Medela pump cannot express milk

A

a mum

Registered User
I have recently bought a medela mini electric single head pump when my baby is 7 months old and have started solid. I am not sure if the pump is too weak to express any milk or my supply is too low to pump any out? The reason why I wanted to get a compact breast pump is because I am staying with my parents for a short while and they can help me to feed the baby when I am out. Any advise if I should get a more powerful one at this stage to try again (I am worried that my milk supply is too low to pump now since baby has started solid). If so, which model should I go for (I dont want to go for the top model coz I already have one back home)?
 
I always found it hard to pump when I was exclusively breastfeeding. The best thing that worked for me was just pumping once a day first thing in the morning before the baby had fed. I think the "problem" is that the baby can get the milk much more efficiently, so even though the pump isn't getting any milk doesn't mean that you have supply issues. Try pumping first thing in the morning instead, if you haven't already!! Or pump BEFORE feeding the baby instead of after.

Also personally, I found that the hand pumps were more effective than the small cheap electric one that I had - although I've never tried the medela mini electric so I can't comment on that one in particular... My fav hand pump was the Medela Harmony (I think it's called), then followed by the Avent Isis.
 
I had an electric medela with my first and could get almost no milk. I switched to an advent manual pump and was able to get much more milk. Not sure why but it might be worth a try.
 
I also could not get much milk with my Medela Swing. I then got the Avent Isis electric one and got much more from that. I also found it a lot more comfortable.
 
Yes I bought it in Hong Kong, but it was about 2 years ago and I can't remember where/how much. My Isis is just the hand pump which worked fine for me. I've seen them at a bunch of places - the baby stores, but also some WingOns and other department stores. It's probably cheaper in the department stores. I can keep an eye out for you if you want?
 
nicolejoy, thanks. I am looking for a double electric pump. I have a Medela Pump-in-Style but am thinking about trying something new. Anything that's gentler on my nipples would be great and also I'm having such bad milk supply problems right now that I'm willing to try anything.
 
For me I would pump while nursing. I would only give baby one breast and pump the other.
 
rani said:
For me I would pump while nursing. I would only give baby one breast and pump the other.
Click to expand...

There are a few things that make this almost impossible for me.

1. Daughter is easily distracted and would not tolerate the sound of the pump
2. While at home I breastfeed mostly lying down as that is the position my daughter prefers--if I breastfeed her any other way she fidgets and it's very difficult
3. I'm simply not that coordinated to hold baby while pumping the other side
4. At this point with milk supply I'm in a rescue effort as it has reached a critical point--I had to go on a medication last week that reduces my milk supply a lot PLUS I got my cycle back when my daughter was 8 weeks old (this also happened with my son) so my hormones are literally fighting against the prolactin in my body which makes keeping a milk supply a huge struggle--it's not just a matter of supply/demand at this point. I think I need to go on domperidone immediately.
 
Thanka - the other one that is generally well spoken of is the Ameda Purely Yours - I know they have a distributor in Hong Kong, I remember seeing the info at the hospital when I was there but I can't remember the details... the Medela Pump in Style has worked fabulously for me so I never wanted/needed another pump... ah found the website: http://www.homecare-medical.com/eng-index.php - but I can't see the Purely Yours... maybe call them and see??
 
I am using Avent manual pump as well.. In fact, I have 2.

My sister gave me one. Then when I started pumping at work, I noticed that I was wasting lot of milk from the other breast each time I was having let down. I didn't want to spend too much in a double pump and waste the one I already have, so I just bought another one.
 
I'm using the medela mini electric and, while it's probably not the best, I can get plenty of milk from it (just lucky?). I do find that things flow a lot better (literally!) if I massage & gently squeeze my breast while pumping. Also, I follow the usual recommendations - try to relax, massage before etc. I also try to have a cup of tea (pref. mother's milk) while i'm doing it - i realise the effects of drinking mother's milk tea may well be psychological, especially immediately, but it helps me relax, and it warms my hands, which can help, too.
 
lalligirl said:
I'm using the medela mini electric and, while it's probably not the best, I can get plenty of milk from it (just lucky?). I do find that things flow a lot better (literally!) if I massage & gently squeeze my breast while pumping. Also, I follow the usual recommendations - try to relax, massage before etc. I also try to have a cup of tea (pref. mother's milk) while i'm doing it - i realise the effects of drinking mother's milk tea may well be psychological, especially immediately, but it helps me relax, and it warms my hands, which can help, too.
Click to expand...

Oh, how I wish those things made any difference for me. It's just a total battle right now. Started domperidone today.
 
thanka2 said:
nicolejoy, thanks. I am looking for a double electric pump. I have a Medela Pump-in-Style but am thinking about trying something new. Anything that's gentler on my nipples would be great and also I'm having such bad milk supply problems right now that I'm willing to try anything.
Click to expand...

Thanka, If you want to "try", you might be interested in this (I know, it is in chinese):
http://www.mamabebe.com.hk/ameda.html#ameda

At Baby Outlet, you can try the Ameda Lactaline for 3 days for HKD 100. This way you can see if you like it or not before you buy it. If you decide to buy it after the trial, then those HKD 100 will be refund to you.

Another option would be to rent a hospital grade pump from Celki.
 
Gataloca said:
Thanka, If you want to "try", you might be interested in this (I know, it is in chinese):
http://www.mamabebe.com.hk/ameda.html#ameda

At Baby Outlet, you can try the Ameda Lactaline for 3 days for HKD 100. This way you can see if you like it or not before you buy it. If you decide to buy it after the trial, then those HKD 100 will be refund to you.

Another option would be to rent a hospital grade pump from Celki.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tips. Actually, I have a Medela Pump in Style which is only one step lower than the Harmony. I don't think pumping is going to help that much. I'm giving domperidone a try and we'll see if it can help. The reason why I don't think that pumping is really the solution is that I'm pretty sure I'm fighting a hormonal and chemical battle here due to early return of my cycle and medication I need to take. I pumped and pumped the past week but it didn't affect supply at all. I hope that I can keep going. It sure ain't easy.
 
Thanks for the advice. I bought a Medela hand pump. I got a lot more milk than the mini electric one.
Rani, I never tried pumping while nursing. Does it flow even better? I want to save time coz I now pump first thing in the morning which takes about half an hour and baby already started crying for hunger seeing me pumping!
In fact, I have odd size breast. My right is bigger than the left when engorged. If I pump, I get 2/3 from the right side and 1/3 from left. Any advise on how to even the size of two breasts?
 
For me I found that my let-down was better when baby was nursing than pumping alone. Also, one side produced more milk than the other. I think this is quite common. I used to drink lots of water and also eat lots of fenugreek rich foods.

HTH
 
a mum - I think it's just "natural" that women have breasts that are different sizes and produce different amounts of milk. This time around, I've been exclusively pumping so both sides have the exact same amount of stimulation, but like you, I pump a LOT more from the right than the left. Almost double...

I was never coordinated enough to pump while nursing though!! At least not using a manual pump. Is that even possible??
 
a mum - I'm having very similar issues with my Medela Swing electric pump. I breastfeed exclusively and am suddenly finding it rather hard to pump. But my baby feeds just fine, is gaining weight and has many wet diapers. So I took the pump to the Medela store but they checked it and said it looks ok. I'm still not convinced. I know the suction used to feel different before and now, no matter how high I make it, it doesn't "feel" much different. I'm not sure what to do either but I'm pretty sure my baby is getting enough milk. It's a tough spot to be in.
 
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