stupid pumping question

to make a long story short...DC will be in the NICU for a while after she is born. During that time i will not be able to feed her right away, so all I can do is pump and freeze the BM.

having never done this before, how do i know when I need to pump? Will i just "know", is it every few hours? any insight would be helpful

Re: stupid pumping question

I think you could speak with your ped about this and ask to also speak with a nutritionist in the NICU who can help guide you.
I didn't have babies in the NICU but knew several women who did - they were given a hospital grade pump and encouraged to pump as often as possible.
For me, my milk didn't come in until day 3 or 4 with my first baby and then I felt very engorged and uncomfortable - but I was nursing directly.
For babies 2 and 3 I nursed right away and milk came in right away, plus I pumped from the beginning to try to build a stash for when I returned to work. I think pumping every 2-3 hours is a good idea, especially if you intend to nurse when the baby comes home - the more you pump/nurse the more milk your body makes. Some women become very efficient with pumping and then only need to pump 1-2x per day for all the baby's needs for the day.

Re: stupid pumping question

I agree with PP. My DD was not in the NICU, but I think you should try to pump at least every 2 hours at first to build your supply. You're probably not going to get anything for a few days, but keep it up because you want to give your body the message to keep making milk.

Definitely talk to a lactation consultant at your hospital to figure out the best way to do this. Good luck!

Message edited 4/17/2014 11:57:16 AM.

Re: stupid pumping question

pump every 2-3 hours, mimicking how often your LO eats. closer to 2.5 is better, every 3 hours should be the longest you wait. it's not stupid a stupid question!! pm me if you want me to add you to a pumping group on facebook.

Re: stupid pumping question

Message edited 4/17/2014 12:38:32 PM.

Re: stupid pumping question

DD was in the NICU for 39 days. I pumped every 3 hours religiously while home and while at the hospital visiting her. I pumped so much that my supply is just crazy and I have literally hundreds of ounces frozen for when I go back to work.

stupid pumping question

DS was in the NICU. I pumped every 3 hours religiously and had a great supply. You should talk to the lactation consultants in the hospital after you deliver- they will help.

You can message me with any pumping or NICU questions. Good luck!

Re: stupid pumping question

My DD was in the NICU as well. I did the same as the other ladies....every 3 hours. I have a great supply now. It took about three days for my milk to come in.

Re: stupid pumping question

Thanks ladies - i appreciate all this. I feel like a brand new mom because things are so different this time around!

Re: stupid pumping question

DS was in NICU when he was born. I pumped and sent down whatever I was able to get, and I did it every three hours. I will be honest though, it wasn't much. They would supplement with formula. My supply stopped (I am assuming because he wasn't near me, so no skin to skin?). Due to meds I was on, I wasn't able to get out of bed for over a day.

Once we got home, I couldn't get him to latch since he was already used to the bottles:( I continued to pump for as long as I could but I found it very stressful, and stopped after about a month.

Obviously, this is just my experience, but just be prepared for anything that can happen and be flexible. Good Luck!!

Re: stupid pumping question

Message edited 4/17/2014 9:47:04 PM.

Re: stupid pumping question

When DD was in the NICU I pumped every three hours. The hospital had rooms set up with pumps and provided lots of storage bottles - they made it as easy as it could be. If I had to do it all over again - I would skip waking up in the middle of the night. I had a ridiculous supply and because my daughter was so small and didn't eat much, I also had hundreds of ounces of frozen milk that I wound up donating. I wish I had gotten some extra sleep and gone 4-5 hours in the overnight - I could really have used that and I don't think it would have hurt the supply all that much. They let me bring my daughter home when she was 4 lbs, 5 ozs - so I HAD to wake her up every three hours to feed her for a long time. I went a year exclusively pumping and I wish someone had told me that it was ok to not get up what amounts to every 2 1/2 hours for months - because it takes time to set up/clean up, etc.

Message edited 4/17/2014 9:55:08 PM.

Re: stupid pumping question

stupid pumping question

My son was just released from the NICU last Thursday. He was born at 34w2d and was 3pounds 13 ounces at birth. To say he doesn't eat much is an understatement lol. I nursed him 4-6 times a day when I was up there and when I wasn't there for a feeding I pumped. Our NICU had a strict every 3hr feeding sched. 2,5,8,11,2 and so on so I followed that. It wasn't every 3 after the feeding but every 3 no matter what. I have about 400oz in the freezer. Since he has been home I nurse on demand and pump both breasts with a hospital pump I am renting every 6hrs just because I make way more then he can eat.

As for going longer at night, I say no. I did this with my 2nd child and AF came back at 4 months pp and my supply tanked hard. Your body is supply and demand so when baby is STTN your body will adjust to that, until then keep nursing or pumping. Yes it is hard, but if baby was home you would be up so get used to that. Not everyone has over supply either and that first 12wks is very critical to your suppy. The 1st week you need to pump or nurse lot to get going, week 2 your body is starting to realize what you need, week 3 you are making what you need and are not as engorged so don't let that make you think you aren't full. I feel soft and still pump 14oz total from both breasts. I was stunned since I wasn't engorged. Week 6 normally startes a agrowth spurt with cluster feeding and again at 8wks. It is very hard to keep up when you are so tried from recovery, the NICU, the stress of not having baby with you, but it's worth it. PM if you want. Little dud is home now and thriving. Plus that freezer stash is great! If I don't need it I will donate it. I would rather have to much then not enough since I have been in both positions with my other kids and not havig enough is horrible.