can't let-down while pumping at 6 months

[juliasmom]

I've been successfully pumping for the past six months and now I can't seem to let-down while pumping even though I know I am full. I have no problem when I am feeding my daughter directly. I am using an Ameda Purely Yours pump and recently replaced the valves, so I know they are in good condition. Does anyone have any tricks or ideas that might help? I've tried looking at her picture and thinking about her, showering before I pump, and smelling something she has recently worn. I can't figure out what is wrong and I am getting very frustrated. Any suggestions????

Thanks,
juliasmom

[megsmom]

I had a problem with pump let down in the beginning and the thing that worked for me was totally zoning out by closing my eyes and not looking at the milk bottles till I was done. Nice relaxing CD's of Enya or the like helped too. If you are getting yourself nervous based on past experience, this anxiety can really impede let down.

Jen
mom to Meghan 7/13/01

[Momof3Labs]

Are you sure that your pump is working properly? Your valves may not be on properly, or one might be bad, making the suction level too low. See this thread:

http://www.windsorpeak.com/dcforum/DCForumID4/612.html

Edited to add: Sorry, I didn't realize that you were THAT Julia's mom! I found that my letdown improved dramatically when I played with my pump's settings. I have a PIS, but I start with high frequency, low suction and once the milk starts to flow, I switch to low frequency, high suction. This better imitates Colin's sucking pattern and has improved my letdown dramatically. Do you do something like this while pumping?

[Sandy]

When I had a problem with my PIS with letdown I switched to a Avent ISIS handpump and that really worked for me. The pumping action really simulates the baby's sucking much better. I think it has something to do with the petal massager. "Petal massagers flex in and out providing gentle massage to the areola during pumping to help stimulate letdown". I found that it really worked. I also have heard that some people use the petal massager with their electric pump and that worked too. I did't try it because it was just easier to use the whole ISIS pump in general.

HTH,
Sandy
mom to Alexander Thor 3/16/02

[egoldber]

When I pumped, to get things "flowing" I had to manually massage my breast for a few minutes. Once I got that inital letdown, then things flowed much better.

HTH,

[cara1]

Don't forget to drink plenty of water.

[nigele]

The only thing that helps me now is using massage.

Good luck!

[Rachels]

This happened to me, too. The only thing I have to add to what everybody said is that Rescue Remedy is supposed to help with letdown. Also, sometimes drinking a cup of Mother's Milk Tea before I pump is helpful.

-Rachel
Mom to Abigail Rose
5/18/02

[nitaghei]

Don't have lot to add.
You HAVE to relax - stress is the worst thing (as the LCs kept telling me!)
Other than that:
Have you tried massaging with a heat-pack (small, gel type that one can get at the drug store)? The heat can help with let down.

I used this plus the music and visualization when DS was in NICU at 4 days old, and I was EXTREMELY stressed.

Visualization can be different stuff; for example:
close your eyes and visualize your child nursing; visualize milk flowing to your baby.

Weird - but it did work for me. It works better if you have previous experience with medidation or visualization techniques.

Nita
mom to Neel 01/05/03
dog mom to a cocker and a PWD

[AJsMom]

I had the same problem. I had been pumping often without any difficulty, getting 8 oz in 10 min easy, but once my son was about 6 months old (he is now 8 months), forget it. I thought you would be interested in what my OB had to say. He told me that it was a common problem at this stage (I assume beyond 6 months or so), and that letdown is much more closely associated with the actual sucking of the baby vs. using the pump or hearing baby's cry, etc. I used to leak like crazy prior to this, but stopped altogether around this point, so I guess my letdown reflex reflected what the doctor said. I also pump much less frequently now than I did before, so that could very well be part of the problem. I can now pump about 2-4 oz at most, even if I pump for an hour! This makes it difficult to build up a supply of EBM for babysitters!