Breastfeeding or pumping?

[Anonymous]

I just had my first baby this month and I’m mostly breastfeeding but also pumping and we add a bottle of formula in. He eats 10 times a day and I’m pumping 4-5 times a day. He’s an incredibly slow eater ( 30-60 minutes at a time) and the pump I’m done in 20-30 minutes. I make more milk than he can eat and I’m really trying to take advantage and create a freezer stash for when my milk supply regulates and I go back to work. This was encouraged by the two IBLCE I went to see.

I enjoy breastfeeding my little guy but I have been finding I prefer the pump even more because it’s so much quicker. I’m starting to wonder if I should switch to pumping since I’m pumping for half of his feeds anyway. Then I stop myself and think my supply will regulate and he will become more efficient. Would you switch to pumping or continue to breastfeed and just wait it out?

[Anonymous]

Continue to breastfeed and wait it out. He will get more efficient fairly soon. For mine it was usually around 2 months. The pump seems like a good idea now, but you will basically be chained to it if you decide to exclusively pump. Think about when baby is just a little older and you want to go out and do something. You will need to take the pump and all the parts with you, find a place to pump, and then sit there and pump and miss out on whatever is going on. Then also carry a cooler bag with you to keep the milk cold. When they get efficient, it can be as quick as 10 minutes to nurse them. Push through this. Exclusive pumping is not something to take on lightly.

[Anonymous]

First of all you are doing great and there is no wrong answer.

Second there is NO WAY I personally would commit to EPing at this stage. Newborns take a long time to feed and everything you describe is totally normal. But he won’t be like this much longer most likely. They learn to feed very quickly. Mine could do 5 min a side and drain my breast once they were a few months old. It’s night and day compared to newborn days. It’s also sooooo much easier than EPing for a year.

[Anonymous]

Yes definitely continue to breastfeed. Mine went on a nursing strike at 9 months and it sucked to exclusively pump then. They definitely get more efficient and flexibility is amazing especially as you and babe get more comfortable

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Continue to breastfeed and wait it out. He will get more efficient fairly soon. For mine it was usually around 2 months. The pump seems like a good idea now, but you will basically be chained to it if you decide to exclusively pump. Think about when baby is just a little older and you want to go out and do something. You will need to take the pump and all the parts with you, find a place to pump, and then sit there and pump and miss out on whatever is going on. Then also carry a cooler bag with you to keep the milk cold. When they get efficient, it can be as quick as 10 minutes to nurse them. Push through this. Exclusive pumping is not something to take on lightly.

OP here. My spectra can be moved around and I do have a hands free pump that I have used.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:First of all you are doing great and there is no wrong answer.

Second there is NO WAY I personally would commit to EPing at this stage. Newborns take a long time to feed and everything you describe is totally normal. But he won’t be like this much longer most likely. They learn to feed very quickly. Mine could do 5 min a side and drain my breast once they were a few months old. It’s night and day compared to newborn days. It’s also sooooo much easier than EPing for a year.

OP here. I wouldn’t EP for a year. I’m not sure I will even breastfeed for a year. I’m going to see how it goes once I go back to work in January and decide. This is why I introduced formula to make sure he’s used to it if I decide to quit.

Pumping just seems easier but I know it may not longterm.

It’s just so exhausting. He eats every 2 hours and sometimes up to 1 hour each feeding. I can pump and be done in 20 minutes.

[Anonymous]

If you’re producing more than he needs, why the formula bottle? Formula is great I’m just wondering if you’re making an extra job for yourself of boiling/mixing/sterilizing while you’re also pumping and nursing.

I would wait this stage out. Soon he’ll be faster and completely getting rid of the dishwashing side of feeding the baby made my life much calmer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you’re producing more than he needs, why the formula bottle? Formula is great I’m just wondering if you’re making an extra job for yourself of boiling/mixing/sterilizing while you’re also pumping and nursing.

I would wait this stage out. Soon he’ll be faster and completely getting rid of the dishwashing side of feeding the baby made my life much calmer.

OP here. I added formula in because I’m not sure how long I will breastfeed and I wanted to make sure he took formula. I’ve had many friends who had a hard time transitioning their older babies to formula and didn’t want to have that issues.

We don’t boil or sterilize formula. We just use filtered water heated up and powered formula. It takes like 30 seconds to make a bottle. My husband feeds him at night.

My husband is a champ and washes all the pump parts, bottles, and freezes my milk most days. We have a ton of bottles and I have two sets of pump parts.

I mainly pump overnight and in the morning because I get a lot of milk and my baby will only feed on one side during those times. During the day he eats from both and I don’t pump.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you’re producing more than he needs, why the formula bottle? Formula is great I’m just wondering if you’re making an extra job for yourself of boiling/mixing/sterilizing while you’re also pumping and nursing.

I would wait this stage out. Soon he’ll be faster and completely getting rid of the dishwashing side of feeding the baby made my life much calmer.

OP here. I added formula in because I’m not sure how long I will breastfeed and I wanted to make sure he took formula. I’ve had many friends who had a hard time transitioning their older babies to formula and didn’t want to have that issues.

We don’t boil or sterilize formula. We just use filtered water heated up and powered formula. It takes like 30 seconds to make a bottle. My husband feeds him at night.

My husband is a champ and washes all the pump parts, bottles, and freezes my milk most days. We have a ton of bottles and I have two sets of pump parts.

I mainly pump overnight and in the morning because I get a lot of milk and my baby will only feed on one side during those times. During the day he eats from both and I don’t pump.

Just PSA, and I’m sorry if you already know this, but just in case you or someone else reading this doesn’t, you should boil the water you use to make formula for the first 8 weeks because the formula (not the water) may be contaminated with cronobacter.

https://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/infantandtoddlernutrition/formula-feeding/infant-formula-preparation-and-storage.html#:~:text=To%20kill%20germs%20like%20Cronobacter,mixing%20with%20powdered%20infant%20formula.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you’re producing more than he needs, why the formula bottle? Formula is great I’m just wondering if you’re making an extra job for yourself of boiling/mixing/sterilizing while you’re also pumping and nursing.

I would wait this stage out. Soon he’ll be faster and completely getting rid of the dishwashing side of feeding the baby made my life much calmer.

OP here. I added formula in because I’m not sure how long I will breastfeed and I wanted to make sure he took formula. I’ve had many friends who had a hard time transitioning their older babies to formula and didn’t want to have that issues.

We don’t boil or sterilize formula. We just use filtered water heated up and powered formula. It takes like 30 seconds to make a bottle. My husband feeds him at night.

My husband is a champ and washes all the pump parts, bottles, and freezes my milk most days. We have a ton of bottles and I have two sets of pump parts.

I mainly pump overnight and in the morning because I get a lot of milk and my baby will only feed on one side during those times. During the day he eats from both and I don’t pump.

Just PSA, and I’m sorry if you already know this, but just in case you or someone else reading this doesn’t, you should boil the water you use to make formula for the first 8 weeks because the formula (not the water) may be contaminated with cronobacter.

https://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/infantandtoddlernutrition/formula-feeding/infant-formula-preparation-and-storage.html#:~:text=To%20kill%20germs%20like%20Cronobacter,mixing%20with%20powdered%20infant%20formula.

OP here. The pediatrician said we didn’t need to boil the water. We just use filtered water, heat in microwave for 30 seconds and add powder or we will make bottle ahead of time and put in bottle warmer for 3 minutes.

[Anonymous]

NP and haven't read the replies. But I feel like I'm really expert at this question--expert at what I did wrong.

My brother was getting married when my first would be 5 weeks old, and I was to be a bridesmaid. Baby #1 was too young to be in a mass crowd situation (no shots yet), so I pumped. We were in a different town and it was maybe a week of me pumping.

Drinking from a bottle is a bit easier for the baby as it flows out and they don't have to work as hard. So after the whole experience, Baby #1 would not go back to the breast.

I didn't think much of it because it was easy to pump.

Well that's because she's a newborn, and is immobile and sleeps a lot!...I did not anticipate when she was awake, crawling around and getting into things.

It became progressively harder to pump. I was determined to give her breast milk for a year, and it became really hard to pull off by the time she was 6+ months.

So if you want to continue to bf, just be careful of falling into this trap.

Also, you say you make more milk than your baby needs. I suspect it's because you are giving formula. The way the hormones work, if you are not supplementing, there is a balance between baby and mom (the crying and also the sucking action signal when milk comes down and how much to make). Feeding formula or other foods messes with that balance. (there is also an issue with the baby's gut being a bit porous at that time so shouldn't have other than breast milk if possible)

With my #2, I pumped only if I had to go somewhere for the evening (so not that much) and it really was easy to bf until #2 was 1 year old.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP and haven't read the replies. But I feel like I'm really expert at this question--expert at what I did wrong.

My brother was getting married when my first would be 5 weeks old, and I was to be a bridesmaid. Baby #1 was too young to be in a mass crowd situation (no shots yet), so I pumped. We were in a different town and it was maybe a week of me pumping.

Drinking from a bottle is a bit easier for the baby as it flows out and they don't have to work as hard. So after the whole experience, Baby #1 would not go back to the breast.

I didn't think much of it because it was easy to pump.

Well that's because she's a newborn, and is immobile and sleeps a lot!...I did not anticipate when she was awake, crawling around and getting into things.

It became progressively harder to pump. I was determined to give her breast milk for a year, and it became really hard to pull off by the time she was 6+ months.

So if you want to continue to bf, just be careful of falling into this trap.

Also, you say you make more milk than your baby needs. I suspect it's because you are giving formula. The way the hormones work, if you are not supplementing, there is a balance between baby and mom (the crying and also the sucking action signal when milk comes down and how much to make). Feeding formula or other foods messes with that balance. (there is also an issue with the baby's gut being a bit porous at that time so shouldn't have other than breast milk if possible)

With my #2, I pumped only if I had to go somewhere for the evening (so not that much) and it really was easy to bf until #2 was 1 year old.

OP here. If I pump, I don’t plan to pump after 6 months.

He has no issues going back and forth and we use the slowest flow nipple. He still takes like 20-30 minutes to eat from a bottle.

I don’t think your view off oversupply is accurate. It’s a supply and demand and the IBCLE told me it’s not uncommon for some women to make a lot of milk until supply regulates.

I only give him 2-4oz of formula and that started 5 days in. I was making a lot of milk as soon as my milk came in. I make 40-50 ounces a day and he is eating 24 ounces a day ( 20 ounces of breast milk). The IBLCE said it will likely average out once my supply regulates and to take advantage of the extra milk and freeze it.

I feed him roughly 7:30am - Feed on one side, pump on the other, 9:30am - breastfeed + pump, 11:30am - breastfeed, 1:30pm - breastfeed, 3:30pm - breastfeed, 5:30pm - breastfeed, 7:30pm - breastfeed, 10:30pm - breastfeed + bottle, 1:30am - Breastfeed + pump, 4:30am - breastfeed + pump.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP and haven't read the replies. But I feel like I'm really expert at this question--expert at what I did wrong.

My brother was getting married when my first would be 5 weeks old, and I was to be a bridesmaid. Baby #1 was too young to be in a mass crowd situation (no shots yet), so I pumped. We were in a different town and it was maybe a week of me pumping.

Drinking from a bottle is a bit easier for the baby as it flows out and they don't have to work as hard. So after the whole experience, Baby #1 would not go back to the breast.

I didn't think much of it because it was easy to pump.

Well that's because she's a newborn, and is immobile and sleeps a lot!...I did not anticipate when she was awake, crawling around and getting into things.

It became progressively harder to pump. I was determined to give her breast milk for a year, and it became really hard to pull off by the time she was 6+ months.

So if you want to continue to bf, just be careful of falling into this trap.

Also, you say you make more milk than your baby needs. I suspect it's because you are giving formula. The way the hormones work, if you are not supplementing, there is a balance between baby and mom (the crying and also the sucking action signal when milk comes down and how much to make). Feeding formula or other foods messes with that balance. (there is also an issue with the baby's gut being a bit porous at that time so shouldn't have other than breast milk if possible)

With my #2, I pumped only if I had to go somewhere for the evening (so not that much) and it really was easy to bf until #2 was 1 year old.

OP here. The pediatrician said formula was fine. I’ve always had family members and friends who exclusively breastfed and had an oversupply in the beginning until their supply regulated.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Continue to breastfeed and wait it out. He will get more efficient fairly soon. For mine it was usually around 2 months. The pump seems like a good idea now, but you will basically be chained to it if you decide to exclusively pump. Think about when baby is just a little older and you want to go out and do something. You will need to take the pump and all the parts with you, find a place to pump, and then sit there and pump and miss out on whatever is going on. Then also carry a cooler bag with you to keep the milk cold. When they get efficient, it can be as quick as 10 minutes to nurse them. Push through this. Exclusive pumping is not something to take on lightly.

OP here. My spectra can be moved around and I do have a hands free pump that I have used.

Obviously pumps can be moved.

Hands free pumps are not as efficient at removing milk and using one regularly over time will reduce your milk supply.

But it sounds like you’ve got this all figured out based on this and other replies. Not sure why you’re here asking for advice when it seems like you’ve already made up your mind. Very few (if any) here are going to tell you that you should EP over breastfeeding.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP and haven't read the replies. But I feel like I'm really expert at this question--expert at what I did wrong.

My brother was getting married when my first would be 5 weeks old, and I was to be a bridesmaid. Baby #1 was too young to be in a mass crowd situation (no shots yet), so I pumped. We were in a different town and it was maybe a week of me pumping.

Drinking from a bottle is a bit easier for the baby as it flows out and they don't have to work as hard. So after the whole experience, Baby #1 would not go back to the breast.

I didn't think much of it because it was easy to pump.

Well that's because she's a newborn, and is immobile and sleeps a lot!...I did not anticipate when she was awake, crawling around and getting into things.

It became progressively harder to pump. I was determined to give her breast milk for a year, and it became really hard to pull off by the time she was 6+ months.

So if you want to continue to bf, just be careful of falling into this trap.

Also, you say you make more milk than your baby needs. I suspect it's because you are giving formula. The way the hormones work, if you are not supplementing, there is a balance between baby and mom (the crying and also the sucking action signal when milk comes down and how much to make). Feeding formula or other foods messes with that balance. (there is also an issue with the baby's gut being a bit porous at that time so shouldn't have other than breast milk if possible)

With my #2, I pumped only if I had to go somewhere for the evening (so not that much) and it really was easy to bf until #2 was 1 year old.

OP here. The pediatrician said formula was fine. I’ve always had family members and friends who exclusively breastfed and had an oversupply in the beginning until their supply regulated.

If you continue to pump 40-50 oz per day, your body will regulate to making 40-50 oz per day. That is an oversupply, and it sounds like a great problem to have, but it’s not. Im surprised your LC has not mentioned this to you.