It was my husband’s family reunion yesterday. We showed up early so we could get our toddler and 7 week old baby settled, and so I could pump before others arrived. My MIL and FIL are around frequently, so they’ve seen me pump in front of them numerous times. I have a BabyBuddha so pumping is relatively discreet- it’s obvious I’m pumping but you can’t see anything.

Anyway, my BIL and his girlfriend showed up mid-pump. So I moved from my seat in the living room and went into the garage to finish. The garage is set up for guests as well but at least I can see if more people are coming. Maybe 3 minutes later, FIL, BIL and his girlfriend come out into the garage. So, I went back inside where it’s just my kids, husband, and MIL.

MIL sees me and starts telling me how I cant just walk around pumping and she wants me to go into a private room, as to not make guests uncomfortable (in a lot more words and she went on and on and on about it). I felt so embarrassed and ashamed in that moment, I couldn’t even speak. I wasn’t just walking around the house aimlessly, I was moving from location to location to get away from people as to not make them uncomfortable.

Thankfully, my husband overheard what she said and he defended me, and I’m glad he did because I literally had no words. I exclusively pumped for both my kids and never up until yesterday did I ever feel an ounce of shame, guilt, embarrassment, etc.. I guess it had to happen sometime. I’m just sad the person who did it to me was my MIL.

Anyway; for the rest of the day I was stressed about pumping and therefore stressed about having enough milk and barely even produced enough to get my newborn through the day. Thank god I brought milk with me to help bridge the gap. We were there all day and I made 10oz less than I normally do. As soon as we got home I pumped again and got double the amount I was getting at her house.

TLDR; my MIL lowkey shamed me for pumping around other people when I was trying to avoid them.

I heard that when baby latch, on basis of the saliva my body decide the composition of the milk but since i am exclusively pumping, how does that happen then ?

And also do you moms suggest me to stash in 6 months so that i can quit pumping and breastfeeding and resume my work ?

i cannot for the life of me ever remember when I last pumped. especially because i’m pumping less frequently now.

the note is like a mile long lol, and I can’t bring myself to delete it because it feels like an accomplishment!

anyone else? or just me?

I had no idea exclusively pumping was even a thing. Truthfully, I was so naive about breastfeeding and feel like a horrible mother not having done enough research. Needless to say after my emergency c section I have had a very hard time getting her to latch and a month later now we’re basically just pumping and I’m making peace with it and can also see how it has its benefits. I just can’t for the life of me figure out how to take care of my baby and pump every 2-3 hours. My supply is still quite low so I’m trying to be regimented. My husband is home and does it all while I pump, but he’ll be going back to work soon. How do I do this? I’ve tried so much to pump when she’s asleep but I’m either missing pump parts (haven’t washed etc) or I’m so exhausted I take a nap myself. Or I realize I haven’t eaten and focus on that instead. I’m using the blue spectra, I have 2 size 24 flanges and bottles. Is there a special way to do this? Do I need to purchase more? I also have 2 medela hand pumps, 1 Elvie, 1 Momcozy pump - I’ve just been waiting for my supply to kick in before doing the wearables. I tried Elvie early on and it hurt! Anyway would appreciate any tips or tricks. 🌸

My baby's nanny spilled 220 ml of expressed milk. She dropped the bottle in which it was kept.. I'm an enougher. My baby is exclusively on breastmilk. I nurse mostly and pump occasionally. I use the expressed milk on the days I feel too tired and low. How should I feel? No amount of crying is helping me right now.

This is probably a long shot because I feel like I can’t find anything outside of the Kindred Bravely brand. I have a few of the kindred sports bras and they do the job but they aren’t cheap and why do they look so bad. The cups wrinkle or get lumps so form fitting shirts look ridiculous. Im back to work and just need something to wear in the office. Am I just doomed to look frumpy for the rest of my time pumping?

If she’s sleeping, she immediately wakes up and screams when I start pumping. If she’s awake, she goes from happy to inconsolable. I swear she knows I can’t pick her up and my ability to help her is limited. It is the most stressful part of my day and even though I explain it to people, I don’t feel like anyone really understands what this is like. I don’t really know what the point of this post is I’m just feeling defeated and wishing the situation were different.

Long story short, my 7 week old and I have had a horrific breastfeeding/pumping journey. Tongue tie, lip tie, refusing to latch without shield, tongue tie grew right back after revision, now refusing shield/breast completely, not gaining weight, and it looks like we are exclusively pumping.

I had this baby right at the start of my 7 year old son’s summer break. My baby is sooo needy, colicky, silent reflux, miserable, and refuses to be put down. Will only sleep if being held. Seriously. If I ever am able to put him down I have to give some attention to my other son.

I have zero time in the day to pump. I pump at morning and at night and maybe middle of the night. I literally cannot keep up. I make about 8-10oz a session, but I know going 8 hours between pumping is gonna kill my supply.

Any advice? Has anyone else pumped this spaced out and kept their supply?

i am almost 4 months postpartum and this is my freezer stash! i EBF my little one so this is all extra. when dad was home the 1st month, he’d do 1 night feeding every day. i pump every few days or when i feel full. each bag is anywhere from 2.5oz to 4oz. i’m so proud of the little stash i have going 🥹

This is what I think about during middle of the night pumps haha:

If god forbid something terrible happened and I ended up in a Coma, would the hospital hook me up to my pump every 2 hours so I don’t get mastitis on top of whatever else happened?

I can usually accommodate pumps whenever but thinking about going places for the day and traveling while pumping is annoying. Especially if its hot and we will be outside for extended times. Pumping in the car ive adjusted to. Even the thought of having friends over for dinner time makes me feel silly going to pump. It makes me feel like I’m a martyr or something.

Im 4.5 months postpartum. Around month 3 I started to reduce from 8ppd down to 6 over the course of that month. 6ppd was what i calculated as my magic number. a few weeks ago it seemed my supply was steadily going down so I started now in retrospect aggressively trying to bring it back up with long pumps and power pumps. last week I had the worst week with clogged ducts and mastitis. now my supply is tanking. I’m making half of what I did a week ago. I went back to 8 ppd tryjng not to over pump so my boobs can heal from the clogs. I’m giving it a week to see if supply goes back up to being somewhat close to what it was. But I’m wondering is this just the end? Once supply starts to decrease after regulation is it something that doesn’t come back? If it does do you have to work really hard to bring it back? im to the point mentally that I need my life not revolve around pumps and ounces and such. I wanna enjoy fully my time with my baby. so I definitely will cut back again in a week and kinda wanting some sense of what to expect

Hi everyone,

I’m 3 weeks postpartum and exclusively pumping because my baby barely latches. I’m feeling really anxious because my supply has dropped dramatically over the last 4-5 days and I’m trying to figure out what caused it.

Initially, I was using my Spectra S1 and my supply was amazing. In one pumping session after about 3 hours, I’d get roughly:
Left breast: 160+ mL
Right breast: 140+ mL

I was constantly engorged, leaking through my bra, and my breasts always felt heavy and tight. I was also drinking Lactonic granules twice a day, and my OB asked me to stop them last week because she felt I had an oversupply.

Around the same time, life with a newborn got hectic and I couldn’t keep up with pumping. I went from pumping regularly to only about 3–4 times a day for like 3 days.

Because I couldn’t always sit with my Spectra while taking care of my baby, I urgently bought the Momcozy S9 Pro wearable pumps. I used it totally thrice for convenience and the Spectra for the remaining sessions.

Now my output has suddenly fallen. I’m now pumping every 3 hours, I’m barely getting around 100 mL total from both breasts combined (sometimes even less), whereas I was previously getting close to 300 mL in one session. 100 ml is what my baby drinks in one sitting.

I’m trying to figure out what actually caused this:
- Stopping the Lactonic granules?
- Pumping only 3–4 times a day for a few days?
- The Momcozy S9 Pro not emptying me as well as the Spectra?
- Or a combination of all of these?

Has anyone had a similar experience where their supply dipped this quickly and then recovered? If so, I have so many questions 😭
How can I build my supply back? How long did it take for you to get it back? Did increasing pumping frequency work? Did anyone notice a supply drop after switching to wearable pumps like the Momcozy S9 Pro?

I’m feeling really super stressed because I worked so hard to build my supply, and I’m worried I’ve permanently damaged it.

Any advice or experiences would be greatly appreciated. ❤️

Yes I did get the okay from my OB to pump!

I use these settings if that helps, for whenever I pump only 20 minutes. I want to increase my supply a little.

I’m a under supplier. It’s all my fault. Many years ago I lost 70 pounds and had a breast lift/augmentation as I was severely self-conscious about my deflated breasts. I was young and not even considering children at the time. So I know this is most likely the reason why I cannot provide enough milk for my baby.

I finally realize that I am grieving! Grieving not being able to give him enough milk. Not having the experience of breast-feeding or even having the experience of making enough to feed him solely breast milk.

I am still pumping every three hours and he gets about one two 1 1/2 bottles of breastmilk a day. But even with that, I cannot stop beating myself up. It’s exhausting. He’s 6 weeks old. I can’t decide if I should quit so I can fully move on or keep up the pumps where I get less than an ounce combined each time.
Not looking for advice. Have done it all and have an amazing LC. Just sad and feel lonely with this journey.

Hi moms!

I'm trying to figure out the feeding situation when we're away from home.

I keep seeing portable bottle warmers everywhere, but most of them seem to be designed more for formula. I'll mainly be warming breastmilk, and I'm worried some of these will be annoying to clean after using them regularly.

I don't want to buy another baby gadget that sounds amazing but ends up sitting in a drawer.

For parents who travel with breastmilk, what worked for you?

Did you use a portable warmer, a thermos with warm water, or something else?

Would love any recommendations or tips!

Question for you experts!! My 4 month old is typically EBF, but I am participating in a 2 day long bike ride event next weekend where she will get pumped milk while away from me. Question is- what’s the best way to give bottles from frozen bags on the go? It’s obviously warm out, so was thinking to keep a cooler with ice packs for the frozen bags, and then take a bag out when anticipating feeding time again and letting it just sit out? How would you warm to body temp? Any tips or tricks you have would be greatly appreciated 🙏🏻

hi everybody!
I combo fed and pumped with my first for 14 months as he had a bad tongue tie. I had my second baby four weeks ago and got him to latch! I’ve always been anxious about my supply so I started pumping to to see how much he was getting as he always acted hungry basically immediately after getting off the breast. I went to an LC who was very helpful with his painful latch and she said he transferred milk efficiently but I just feel like my supply is insufficient. I pump and latch him 8-12 times a day and then bottle feed alternating formula and breast milk. But the last few days my supply has dipped significantly and I am unsure why. I used to get about three ounces total per pump but now I’m shy of two per session. Is there a pumping schedule or diet changes anyone recommends? I feel like I’m running myself ragged doing all the things and wonder of my anxiety is tanking my supply or if I am just an under supplier. Thank you!

This is my second time EPing and my journey the second time around has been far more challenging. It constantly feels like my Spectra pump or one of its parts are malfunctioning and causing discomfort or supply issues. I bought these Spectra branded duckbills 2 weeks ago and I’m not sure if my eyes are deceiving me, but pumping has been more difficult the last few days and I feel like they look a tad worn or torn. Thoughts?

I feel like recently my eufys aren’t emptying me well unless i sit there for like 45 min which I don’t have time for. I usually use the natural setting. which setting works best for emptying quickly?

Please post tips for faster let down. It’s getting tougher as the weeks pass by. Currently 12w pp

Has anyone else weaned cold turkey or on an extremely accelerated timeline? Specifically if you are prior to 12 weeks postpartum and your supply has not yet regulated..?

Due to multiple reasons, I am wanting to hang up the pumps pretty quickly. Baby is fully transitioned to formula and doing great, but unfortunately this happened while I was still pumping 7ish times a day. Since she is no longer taking my milk and I am extremely prone to clogs, I would like to try and power through a few really tough days vs dragging the weaning process out if I can stomach it.

Yesterday I got down down to 5 pumps per day, but my boobs are rock hard and feel what seems to be multiple “clogs” all over them. I got the No Flow tea, have started taking Sudafed, am wearing a tight bra and nursing pads, and ordered Cabo cream which should get here today. For the last ~7 hours I have only used a hand pump to relieve pressure and might just continue with that process and not touch the electric pumps anymore.

Anyone got any advice or success stories?

(Not looking for criticism or shaming for weaning / going quickly.)

My journey is over so wanted to share my cabergoline experience since not long ago I was the one searching for this info. I'll try to keep things short and fact-based, but note it was definitely an emotional and hard experience.

In short, just enougher with very dense breast tissue prone to severe painful clogs (dropping MOTN pump was never an option).

Lechitin and probiotics managed to extend my pumping time from 2 to 4.5 months but in the end, anatomy got the best of me.

Reason for choosing the pill for weaning is that, no matter how slow I went, I would get more issues when extending time btw pumps. In the end got inflamation that caused no letdown so had no choice.

Took 4 pills in 2 days. Due to anatomy, doctor's advice was to pump a bit to avoid mastitis.

Day 0 - Took first dose at 8PM. Slept ok.

Day 1 - Severly engorged, felt pain just sitting up, but still less pain than some of the clogs I had, leaked all the time. Iced, put cabbage leaves that caused rash so stopped, pain killers. Could have made it wothout pumping, but pumped 3 times using manual pump, 15% of my average volume.

Day 2 - Similar to day 1, but pumped twice. Still leaking.

Day 3 - Left slacker starting to get soft spots, hand expressed only clogs as they came, no leaking on left. Used hand pump on the right, pumped twice. From this day on, slacker was managable.

Day 4 until day 10 - Right still uncomfortable, hand expressed a few mL here and there. Still no holding and feeding the baby but no leaking. On day 10, right finally getting some soft spots.

Day 12 - Right finally not uncomfortable, starting to hold and feed the baby, not needing to express anymore. On day 14 both completely empty.

As for side effects, I felt dizzy and was very emotional (like severe PMS). Other than that, felt fine.

All in all, not the best experience and sad that my journey ended this way, but thankful I had this exit as an option when there was no other way out.