How to Troubleshoot Breast Pumps
A baby very efficiently empties a mother's breast, and a breast pump mimics this action. Pumping can be a positive way to provide breast milk for your baby when you cannot be present during a feeding. However, like anything mechanical, a breast pump may cause some difficulties. Those difficulties may stem from your not understanding how it works, impatience in learning the best techniques for expressing your milk or from a problem with the breast pump itself.
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Instructions
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Keep the breast pump clean. If you are having problems expressing milk with your breast pump, the pump may not have the suction required to do the job. If the suction seems weak, clean all parts with warm soapy water. If you find dried-on or sticky milk residue, soak the tubing and any parts that touch milk in vinegar to dissolve the milk.
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Check for loose fittings or cracks of any kind. As with any suction situations, the seal has to be tight to work correctly. Having a loose fitting or crack that allows air to flow in or out is like trying to blow up a balloon with a hole in it -- it doesn't work. Always follow directions that come with the breast pump for optimum pump usage.
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Check the filter between the motor and the tubing. Make sure the filter is completely dry and clean. If it isn't, replace it, and try again.
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Ask for assistance. Using a breast pump, especially in the beginning, can feel awkward and embarrassing. Don't let these feelings keep you from doing what you feel is best for your baby. If you have a lactation consultant, ask for help, or contact your doctor or the nurses who helped deliver your baby. You can also consult the online or local La Leche League, an organization for nursing mothers.
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Pump when your breasts are full. If you pump directly after your baby has nursed, you may find it difficult to retrieve enough milk for use and think your breast pump isn't working correctly. To retrieve enough milk for those times you miss a feeding, try pumping between regular nursings. You can also try nursing on one side while pumping on the other for maximum milk extraction.
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Ask for a refund or replacement for a defective or inadequate breast pump. If your breast pump is new and you've followed all the instructions provided but it still doesn't do the job for which you purchased it, contact the manufacturer to see if the situation can be resolved. If not, ask for a refund or a replacement. As a nursing mother, you don't have weeks and months to wait for a solution. If the breast pump doesn't work, replace the defective breast pump with a model that will work.
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Tips & Warnings
Pumping your milk does not leave your baby with less milk when nursing. The amount of milk in the breast is proportional to the length and number of nursings or milk extractions. In other words, expressing the milk encourages milk glands to produce more milk.
References
- Photo Credit mother and child image by NiDerLander from Fotolia.com
