Right before I gave birth to my daughter, my cousin dropped off her Medela Pump in Style breastpump that was barely used. She had to go back to work almost immediately after her baby was born, and did not have enough milk to pump for her baby. I went out and purchased a new set of tubing and pump accessories, and my 1 year relationship with Medela began.
In the hospital, I was given a hospital grade pump and was encouraged to pump by the nurses. In retrospect, I think that the skin to skin bonding with my baby would have jump started lactation a lot earlier. I remained in the hospital for 4 days, and still did not have a full supply of milk by the time I came home. By the time my daughter was about 2 weeks old, I finally experienced engorgement and had my milk in at full force. I was fortunate enough to be able to nurse my baby AND have enough milk to pump and store for when I returned to work.
The Pump in Style remained my best friend and closest connection to my baby while I was at work. Pumping milk for her was my labor of love: making up for the immense guilt I felt for having to return to work and giving her the best possible nutrition I could. I pumped in the morning before I left for work, two or three times during my work schedule, and then once before I went to sleep. Before I left for work and as soon as I came home I would nurse my baby. She was a one boob baby – always satisfied before emptying my first breast, so instead of keeping my unused breast uncomfortably full, I would pump that side. This went on for an entire year. By the time my baby was 10 months old, I had stocked up so much milk, I even considered donating it. That is, until my milk supply started dwindling from a change in my schedule.
If it weren’t for my Medela Pump in Style (and my drive), I would have never been as successful as I was. I had heard about manual pumps and other electronic pumps from friends and relatives – who were not able to keep up their supply and express as much milk in a short amount of time. I always recommend Medela to my newly expecting friends and share my experiences with them.
Since I drove my Pump in Style through the mud for a year and totally overworked it, I thought that for my second baby I would need a new pump. I had the opportunity to review the Medela Freestyle – the Lamborghini of pumps, and while I loved my Pump in Style, I think I have a crush on the Freestyle!
The Freestyle has a lot more features than the Pump in Style – although I have NOTHING bad to say about my Pump in Style besides it being a bit on the bulky side. I love the hands-free feature of the Freestyle, as well as the compact design. The LED display on the Freestyle tell you how long you have been pumping for. The Freestyle includes a rechargeable battery that holds 3 hours of pumping time – so you don’t have to fumble for an outlet when you are pumping on the go – yes, I have pumped in my car on more occasions than I would like to admit.
Whether you are looking at the Medela Pump in Style Advanced or the Freestyle, you know that you have a trusted name in breastpumping accessories when you are using Medela. Not only do they make breastpumps, but they also have an extensive line of breastfeeding and pumping essentials, such as lanolin cream for sore nipples, breastmilk storage bags that are safe to freeze, nipple shields, and more!
You can win your very own Medela Pump in Style Advanced during the “In Honor of the Tatas Event.” Did you know that breastfeeding reduces your chances of breast cancer? Breastfeeding is a great option for both mommy and baby!
To enter to win a Pump in Style Advance, fill out the easy Rafflecopter form below:
Pamela R. says
Mine’s a similar story….my sister, mom to six, gave me her breast pump. I could never get to work when she wasn’t around. When she was, it worked fine, but when she left, well, it became a circus! So, I gave it up. It has colored my attitude toward pumping even though I really wanted to. And of course, we have no extra cash to buy a good one. I would love to pump, I would return to part-time work, around my hubby’s schedule, or be able to leave baby with a grandma….or be able to see a movie in the theater…or go to the gym for more than 1 hour…..please, oh please, I need a pump. Baby’s only 5 months old, still lots of time!
Pauline says
Thank you for the great giveaway – (emscout9 at Hotmail dot com)
Ashley Andrews says
New Follower from Give It To Me Monday! A Blog Hop. 🙂
~Ashley (Ms.Ninja)
Silvia Aguilar says
My son just turned 5 months and I have been having to supplement most of the day since he was 1 month old. I had an emergency csection and my milk didnt come in until 9 days after he was born. During my pregnancy with him I had so many complications I missed work and lost my job. Shortly after he was born my husband was laid off as well and we were only able to buy a cheap manual pump which I believe caused my supply to dramatically decrease to 1.5 ounces a day! Please bless me with the Medela pump. Ive heard so many great things about medela pumps and only dream about having one to help re-establish my supply and not supplement anymore. Please choose me!
Sherry S. says
here’s my tweet – http://twitter.com/#!/SStrode/status/127568792288100352
I hit enter to soon.