Pumping Her Way Through | Bond Project Story 2.1
> > > I am not a health professional and nothing is this post or any other post should be considered as medical advice. This is purely for sharing personal experiences.
Rebecca’s breastfeeding journey doesn’t look the way she imagined it would but over the past 11 months, she has discovered works for her to feel successful – a combination of formula, pumped milk and nursing.
When she told her doctor she planned to breastfeed, she didn’t get much information or support. Like most of us, they looked at her nipples and said something like you’ll be fine. What do they even look at to tell us such things?
Either way, she went about the rest of her pregnancy without much other support about what could happen after her baby came. Thankfully she did some reading and research on her own to prepare.
That is when her story got a lot more complicated.
Turns out that at 37 weeks, she had developed pre-eclampsia, which meant she needed to be induced. This led to having a c-section, using both donor milk and formula to supplement in the hospital, waiting 5 days for her milk to come in, being readmitted for hypertension, and having both postpartum depression and postpartum anxiety.
What a hard start to motherhood.
The wrong support
It seemed like everyone she talked to about her journey was really good at encouraging her that breastfeeding wasn’t the only way, that she didn’t need to pump and could just switch to formula, but what she wanted was help meeting her goals. She wasn’t ready to give up and kept looking for resources.
While working with two different lactation consultants that couldn’t agree if her little girl had a tongue tie or not, she was referred to an occupational therapist to help loosen the muscles in her babies face and jaw, then a minor tongue tie release with a pediatric dentist.
From her perspective, the therapy helped quite a bit and they were able to nurse better when she was home.
Once her daughter was more ready to nurse, she found that trying to nurse in the morning was easier because her milk flowed more quickly and they were both more awake to learn how to breastfeed together.
Although it is really difficult to nurse at night because it takes a lot longer and it is hard to sit there that long, she loves nursing when her baby is tired. She will rub her own hair like she is slicking it back.
Finding her way in pumping
Through all of this, she was finding her way of nourishing her sweet baby. While she was in the hospital after birth, she started pumping with the hospital pump then moved to a combination of the Madela Freestyle and Elvie Stride for her at home and work pumping.
During the first couple of months, one of the hardest parts about pumping was finding the time. Her daughter was seemingly cluster feeding, smaller amounts of milk or formula more often, and so finding the time to get through an entire pump was difficult. She had to find small pockets she could get a pumping session in. One of the best places she found was in the car running errands and things with her hands free pump.
At first she believed that she needed to pump 5-8 times every day and overnight especially, or her supply would vanish. While there is evidence to support that the best way to establish a supply is by removing milk from the breast - often, once you do, a pumping/nursing schedule can become slightly more relaxed.
Challenges in pumping
Like many moms, she found it difficult to stay awake during the evening for pumping sessions which led her to random packages showing up on her doorstep. I know she’s not alone in this!
To help, other moms have recommended either reading, or finding a fun game to play on their phone. It gives them something to do for themselves at the same time as helping them stay awake.
Pumping at work was easier than at home but proved to have its own challenges. Mainly pumping around the other people at work. She found her groove there mostly with using the wearable pump. It allowed her to be more modest and continue working if she wanted to pump longer.
What she wants you to know
“It doesn’t have to be just one way. You can supplement in any way that works for you. Pump, nurse, formula feed, real food. Incorporate pumping or nursing as you can. You don’t need to stress yourself out pumping 5-8 times a day no matter what. You won’t just dry up if you don’t pump all day long.”
Something she found really difficult
“Knowing if my breasts were full. They only felt full when my milk came in. The most I had was 6-8 ounces but I didn’t feel full. I only felt engorged a couple of times in the morning when I stopped pumping overnight.”
For most mamas it is normal to feel engorged in the beginning months before your supply regulates. It seems to be that after the 6-8 week cluster feeding time, most mamas regulate and a lot of moms stop feeling engorged at this point. Many will still get this feeling if it has been a long time since they removed milk.
Her advice for other moms
“Don’t forget to take care of yourself. In the beginning, for me, it was taking a shower every night. My husband took over the nightly feeding and I was able to take a shower to myself to help reset.”
“And speak up to supports on what you need. It can be hard but they want to help you. Sometimes this means finding the correct support like a lactation consultant and sometimes it is leaning on your partner, family or friends. Everyone needs support, but they often won’t know how to help unless you tell them.”
About The Bond Project
Every feeding journey is different. Some are easy. Some are complicated. Some change completely along the way. And some become stories we never imagined we would have to tell.
The Bond Project was created to preserve those stories.
Through photographs and the words of the mothers who lived them, I document the beautiful, messy, ordinary, extraordinary bonds between mothers and their babies. Not to celebrate one particular way of feeding, but to honor the connection found within each family's own journey.
Your story deserves to be remembered, too.
If you would like to create your own Bond Project story, I'd love to hear about your journey and talk with you about a Motherhood Session.
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It doesn’t have to be just one way. You can supplement in any way that works for you. Pump, nurse, formula feed, real food. Incorporate pumping or nursing as you can. You don’t need to stress yourself out pumping 5-8 times a day no matter what. You won’t just dry up if you don’t pump all day long.