My Breastfeeding and Pumping Experience

Before you sit down to read this post grab a cup of coffee or tea and get comfortable because it's going to be a long one! I wanted to talk about my breastfeeding experience today and go over what I went through at first with my son, my favorite products for pumping as well as how I increased my supply.
First off I want to start with talking about my first experiences with breastfeeding at the hospital. I do want to say that no one ever prepared me for how much it hurts! This might be TMI but I had bruises on my nips because of how my baby was latching. I spoke to multiple lactation consultants and they all told me his latch was good and it was going to hurt until they toughened up. A few weeks went by and it was still hurting when I would nurse so I bought nipple shields from Medela and let me tell you those things were life savers! His latch was so much better and we only used them for a couple of weeks before I started nursing with them again. His latch was improved and the pain went away. Now my little guy is a champ at breastfeeding.

Now to pumping. I use the Spectra S2 breast pump that I got through my insurance. I have really enjoyed this pump and love that it's quieter than other pumps. I began pumping early on so that I could get my milk to come down and to establish my supply. I continued to pump until I came up with a schedule that worked for me. During the time that I was at home on maternity leave I would religiously pump after every feeding. I would only get about 1-2 ounces but it was still something! After my supply had regulated, every time I nursed the side that I wasn't nursing from would leak so much so I began using a Hakka to catch any milk and that way I wasn't wasting any milk. This is how I began creating my freezer stash. Every time I would nurse I would use the Hakka and then at the end of the day I would combine all the extra milk I collected and would freeze it in storage bags. My favorite are the Lansinoh storage bags.

Whenever I fell like my supply is dropping or if I feel like I need a little boost I have found that Body Armour drinks really help. I buy a 20 pack from Sam's Club for about $20. I also like the PreMama Lactation Supplement Drink Mix and my all time favorite that I have noticed makes a huge difference is the Pink Stork Lactation tea.

At this point in time when I am writing this post I have about 200-300 oz of breastmilk stored in my freezer since my son was born in February.

If you want a little more information and where I got my ideas from watch this video by Brooklyn Maldonado on YouTube. She is not an expert but her tips worked for me.