Using a breast pump is still the easiest way for working women to breastfeed their children. Mothers can pump and store their milk while at work, allowing a caretaker to bottle-feed it to the child when the mother is away. Breast milk can be stored at room temperature for up to six hours and can be refrigerated for up to eight days. And frozen milk can last for six months!
However, breast pumps tend to remove only half of the milk in the breast. Over time, this milk left in the breast after pumping can slow down natural milk production. Incomplete emptying can also cause engorgement or soreness.
The good news is that there is a solution. Using the scientifically-tested and proven “hands-on pumping” method, you can not only better express the milk from your breast – but also condition your body to maximize production to get more milk. Read on to see how to do it.
Steps for hands-on pumping
1. Massage both breasts before starting to pump.
2. Start pumping with both breasts at the same time. This is easiest to do with a bustier, or a hands-free pumping bra.
3. While double pumping, use your free hands to compress and massage your breasts. Feel for firm areas and massage them out. Compress your breasts against your rib cage and squeeze your entire areola. Do not pull on your breast away from your body like you would an udder. You’re not a cow; don’t milk yourself like one!
4. After you see that the double pumping is no longer expressing milk, give your breasts a short break. Continue to massage your breast to help with any tenderness.
5. Continue pumping again, but this time only single pump one breast at a time. Use your free hand (or both hands) to help massage and express your milk. Some women don’t even use a pump for this step, but instead express the milk entirely with their hands into a container.
6. Keep alternating breasts until they both feel empty. Check for firm areas and massage them out, as there might be more milk left.
If the relief of well-emptied breasts wasn’t enough, another study concluded that starting hands-on pumping early and continuing to do so throughout breastfeeding increases your milk production. It also creates fat-rich, calorie-dense milk – giving your child better quality milk.
Don’t forget breastfeeding means leaks, so don’t just absorb the leak – prevent it with LilyPadz. Visit www.lilypadz.com today to learn more and shop for all of your LilyPadz needs.
– Team LP
