's really good, I used an Isis on a day trip and I managed 1 extra ounce
to what was consumed (though in fairness 4oz of that was spilt), but I could
never have done it again 2 days later, my nipples really don't like it!

Good thing there's lots of different options out there :-)
I like the Isis because I find that once I get the let down,
I can just keep the handle pressed in and the milk keeps
coming. I don't have to keep pumping.

Emily

I thought it wasn't good to mix warm milk with cold? When I pump, I add the
milks together once they are both cold... I store the fresh milk in a
smaller container and then add to bigger container.

Adela

"PK" wrote in message
ups.com...

Keep it in a bottle in the fridge, and add to it throughout the day,
until
you have a quantity to freeze.

Betsy


Sheesh ! of course. Why did I not think of this before ? I was freezing
8 oz bottles with 1 oz in them ! Thanks Betsy.

PK.

Oh, I just had a thought about your Isis issues: I don't get great output
with the "petal" in place, but it works great without it. I also don't keep
up a steady pumping once I get let down, just hold down on the handle to
get a steady stream of milk until it loses suction, then pump again.

HTH,
Amy

PK writes:
: BTW, how long are you pumping each session?

: I need almost 10 minutes per oz that I pump. I thought this was a
: really low yeild. I feed her on one side and pump on the other after
: she's done. I'm still not proficient enough to do both simultaneously.

: PK

OK. A couple of comments....

1. 10 minutes per side is not a long time for a typical session. 20
to 30 minutes is probably more likely *especially when pumping after
nursing. Now, with a single manual pump that addes up to an hour of
pumping time, which is a little excessive. With a double electric,
that can be 30 minutes total instead of 20 minutes total currently,
with the liklihood of getting 4 times as much milk!

2. If you really want to pump to start or increase your stash, the
best time to pump is first thing in the morning before your nurse.
You are likely to get much more milk at this time.

Right now, I think what you are doing is too labor intensive to be
very effective.

Good luck,
Larry

wrote in message ...
PK writes:
: BTW, how long are you pumping each session?

: I need almost 10 minutes per oz that I pump. I thought this was a
: really low yeild. I feed her on one side and pump on the other after
: she's done. I'm still not proficient enough to do both simultaneously.

: PK

OK. A couple of comments....

1. 10 minutes per side is not a long time for a typical session. 20
to 30 minutes is probably more likely *especially when pumping after
nursing. Now, with a single manual pump that addes up to an hour of
pumping time, which is a little excessive. With a double electric,
that can be 30 minutes total instead of 20 minutes total currently,
with the liklihood of getting 4 times as much milk!

2. If you really want to pump to start or increase your stash, the
best time to pump is first thing in the morning before your nurse.
You are likely to get much more milk at this time.

Right now, I think what you are doing is too labor intensive to be
very effective.

Good luck,
Larry

I think if you re-read it she said she needs to pump for 10 mins per ounce
of milk not per session.

--
Pip

My girls :
DD2 Abby - 8 weeks early now 11 months and cruising the furniture.
DD1 Jasmine - 5 weeks early now 3.75 yrs favourite saying "I'm a big girl
cause I go to school Kindy"

"Inside me is a skinny women screaming to get out........but I can normally
keep the b*tch quiet with cookies"

--

Wow ! These are great responses. (I'm sorry I could not log in
yesterday). Yes, I have to pump for 10 minutes per oz that I express,
not 10 minutes per session. Also, I've begun pumping 3 times a day,
roughly at the same time that I would pump when I go back to work -
that's building up my stash. Also, I'm only offering Baby E a bottle
with 2 oz in it. After she's done with that, I put her directly to
breast to finish off her feeding.

I'd also like to update that she successfully took a bottle yesterday
for the first time, instead of letting the milk dribble down her chin !


So, I'm waiting for my electric pump to arrive (thanks Amy) and working
on a freezer stash and introducing a bottle. Hopefully things will work
out the way I hope.

By the way, how often do you usually let baby feed from the bottle ?
I'm doing twice a week right now.

PK

PK wrote:

By the way, how often do you usually let baby feed from the bottle ?
I'm doing twice a week right now.

My experience...I gave Hunter a bottle 2-3 times a week and he up and
refused it between 3-4 months old when I went back to work and he really
needed it.

I then decided I'd give Luke one 5-6 times a week and he was fine with them
until I stopped them at 13mos.

Some babies do fine with just a couple a week but if it is important that
the baby continues to except bottles (like for working mothers) then I
always recommend to do them more often. It was worth the extra hassle
believe me!

--
Nikki
Hunter 4/99
Luke 4/01
Thing One and Thing Two :-) EDD 4/06

"PK" wrote in message
ups.com...
snip
I'd also like to update that she successfully took a bottle yesterday
for the first time, instead of letting the milk dribble down her chin !


So, I'm waiting for my electric pump to arrive (thanks Amy) and working
on a freezer stash and introducing a bottle. Hopefully things will work
out the way I hope.

By the way, how often do you usually let baby feed from the bottle ?
I'm doing twice a week right now.

PK


You're welcome!
I started giving Madi a bottle at 4wks and we did it every day for about a
week. Then week 5 we slacked off and only gave her a couple that week.
Well, she seemed to forget how to drink from a bottle by the end of the
week, and we were back to chin dribbling. So, I'm giving her a bottle a day
again and she's doing better with it. She still can't handle the Avent
nipples (too big I think), but the Gerber newborn nipples are still working
well.
One day she was having a lot of gagging from the bottle, and I realized I
didn't tighten the neck ring enough so the milk was coming out too fast.
Here's another tip: Keep the Isis handy outside the baby's room (mine is in
the bathroom) for when she starts sleeping for longer stretches. My 6wk old
has started sleeping 6-8 hrs a night (OK, I let her sleep in her car seat,
but hey...it's 6-8 hrs of sleep!!). After about 4 hrs, I need to pump a
little so that I don't explode and it's nice to be able to sneak into the
bathroom and use the manual rather than risk waking the baby by going into
her room to get/use the electric.
Nobody warned me that breastfeeding would be the most technically difficult
part of having a baby!
Amy

PK writes:

: By the way, how often do you usually let baby feed from the bottle ?
: I'm doing twice a week right now.

Once a day. 5 times a week.

Larry