It’s almost been 6 weeks since I had the bambino and so far breastfeeding has actually been alright. When I made the decision to start expressing a couple of weeks ago, there was no doubt in my mind that I was using an electronic breast pump because I know more than enough people who have had nightmares with manual versions. I wanted to make it as easy as possible so that I didn’t end up becoming frustrated. The purpose of expressing is to give me a little more freedom in terms of being able to start going out soon plus the boyf can get involved in feeds.
Two weeks in and I really like the Medela Swing Breast Pump which is recommended by midwives and nurses here in the UK. I also had a lot of friends recommend it.
It’s actually straightforward to set up and use with different levels of pumping to stimulate the milk and then a let down button, which also has different speeds. The trick is to go to a slightly uncomfortable level with the let down button and then decrease it by one. I practically patted myself on the back when I expressed 3 oz in about 7 minutes a few days ago! All parts that come in contact with the milk go in my steam steriliser.
It can occasionally be difficult to get your nipple at the right angle and sometimes you’ll feel a bit tender afterwards due to the repetitive pump action , but then breast feeding brings pain with it…
Of course, electric doesn’t come cheap. The Medela Swing Breast Pump retails for around £90 and I got mine for £83.99 at Express Yourself Mums.
Overall: 4.5 out of 5. If you have no patience for manual and really want to commit to expressing, this is a great investment.
Since we originally published this post, Kat has done a great roundup of all the Medela breast pump options.
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