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So you want to boost up your milk supply.
You want to get a quick result.
And suddenly you found this term 'power pumping'.
You have been hearing moms swore by it repeatedly.
They said it can double your milk supply in just several days.
Sounds like a miracle, isn't it?
But you are still not sure..
And scratching your head with all the uncertainties.
How am I going to do this?
When?
For how long?
And... Does power pumping really work? Is it worth my time?
Welcome to The Complete Guide of Power Pumping.
This guide will teach you ALL things you need to know about how to use power pumping to increase milk supply.
This includes: samples of power pumping schedules, case studies, PLUS tips and tricks to make it easier (and works for you).
Let's get started!
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(this post may contain affiliate links.
Here's a quick navigation if you want to jump right to certain section.
First of all...
What is power pumping?
Power pumping is a pumping strategy that works by repeatedly emptying your breast very frequently, mimicking cluster feedings that a baby does during growth spurt period.
Power pumping does not replace ALL your pumping or nursing session, rather it is done to replace at least one of your pumping session (if you're away from baby), or to be done in addition to direct latch (if you're solely nursing).
Here's the most popular recommendation how you can do one power pumping session:
- Set aside one hour to do your power pumping session.
- Double pump using the following schedule:
- Pump for 20 minutes
- Rest for 10 minutes
- Pump for 10 minutes
- Rest for 10 minutes
- Pump for 10 minutes
- Do at least one power pumping session every day until you see an increase in your milk supply.
- To get a better result, do more power pumping session in a day. Two sessions are the most popular option (because well, we need to do other things as well right!)
Ok, that's the most popular recommendation.. but can we do it differently?
Yes..., in fact, those 20-10-10-10-10 pattern is not a strict one.
Jody Segrave, Daly, IBCLC mentioned that: based on research studies, a lactating breast usually empties in 10-15 minutes, and so you can opt to do the following sequence instead in an hour:
- Pump for 10 minutes
- Rest for 10 minutes
- Pump for 10 minutes
- Rest for 10 minutes
- Pump for 10 minutes
- Rest for 10 minutes
Cannot allocate a full one hour to do the power pumping?
Jody said that you can split it into two 30-minute sessions, in which you do this in each session:
- Pump for 10 minutes
- Rest for 10 minutes
- Pump for 10 minutes
Now, perhaps some of you will question, will the splitting affects the result of power pumping?
Actually no.
Remember:
"The essence of power pumping: to mimics baby's frequent feeding during a growth spurt"
So as long as you can frequently empty your breast, despite on different timings, that should work, too.
Wanna hear some proof?
Here's how Diana West & Lisa Marasco describe power pumping in her book "A Breastfeeding Mother's Guide to Making More Milk":
- Place your breast pump in a convenient location at your home.
- Whenever you pass by, use it to pump for 5-10 minutes.
- Do this every 45 minutes or so.
- Aim to pump like this at least 10 times a day
Can you see the similarity between the two approaches?
It's not about how long you pump, but rather how frequent you pump.
Let's see another definition by Stephanie Casemore, the author of "Exclusively Pumping Breast Milk: A Guide to Providing Express Breast Milk for Your Baby".
In her book, Stephanie describes power pumping as pumping every two hours round the clock for at least 2 days.
See how Casemore suggests pumping every 2 hours daily (for at least 2 days), which means pumping 12 times a day, and West suggests pumping at least 10 times a day.
So, frequency does matter.
On another note, Casemore
This is similar with what is described in kellymom:
"Sit down with your baby and your pump, and nurse and pump every half-hour to hour for several hours."
Are you confused by now?
I hope not, ya...
Let's summarize some of the important points here.
Power pumping means frequent pumping, this is done to mimics baby's cluster feeding in a growth spurt period.
You can do it in three ways:
- Set aside one or more time blocks (e.g. One hour block) to pump 3x with breaks in between, done once a day or more.
- Do pumping round the clock, aim for at least 10 times. If you do every two hours, that's even better.
- Or do the cluster pumping variation: set aside a few hours block, do frequent short pumping in 30 minutes to 1-hour interval.
Keep doing this until you notice an increase in your milk supply, typically within 3 days to 1 week.
Does it matter how long is the pumping duration?
Different mothers have different preferences.
Some prefer a combination of 20 and 10 minutes (as per the general recommendation).
Some other prefer 10 minutes blocks for both pumping and rest time (review Jody's statement), while some other prefer 15 minutes, making it a one and half hour session, i.e.:
- pump 15 minutes
- rest 15 minutes
- pump 15 minutes
- rest 15 minutes
- pump 15 minutes
- rest 15 minutes
There may be times you can only afford 5 minutes to pump, that's perfectly fine too, as long as you keep the frequency of pumping (review how Diana West define power pumping above).
Now let's move to the next big question.
Can I do power pumping with a single electric breast pump?
I have seen a lot of questions whether you can use a single electric breast pump to do power pumping.
In general, it is most recommended to use a double electric breast pump so that you can express milk from both breast at the same time, thus, minimizing the time you need to focus on your pump.
However, power pumping with a single breast pump is still possible.
Here's how (I'm using an all-10-minute schedule to make it easier but you can adjust the pumping duration to suit your needs better).
- Pump right breast for 10 minutes (do nothing on left breast)
- Switch side, pump left breast for 10 minutes (rest time for right breast)
- Switch side, pump right breast for 10 minutes (rest time for left breast)
- Switch side, pump left breast for 10 minutes (rest time for right breast)
- Switch side, pump right breast for 10 minutes (rest time for left breast)
- Switch side, pump left breast for 10 minutes (rest time for right breast)
Total time needed: 1 hour. So, you are still spending 1 hour to pump, but rather than having a 10-min rest in between double pumping, you switch side and keep pumping, and repeat until each breast gets pumped 3x.
When to do power pumping?
A lot of moms prefer to have one or two uninterrupted time blocks to do power pumping.
That means pumping while:
- Your baby is fast asleep (night time or early in the morning)
- If you are regularly away from your baby, you can replace one of your pumping routines with a power pumping session, say: during the one-hour lunch break. Or some women prefer to come much earlier than usual and do power pumping once they arrived in their workplace.
- Some others prefer to blend the power pumping schedule with their daily routine. This is especially true if you decide to do pumping 2-hourly round the clock. If it happen that the baby wants to nurse on your power pumping schedule, you can do pump and nurse simultaneously (then switch sides) or nurse first until your baby feels content and then pump.
Since prolactin (the hormone in charge of breastfeeding) is usually at its highest past midnight until early in the morning, some moms prefer to do power pumping in these time window.
Now, one last big question.
Does power pumping really work?
You see, because power pumping takes a lot of time commitment, obviously you want to make sure that you are doing something that works, right.
Let me tell you the fact.
The success of power pumping highly depends on several factors:
- How old is your
baby. The older your baby is, the more established is your milk supply (means your breast no longer produce milk-making cells), hence it takeslonger time to see the result. Atcertain point of time (which is different for each individual), a mom may stop responding to breast pump stimulation, and at that point of time, power pumping may not help. - How effective the milk removal during power pumping is.
The goal of power pumping is to empty your breast as often as possible. Remember the golden rule of milk production: empty breast leads to faster milk production, full breast signals slow milk production.
If your breast is not thoroughly emptied during pumping, you'll have less chance of success.
So, make sure to fully drain your breast by adopting hands-on pumping techniques.
If you are interested
- How long you are committed to do power pumping.
If you do power pumping for only 1 day, then stop, you won't make it.
The fastest result I've seen is by doing power pumping for at least 2 days. Some moms can only see results after a week or two.
So, if you want to succeed in power pumping, brace yourself and give it a go for at least 1 week before you switch back to your regular pumping routine.
- Mother's body limitation.
Some moms simply can not produce enough breast milk because they have inadequate milk-making cells, popularly known as insufficient glandular tissue (IGT).
For these moms, there's a limitation on how much breast milk their cells are able to make, and thus,
The only thing that may help them is to increase the pumping frequency. But again, that does not guarantee them to have a full supply as other moms have.
If you suspect yourself have a serious milk supply issue like this (e.g. unable to fully breastfeed from the beginning but keep trying), I suggest you seeing a lactation consultant, so that you can have a proper breastfeeding assessment to determine what's the next step to achieve your goal.
Some resources believe that power pumping is only effective in the first 12 weeks postpartum.
But case studies that I'm going to share with you below prove the opposite.
Let's review them one by one.
Case Study: power pumping results
Note: if no details mentioned in a particular case study, that means she's using the one-hour block (20-10-10-10-10) schedule.
From 5 oz to 9 oz within a week
This mom used to pump only 5 oz per session.
After diligently power pumping twice a day (early morning and night) for 1 week, she was able to increase her pumping yield to 9 oz.
Note that she follow each pumping session with marmet (hand expression).
Baby was older than 1 year old.
(Source)
This mom made a beautiful infographic about power pumping, you can check it out here.
From 3 oz to 8 oz per session in two weeks
This mom did power pumping once a day (one last pump before bed).
She used the following pumping schedule: pump 20 mins-rest 10 mins-pump 10 mins-rest 10 mins- pump 10 mins. OR pump 15 mins-rest 15 mins-pump 10mins-rest 10 mins, pump 10 mins, rest 5 mins, pump 5 mins.
Result: in two weeks, she was able to increase pumping yield from 3 oz to 8 oz and replenish back her freezer stash.
Are you planning to build up your breast milk stash before returning to work?
Click here to get the complete guide (PS: FREE freezer stash calculator)
From 1.5 oz to 3 oz in three days
Alisha used to get 0.5-1.5 oz in one pumping session.
She did power pumping once (one hour block) in the evening for 3 days and after that, she was able to pump 2.5-3 oz per session.
From topping up with formula to no formula ever!
This mom was not producing enough breast milk for her baby and need to supplement with formula.
She did power pumping for 3 consecutive nights plus pumping one hour post feeding,
Result: she was finally able to go through her very first day without formula supplementation, yay!
From drops to 50 ml per pumping session
This mom adopted power pumping definition from Casemore, so pumping 30 minutes every 2 hour round the clock during the weekend (48 hours).
Result: she used to get only drops each pumping session. In fact, total milk expressed during all 48 hours of power pumping was only 75 ml. However, the first day after power pumping she was able to get 50 ml in just one pumping session.
Baby was at least 6 months old.
From less than 5 oz to 10 oz per pumping session
This EP (exclusively pumping) mom used to get less than 5 oz before power pumping. Her freezer stash was also close to 0 bottle.
She did power pumping by pumping 15 mins every 2 hours round the clock during the weekend (48 hours).
Result: The effect was not instantenous. On Monday she began feeling her breast is fuller. By the end of that week, she was able to pump around 10 oz in one session and fill up her freezer with breast milk stash again.
Baby was at least 9 months old.
(Source: my best friend)
From 3 oz to 7 oz with cluster pumping
This mom did cluster pumping by pumping 5-15 mins every 30 minutes in three-hour block. Here is her clusterpumping schedule:
From 8 am to 11 am (rest 30 minutes interval):
- 8.00: pump 15 minutes
- 8.30: pump 5 minutes
- 9.00: pump 10 minutes
- 9.30: pump 5 minutes
- 10.00: pump 10 minutes
- 10.30: pump 5 minutes
- 11.00: pump 15 minutes
She did two blocks like this every day and did this for 4 days consecutively.
Result: she used to get 3 oz average pumped milk, and after cluster pumping, she was able to pump 7 oz in one sitting.
(Source)
Maintain no-deficit freezer stash after a serious depleting stash
This mom did a cluster pumping-nursing twice a day:
- Morning: Pump 10 minutes, rest 10 minutes, pump 10 minutes, rest 15 minutes, nurse 10 minutes
- Bed time: nurse 10 minutes, rest 10 minutes, pump 10 minutes, rest 10 minutes, nurse to sleep.
Result: She used to have a daily stash deficit of 5 oz, but after the cluster pumping-nursing attempt, she was able to add 36 oz to her freezer stash on top of her baby's demand.
(Source)
Power Pumping Tips n Tricks
Here are some tips and tricks to make power pumping easier for you and also, to increase your chance of success.
1. Know that breast milk can stand in room temperature for up to 8 hours (depending on your ambiance room temperature). You don't need to change bottle or wash pump parts in between pumping session. If you are not comfortable with 8 hours, changing the bottle and washing the parts every 4-6 hours are generally pretty safe. If you want to do power pumping for 48 hours, keep your pump parts in the fridge and only wash them once at the end of the day. Yes, it's perfectly fine.
2. Use a good quality double electric breast pump. While it is possible to do power pumping with a single breast pump, it is more time consuming and tiring. Even more plus point if your breast pump has a built-in timer, such as Spectra S1 or Medela Freestyle.
3.Use a hands-free pumping bra. You can make a DIY hands free bra for yourself, just use your nursing bra (I did), or invest on a good quality pumping bra.
I hope this guide helps you to understand power pumping better and you can apply it to increase your milk supply. I try my best to cover all the details as much as possible, but if you have any questions, feel free to ask me in the comments and I'll be glad to help.
Did you enjoy this post? Please share so that others get the benefit too.
ARE YOU STRUGGLING TO MAINTAIN A GOOD MILK SUPPLY AFTER RETURNING TO WORK?
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This is great info Rina! I linked to it under my power pumping article when I got a question about how long to pump each breast. Thanks!
Thanks, Jen. Glad that this article can help you answer your readers’ power pumping question.
Hi just so I am clear, if I do the power pumping and it works, should each of my normal pumping sessions show an increase? And if so, how long after that increase do I stop doing the extra power pumping session? Thank you!
Yes, your normal pumping output should increase.
It depends on you. Some moms have a ‘target’ how much milk she would like to pump every single day. So, once they reach that stage, they stop doing power pumping.
Some wants to see until when the amount keeps increasing, and once it does not increase anymore, they stop.
Others, due to erratic work schedule, simply cannot keep regular pumping daily, so they chose to do power pumping every weekend.
I hope this helps =)
I have a question should I power pump during a pump season are should I fully pump and drawn both breast of all milk b4 power pumping I’m confused on that part you can email me at sheenamartin88@gmail.com
Thanks for your time and reply
You don’t need to pump first before power pumping. Essentially, just do power pumping during your pump session. Since power pumping usually lasts longer than a typical pump session, it will empty your breast better and train your body to make more milk.
Thanks Rina! I tried power pumping today because I got mastitis a couple of days ago and feel like my supply took a hit. However, by the time I finished, my little one was ready to nurse again and I felt like I didn’t have enough for her. She ended up taking a bottle of expressed breastmilk. Any suggestions on how I can do this better?
Perhaps try to do power pumping when your baby take a longer nap (or after bed time) so you have ample time between once you finish pumping and when your baby wakes up.
Alternatively, if you feel it difficult to have such a longer gap, break your power pumping session into 2. e.g. 30 mins / session, but do it twice a day. Does it make sense?
Thanks! I’ll give it a try!
Hi, I am a little bit confused. So, let’s say I start my 20-10-10 power pumping session at 7 am. By the time i finish the pump session, it will be 8 am. Will my next normal pump session be at 10 am or will it be 11 am if my usual schedule is 3 hourly? The time ticks when i start my pump session or after i finish? Thanks!! Great article by the way 🙂
Hi Patrina,
If you pump 3 hourly, that means the interval between you start pumping again is 3 hour. If the first session is 7 am, the next session would be 10 am (not 11 am).
Hope this is clear =)
Rina
Do you pump on the slow setting or fast setting?
You mean for power pumping or pumping in general?
Slow or fast setting will be depending on mom’s preference, so it’s personal choice.
I myself do better with fast setting.
Very nice and informative blog. It must have saved many moms for adopting top feed. I have a wierd question . What if i have manual pump and not electric pump? Will it make difference??
You can still do power pumping with manual pump, just follow the steps for single electric pump. It’s just it will be much more tiring with manual pump. I did it once by combining single electric and manual. Still doable heheh..
Hi! After I do power pumping for a week, can i maintain the increased amount of output with my regular nursing and pumping schedule? Or do I need to do power pumping every now and then to maintain my output? Great article and site by the way 😀 You’re a big help to moms like me. Thanks!
Hi Eya,
Glad you love this site =). Feel free to share it with other breastfeeding moms.
As for your question, if you’re pumping frequently enough daily, you don’t need to do power pumping every now and then. One is usually enough.
But if you frequently skipped pumping (perhaps because busy at work, etc), you may need to do power pumping every now and then.
Hi Rina,
I’m a little confused on how long I need to power pump. It says a couple days but also that some women don’t see an increase in supply for a few weeks. Do I keep it up until I see an increase or just a couple days? Thanks you for this site!
Hi Jenni,
It depends on how often you do power pumping daily. Some people can see result as fast as 48 hours because they did a lot of power pumping sessions daily (say, 3x or more).
Others only spend an hour a day and need longer time frame to see results.
So, I’d suggest to keep doing it until you see the increase of milk yield on your normal pump session.
Remember, your goal is not to accumulate as much as milk during the power pumping itself, but rather increase your overall milk supply.
Morning
If I power pump , and my daily routine is 2 hours between pumping a day. If I power pump for 1,hour, do I count 3 pumps plus my other “normal” pump in the day?? Thanks for your answer.
Yes.
Hi Rina! Are you supposed to wait for a let down before you start the clock on a 10-minute pump when pumping for the 1-hour block?
Thanks!
Kim
If it only takes you 1 -2 minutes to get the let-down, I won’t bother counting from after let-down. So the 10 mins from the moment you turn on the pump.
Hi again! So sorry, but I thought of another question; if I pump 3x per workday every 3 hours, do I replace a normal pump with a power pump session? Or do I need to do it in addition between a normal pumping session?
Thanks!
Kim
You can replace one of your normal pump session with power pumping. Or, if it is not possible to do power pumping at work (due to limited time etc), you can do power pumping at home. It’s up to you, just find a schedule that works for you =)
Great site, thanks so much for all of this helpful info! I have been getting just 10 ml’s every pump session but my 1 month old is eating 3oz every feeding (so yes, I unfortunately have been supplementing). I previously read from another site that’s pumping once an hour for 2-3 days can also help, so I have been doing that for two days now and have seen a slight increase. I have also been throwing in 1-2 power pumping sessions per day. My question is, how do I get back to my normal pumping routine after this? I worry that decreasing the amount of pumping sessions will decrease my supply after I (hopefully) successfully increase it.. Also, I have found that I cannot pump through the night, I just can wake up after being so tired, is it okay to just power pump in the mornings when I wake up to make up for no sessions at night?
yes, you can power pump in the morning.
If you are afraid that once you return to your regular pumping schedule, your output will drop again, perhaps try to maintain the total pumping duration (in the whole day) and decrease it slowly from there. Say you pump 12x a day, 20 mins each, so total duration would be 240 mins, then you start dropping some of the sessions, e.g. to 8, then make each pumping session 30 mins. Does it make sense?
Are you exclusive pumping, btw? If yes, this site has a lot of great info related to EP moms.
Great! Thanks for the advice! Yes, I am pretty much exclusively pumping. I breast feed him every now and then when it’s convenient, but he seems to prefer the bottle.
Can you tell me if once I increase my supply a bit, is there a way to increase it again? I think I am almost maxed out on pump sessions, I just wasn’t sure if it will keep gradually increasing or I will just wake up one morning and wha la..? I have noticed an increase since I have upped my sessions, but it still isn’t where I want it to be. For example I have increased from 70ml’s a day to 120ml’s, and I need to be pumping at least 540ml’s just to feed him daily..
Thanks in advance for all of your help!
Correct me if I’m wrong. So you are almost EP-ing and your current pumping output is 120 ml (is this per pumping session or total daily)?
Have you checked my other article about effective pumping (it’s what you need to do while pumping, e.g. massage, get more let-downs). These things can help you to get more milk.
And perhaps, this article can motivate you: https://livingwithlowmilksupply.com/how-to-stop-supplementing-with-formula-feeds
Yes that is my output for the day. Thank you I will check in to your other posts! I appreciate all of your help..
And Megan, I don’t know if you have tried this, but perhaps a consultation with an experienced IBCLC (not a regular lactation certified nurse) will help. If local IBCLC is not available in your area, you may consider eConsult like this.
Hi. Thanks so much for this article! I try to exclusively nurse my 4 week old and pump after he is done nursing, generally every 2-3 hours. I need to increase my freezer stash for when I go back to work. Would I power pump after he nurses or wait an hour twice a day to power pump? After 2 weeks of pumping til emptied after he nursed, I was pumping an extra 16 oz a day, but then I got sick with something like the flu and now I am good to get 3 oz a day and most days we supplement with a bottle of expressed breastmilk because I just have not felt like I could do anything but nurse all day. So power pumping is very interesting to me and I plan to give it a shot. I go back to work in under 8 weeks but I would like to have a good freezer stash by then so I don’t have to worry about it. I still plan to pump at work but power pumping will have to be done early in the morning and at bedtime. I only have a 30 minute lunch break at work. So the biggest question is do I power pump eight after he nurses or wait an hour to do so? I plan to continue to power pump for as long as I can, in 1 hour increments. This is baby #5 and with all of the others I dried up at 3 months but I am shooting for at least 12 months with this baby. Thanks for your help!!
Hi Donna,
You can pump right after nursing. Remember, the goal of power pumping is not to accumulate as much as milk during power pumping itself, but it will be reflected in your regular pumping sessions a few days after that (or for some moms, after a week). All the best =)
Hi…. I’m a mother of two and half months old baby. I’m producing 1 to. 1.5 Oz milk per breast per session. Will power pumping method help me to increase my supply??
Good Day! I just want to ask if can I do power-pumping even if my LO is 14 wk old?..thanks! =)
Yes, can.
Hi rina…. Plz help me….. I’m a mother of two and half months old baby…. I’m breast feeding my baby. But I’m producing only 1Oz to 1.5Oz milk per breast per session. This is insufficient for my baby. So I’m supplementing with formula feed. Sometimes my baby will satisfied with breast feeding. But sometimes he demands more milk. Especially during evening sessions my feeds are going insufficient. I’ve read about this article regarding power pumping and I would like to give it a go. But I’m not sure how to manage it with breast feeding. Plz help me how to manage power pumping with breast feeding and tell me if power pumping works or not in my case. Awaiting your reply.
You can try power pumping in early morning whereby usually milk supply is biggest, and your baby is most likely feel content compared to other timing. I can’t guarantee it will work because you need to do your work here. Be persistent (don’t give up just after one try, no such thing like miracle overnight), seek help from an IBCLC who can advise you a detailed pumping schedule + latching. All the best.
Hi rina!
I have a doubt. If I’m not feeling the baby directly because of my work schedule and I’m exclusively pumping only, still can I get boost of milk supply with power pumping?? Can I still maintain adequate milk volume with exclusive pumping??
Small correction. It is feeding not feeling
yes, you can replace one or two of your pumping sessions with power pumping. Alternatively, during weekend pump every 2 hours for at 2 days. For more exclusive pumping tips, I recommend you to check Amanda Glenn’s website for exclusive pumpers. So many great tips over there.
Hi rina!
Does power pumping with single electric breast pump give same results as double pumping? Is it efficient with single pump?
Theoretically, it should work because you give the same frequent stimulation to each breast, just like double pumping do. The only difference is for double, rest time is given at the same time for both breasts, for single, rest time is alternate.
Hello there. I’m a full time housewife and i’m direct feeding my baby. I just think my milk is not enough because sometimes he sounds fussy and pulling my nipple. I tried power pumping and every 10 minutes pumping session is painful for my nipple. So i reduced the session to 6 minutes. I’m using single pump and it’s a little time consuming. Is my technique correct or not?
Hi Yuuhi,
I don’t understand your question. Are you pumping every 10 minutes? Or doing power pumping for 10 pump-10 rest and so on?
As for your baby fussiness, there can be other reasons: e.g. forceful let-down, etc. To check if she’s getting enough milk, check her diaper count and weight gain.
Hi Rina… i am mom of 2.5mnths old baby.
i am falling short of supplementing formula once a day that around 100ml .. i wana increase my supply.. i just started pumping bt i do it once in 3days. here my main question is will i be able to increase my supple when my baby is 3 months old.!??? i have heard at 3 months ur milk supply is established. plz suggest.
You can. But you need to pump more regularly. Just pumping once in 3 days may not enough to stimulate your breast to produce more milk. Try to be consistent, what about pumping every day after you feed your baby formula?
Hi, great article!
I have a question, my electric breast pump jas an expression & massage mode, do i only use expression mode during power pumping? Or if my milk is stop expressing, i switch to massage mode (like regular pumping) ?
Thanks a lot!
– Dita
Good question, Dita. I would still switch between massage and expression mode during power pumping. In a normal pumping session, I usually get up to 3 let-downs. But when I do power pumping, I aim for 2 let-downs for 20-min part and one let-down for 10-min part. That means, start in massage, switch to expression once you get let-down.
Please help me. For past two weeks my production has dropped. Thats why i tried to switch to the power pumping.but i only get 20ml of total milk from Both sides.and it just took only two minutes to release milk.and that all. Its finished. No any mik even for further fivr minutes.please help
Hi Piyumi,
just continue power pumping, and remember to empty your breast frequently (whether by direct latch or pumping). I hope this story can help to motivate you. FYI, your output is still better than her (she only got 75 ml in 48-hours power pumping, total yield, not per session). But look at her result.
All the best,
Rina
Hi there,
I’ve been pumping sparatically since my baby was born ,he is almost two months. Starting today I’ve been pumping for 30 mind every two hours. Does that count as power pumping I’m still confused ?
– young new mom
Yes, Hailei, what you are doing is also considered power pumping (based on Stephanie Casemore definition).
Hi, is latching considered as pumping too? Baby latches every 3 hourly in the morning. If I do pumping every 2 hourly during the morning hours, sometimes my pumping session will clash with latching. Do advice! Thanks!
Both pumping and latching are ways to empty breast.
If your baby latches well, I would opt for latching because in general babies can remove more milk efficiently.
Hello can i ask when you said pump right breast for 10 minutes (do nothing on left breast), meaning i dont have to collect let down on the left breast? Can i still collect let down on left breast if i want to? Noticed that i collect let down one side and pump the other side will have higher yield than not collecting. Normal yield with let down i can get 60ml both sides. However when i tried single power pumping as above, i only get 40ml both sides. Pls advice thanks in advance!
Hi Evvie,
Of course you can.
When I said do nothing on left, I assume you only have a single electric pump, no Haakaa / milk saver.
Hi! This website and all your information is awesome and extremely motivating . Thanks so much for all being so helpful.
What I have understood is to increase my milk supply,
I should pump for 20 mins every 2 hours and do 2 power pump sessions.
Am I right?
Also is one power pump session considered 1 pump session or 3 (20-10-10 with 20 mins total rest in between) with a double electric pump?
Awaiting ur reply.
Thanks again
You can do either one: pump 20 mins per 2 hour round the clock or pump / nurse as usual PLUS 2 power pump session.
As far as I know, 1 power pump = 3 sessions, but I can be wrong though.
Will this work for an older baby? My son is 18 months and I’m practically dried up but he keeps asking for milk. I’m trying to increase supply so I can get a stash and switch him to sippy cups of milk.
Hi Jessica, already replied via Email ya. But in short, yes it would work
Hello
Am formula feeding my child from birth. He was not nursed at all..I could not do any pumping for several weeks and my supply completely dried out. Is there any way to produce milk? My lo is 4months old now and he prefers only bottle , not latching. Please reply. Eagerly waiting.
I suggest you to consult with an IBCLC. It is possible to do relactation in most cases, the IBCLC will give suggestions on how often you need to pump and whether you need to take certain medication to jump start your milk production.
Hello! I have a 1 month old baby girl and I am struggling with breastfeeding/milk supply issues. In the first two weeks, I exclusively breastfed, and she did not gain any weight. So the pediatrician suggested to make a monitorization of my milk supply. I did this by I weighting the baby before and after feeding her and then pumping. My supply resulted an average of 50 ml from both breasts in the middle of the dat, with slightly higher/lower quantity in the morning/evening. So, the doctor told me tot supplement with formula. So i started this mixer feeding: breastfeeding her, giving her expressed breast milk (if i had any) and then formula. Since then , she started gaining weight (more than 300 grams/week). However I am struggling to increase my milk supply, as i desperately want to give her as much maternal milk as possible. I called a LC, and I have been using a SNS to feed her both pumped milk and formula, i have been taking fenugreek, anise, caraway, fennel as suppliments and as tea (around 2-3 cupa/day), doing double powerpumping once a day, regular pumping after each feed and yet I feel like nothing seems to work. After two weeks i see no clear distinct improvement. She sucks more from my breasts, but i pump less after that, the quantity is a Little higher , but varies a lot depending on the time of the day (between 45-100 ml per session from both breasts). There are times when i get nothing but drops from pumping, however she generally sucks between 10-60 ml. However, it is not enough for a 1 month old. I have literally reached a dead end…I am constantly anxious, tired as I can’t sleep during daytime, i can’t put my mind off this issue and feel so frustrated…i feel that time passes and i loose this “battle”.
I am kind of desperate for solutions…
Hug first… I feel you.. trying to eliminate supplementation is hard.
What about, if you are doing SNS, just stop doing regular pumping. After all, when your baby get the formula milk via SNS, she’s sucking at the same time, providing the stimulation that you need.
Perhaps if you do it that way, you can have more time to rest, and your body will respond better.
As for the milk booster, go read up the Breastfeeding Mother’s Guide to Making More Milk. Not all moms get good effect with fenugreek, sometimes opposite thing happens. That’s why it’s best to understand what each herb is recommended for and whether there’s any contraindications.
Just my two-cents..
Hi rina,
Great blogs been reading your blog nonstop. But I do have a question, my right boob has always expressed more milk then the other Bcs I nurse my baby often on the right. However this past week I feel like my right boob is showing a decreasing result and it does not get as full as the left,. I’m worried that my supply on my good boob is depleting as my baby prefer the right, Any tips ?
Hi Deena, Breast does not feeling full is not a sign of decreased production. Perhaps because you nurse so much with your right, the milk inside gets depleted quickly and replenished quickly, too. But if you are concerned, you can try pumping your right after feeding to stimulate more supply.
Okay rina. This week I’ve been seeing a huge drop in my supply not sure why.but I’ll start power pumping again.
Can I ask how fast can I see results in power pumping ?
How long power pumping works differs among individuals. This can be due to the pump freq that she does as well as baby age. My suggestion: give yourself 1-2 weeks to see result. Good luck!
Hello!
My baby is 3 months old and in the middle of the night she only wakes up at 3am and 6am for her feeds. Each time she only drinks from 1 breast and doesnt drain it fully.
I usually double pump after i put her back to bed but im planning to stop doing that as i need to get more sleep once i go back to work.
Will not pumping in the night affect my supply?
Can i make up for it in the day?
I do not really have that much milk at the moment. Each side yields only 50ml per pump session
Hi dear,
I wish there’s a quick yes/no answer for this. But in reality, dropping night-time pumps leads to varied results among moms.
There’s a good explanation about maintaining milk supply in Nancy Mohrbacher’s site, including magic number and the longest period between pumping. Check it out here.
All the best!
Hi Rina, your blog is truly heaven sent. I’m always worried that my baby doesn’t get enough milk plus my in law keeps on insisting on using formula milk instead. It is very discouraging and I’m really on the verge of quitting. Been trying power pumping for 2 days now. I hope it works! Thank you very much!
Yay, good luck!
Hi Rina
My supply dropped by half after a fever/cold and now cough. Is it ok to power pump now while I am still coughing ? Anyway idea if being sick affects milk production ? I find my milk refilling very slowly 🙁
Hi Evelyn,
It’s totally ok to pump while being sick. You may want to pay attention to the medications given to you, make sure it is safe for breastfeeding mothers. For more resources on pumping to recover from sickness, you can check out this wonderful article from Exclusive Pumping.com