We hear often from customers hiring breast pumps that they’re experiencing low milk supply, and it’s been recommended to them by their care provider to get a hospital grade pump to use as a tool to build supply.
One of the best ways to do this is to power pump. What’s power pumping? The best way to build milk supply is to remove milk from the breast – the more messages you can send to your breasts to make milk, the more milk will be made. The best way to do this is to let your baby feed on demand, but if you’ve been advised to supplement demand feeding with a pump, then power pumping is the way to go. This means frequent, intensive pumping – lots of pumping in a short period of time. Think of it as using your pump to mimic the way that your baby might feed when she’s having a growth spurt, or cluster feeding, and you’ll get the idea.
If you’re already looking after a baby, then you really don’t need more stress or regimented routines. What follows is a simple way to build power pumping into your life without making things too much more difficult than needed.
Just leave your pump out on your kitchen bench and stay close. Maybe bake some supply boosting lactation cookies. Every time you walk past the pump, just stop and pump for 10 minutes. Don’t worry about the amount of milk you’re getting. Just pump for 10 minutes, the put your breast shield, tubing and bottle in the fridge. Continue with your day – then come back (say within 20 mins), grab your shields out of the fridge and pump for another 10 minutes. You can keep this up for 4 hours, putting the shields in and out of the fridge, before you need to give the shields a clean and start again.
So there you have it! How spending the day in the kitchen can boost milk supply!
This information is general only, and you should always follow the specific advice of your lactation consultant or care provider who knows your situation.