hi moms

how r all of u doing with ur little ones.i am doing great with abhi.i am breast feeding exclusively and so far have not even considered a breast pump until recently.3 days ago my left nipple went so sorethat i could not feed from that side for 2 days.i was not ready for the situation.i had a manual pump given by the hospital during discharge and used it to express milk to maintain milk flow when not feeding from that side.it was quite irritating coz i could not get more than 1oz at a time and that too not continuously.this had to be repeated once in 1-2 hrs whole day to get milk out to feed abhi but breasts could not be pumped till empty.
i wanted to enquire if this is ok.or is it becoz it was a manual one.how good r electric ones.
also those who express milk what qty can u do at a time.i know that milk prod varies from person to person but just wanted to have an idea.
i think it is good to have some excess milk pumped for emergency to avoid what i faced.my mother in law is strongly against formula and she tells me that formula is sweeter and babies like its taste and once i feed babies will not accept breastmilk.being a first time mom i followed her and it was like expressing whole day to arrange for abhis feeds.
any advice would be welcome
bhargavi

Aboli replied. Dear Bhargavi,
I am from June board. Evenif I have not used breast pump, but did some study about it from net and from my friend's experiences. The conclusion is that, the manual and battery operated pumps are no good. You should try the Medela's electrical pump, it helps in extracting from both the breasts at one instance. It is bit expensive, around $250 I guess, but some of the insurences covers it, so just check with ur insurence company.
I know, breast feeding can be bit tough initially, but believe me, it is the best gift you can give to your li'l one. I agree with your MIL about formula. One more thing is that, if u r feeding the baby with bottle (which is the most convenient way and very easy for baby to suck-in), the baby may deny sucking from the breast. So, be careful about it too. I have breast fed my daughter (who is 4 yrs now) for about 1-1/2 yrs. It is just a matter of getting used to it. You can enquire in the hospital you delivered, they may have some breast feeding mom's group meetings. Meeting other moms might help you. You can talk with ur doc about the sore breasts and try to find some solution for it.

Love,
Aboli.