Exclusively pumping milk: Hi. Can... - Pregnancy and Par...

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Exclusively pumping milk

KR2105 profile image
6 Replies

Hi. Can someone tell me if it is possible to exclusively express milk without having the baby latch on me? Will that reduce or slow down the milk supply? I have been latching as well as expressing so far and lately my boy isn't comfortably latching on me. He cries a lot. He is quite comfortable with the bottle. I was thinking of purely pumping milk but worried that it might reduce the milk supply. Any expert advice would be much appreciated.

Kalyani :)

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KR2105 profile image
KR2105
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6 Replies
Dad101 profile image
Dad101

No the complete opposite of what you think will happen, will happen. The more you use,the more you produce. Which is why most specialists advise to express whatevers left after feeds to promote production.

As for you issues with child feeding please check and see if it's tongue tied. My first was and it makes feeding impossible.

nhs.uk/conditions/tongue-ti...

KellyTrip profile image
KellyTrip

Yes you can do this. As long as you express each time the baby has a feed then you should produce enough.

VRT102 profile image
VRT102

This is definitely possible, many mums exclusively pump. If you're already pumping then it shouldn't be too difficult to make the transition 😊

However I'm wondering why he's not comfortably latching on? Have you had your HV check his latch? My lg had tongue tie and it was agony at first until we got the latch right x

claire16c profile image
claire16c

It's possible yes. You will have to pump every 3 hours roughly I've had friends do it for 1-2 years! It's very hard work though.

Before you leap to exclusively pumping please get some bf support: it could be that your baby has a tongue tie or something else which can be sorted out. Most midwives and hv are not trained to check for them though and neither are Drs so you need to see a lactation consultant (ibclc) who is. You can google for ones in your area or our hospitals or local bf group can help as as some have one working there. They can help with all feeding issues x

EM24 profile image
EM24

It really depends. I've had alll kinds of feeding issues and in the end it got too much and my LO is now formula feeding.i pumped all day every day for weeks pretty much and didn't keep my flow up enough. But for some people it makes them produce too much so it really does depend.

bd123 profile image
bd123

Yes it is possible. I exclusively pumped for 3 months. It is very hard work though. After that I did mixed feeding till baby was 6 months old as exclusively pumping is very time consuming. It means going out less or timing when you go out. I had lots of milk and had to freeze most of it. It works by supply and demand. The more you pump, the more milk you produce. If you want to go down this route, it's best to get a good quality double pump.

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