Pumping Iron
Dec. 11th, 2005 11:17 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
juthwaraIt says a lot about how I spend my days that my fondest desire is for a breast pump.
Okay, my fondest desire is also for a Kitchenaid stand mixer, since I think that's about the only way I'm ever going to find time to make bread again, but it's pretty much tied with the pump.
I was introduced to my first pump the day K was born, when we weren't able to get her to deign to wake up enough to really latch. So the nurse wheeled in The Pump, a frightening machine that might as well have had the label "Soviet era" stamped on it, especially if it preceeded "torture device used by the KGB." It came with horrible little collection devices that were mine to keep, complete with conversion kits to turn them into manual pumps. They were the quality of plasticware that you normally acquire with 20000 tickets won at the skee ball machine. And after using them in conjunction with The Pump, or Svetlana as I not so affectionately called it, it was not surprising that I soon became quite sore, especially when you factor in getting chewed on by an inexperienced infant and the developing thrush infection.
Five days later, K was finally nursing well, but only on my right side. To avoid giving myself the appearance of carrying a bowling ball on one side of my bra, I was pumping the left side, and soon took my c-sectioned self limping out of the house to find a decent pump to replace the dime store model that was killing my nipples and giving me hellacious hand cramps, a sure sign of a quality medical product. And that was when I first discovered the wonder of the Avent Isis.
The Isis is a gorgeous little pump. Unbelievably comfortable, even on my sorely abused nipples. Surprisingly high yield for a manual pump. Easy to clean. Completely compatible with the Avent bottles we had bought (which I also love). And did I mention the comfort?
So we pottered along happily for a month with me pumping once or twice a day so K could get an evening bottle and I could get a break. And then the reflux hit, and I started pumping more and more as it got more and more difficult to breastfeed. And finally after a bad weekend, I decided that if I was going to pump that much, I really needed an electric model since my forearms were in danger of becoming so overdeveloped that I was going to bear an uncanny resemblance to Popeye. So I went on Ebay and got a used Medela Pump In Style (incidentally, I was reading some comments on someone's blog regarding buying used pumps and I was a bit boggled. Apparently a used pump, even with new lines and breastshields, is disgusting because, "Someone else's fluids have been in there." First, if that's how you feel about breastmilk, I'm amazed you can use a public bathroom. Second, last time I checked, the milk doesn't go in the actual pump, it goes through the shield into the collection bottle, which you would be well advised to purchase new. The pump itself is just a motor, and if the milk gets in it, something is seriously wrong). And it was a good thing I did, because breastfeeding during the day soon became impossible, and I've never figured out how to get it back on track.
The Medela is nice and efficient and has definitely given me more milk in less time. I can do both sides at once. But it has a lot of drawbacks. The shields and collection bottles are narrow and hard to clean. I prefer using the Avent storage bottles because they hold more milk, but that means I lose milk when I pore from one bottle to the other. Buying used means that I'm not sure how long this pump is going to last, as it can make some truly alarming wheezes while it's pumping away. And the adjustment was just hell. Even with their Softfit shields, it's just nowhere nearly as comfortable as the Isis, and it took my nipples a long time to toughen up enough. When I was first starting out, I was so sore that I was sure the thrush had come back before I finally realized it was just the new pump. I've adjusted to the Medela, and I certainly appreciate how much easier it makes pumping when I need to do it so often, but I wish it were more like using an Avent.
And here's where my heart's desire comes in: I discovered recently that Avent just came out with an electric pump. All of the comfort features of the Isis, with an electric motor, the ability to pump both sides at once, and some snazzy technology to help maximize yields. But it costs $350. Even if my current pump gave up the ghost, I don't think I could justify that sort of outlay, even if I factor in that $350 is about a month and a half's supply of hypoallergenic formula. They're apparently coming out with a smaller electric pump that only does one side at a time that's a much more affordable price, so I might consider that. But really, I want the deluxe model, partly to satisfy my inner computer geek that really likes new technology. Sadly, it's not to be. I would comfort myself by telling myself that maybe I can get one with the next baby when there will probably be some used ones on the market, but I devoutly hope that even if the next baby has reflux too, we'll catch it early enough that the breastfeeding won't get so completely derailed. So I guess I will just yearn, unfulfilled.
Okay, my fondest desire is also for a Kitchenaid stand mixer, since I think that's about the only way I'm ever going to find time to make bread again, but it's pretty much tied with the pump.
I was introduced to my first pump the day K was born, when we weren't able to get her to deign to wake up enough to really latch. So the nurse wheeled in The Pump, a frightening machine that might as well have had the label "Soviet era" stamped on it, especially if it preceeded "torture device used by the KGB." It came with horrible little collection devices that were mine to keep, complete with conversion kits to turn them into manual pumps. They were the quality of plasticware that you normally acquire with 20000 tickets won at the skee ball machine. And after using them in conjunction with The Pump, or Svetlana as I not so affectionately called it, it was not surprising that I soon became quite sore, especially when you factor in getting chewed on by an inexperienced infant and the developing thrush infection.
Five days later, K was finally nursing well, but only on my right side. To avoid giving myself the appearance of carrying a bowling ball on one side of my bra, I was pumping the left side, and soon took my c-sectioned self limping out of the house to find a decent pump to replace the dime store model that was killing my nipples and giving me hellacious hand cramps, a sure sign of a quality medical product. And that was when I first discovered the wonder of the Avent Isis.
The Isis is a gorgeous little pump. Unbelievably comfortable, even on my sorely abused nipples. Surprisingly high yield for a manual pump. Easy to clean. Completely compatible with the Avent bottles we had bought (which I also love). And did I mention the comfort?
So we pottered along happily for a month with me pumping once or twice a day so K could get an evening bottle and I could get a break. And then the reflux hit, and I started pumping more and more as it got more and more difficult to breastfeed. And finally after a bad weekend, I decided that if I was going to pump that much, I really needed an electric model since my forearms were in danger of becoming so overdeveloped that I was going to bear an uncanny resemblance to Popeye. So I went on Ebay and got a used Medela Pump In Style (incidentally, I was reading some comments on someone's blog regarding buying used pumps and I was a bit boggled. Apparently a used pump, even with new lines and breastshields, is disgusting because, "Someone else's fluids have been in there." First, if that's how you feel about breastmilk, I'm amazed you can use a public bathroom. Second, last time I checked, the milk doesn't go in the actual pump, it goes through the shield into the collection bottle, which you would be well advised to purchase new. The pump itself is just a motor, and if the milk gets in it, something is seriously wrong). And it was a good thing I did, because breastfeeding during the day soon became impossible, and I've never figured out how to get it back on track.
The Medela is nice and efficient and has definitely given me more milk in less time. I can do both sides at once. But it has a lot of drawbacks. The shields and collection bottles are narrow and hard to clean. I prefer using the Avent storage bottles because they hold more milk, but that means I lose milk when I pore from one bottle to the other. Buying used means that I'm not sure how long this pump is going to last, as it can make some truly alarming wheezes while it's pumping away. And the adjustment was just hell. Even with their Softfit shields, it's just nowhere nearly as comfortable as the Isis, and it took my nipples a long time to toughen up enough. When I was first starting out, I was so sore that I was sure the thrush had come back before I finally realized it was just the new pump. I've adjusted to the Medela, and I certainly appreciate how much easier it makes pumping when I need to do it so often, but I wish it were more like using an Avent.
And here's where my heart's desire comes in: I discovered recently that Avent just came out with an electric pump. All of the comfort features of the Isis, with an electric motor, the ability to pump both sides at once, and some snazzy technology to help maximize yields. But it costs $350. Even if my current pump gave up the ghost, I don't think I could justify that sort of outlay, even if I factor in that $350 is about a month and a half's supply of hypoallergenic formula. They're apparently coming out with a smaller electric pump that only does one side at a time that's a much more affordable price, so I might consider that. But really, I want the deluxe model, partly to satisfy my inner computer geek that really likes new technology. Sadly, it's not to be. I would comfort myself by telling myself that maybe I can get one with the next baby when there will probably be some used ones on the market, but I devoutly hope that even if the next baby has reflux too, we'll catch it early enough that the breastfeeding won't get so completely derailed. So I guess I will just yearn, unfulfilled.
