Exclusively Pumping Question

LittlePinkMoose

I've been exclusively pumping since pretty much the beginning (my LO will be 4 months old next week). After working with lactation consultants, etc., he just wouldn't latch and we had issues using a nipple shield, so I decided to EP so he could still get the breast milk. I was pumping at first about 8 times a day. I've since cut back on the amount of times I pump to 6, once I established a steady supply (about 30-31 oz per day). I don't really have a pumping "schedule", but tend to pump roughly around the same time each day. My LO has been sleeping through the night, so I normally do my last pump of the day around 11:30 p.m., and then wake up around 6:30 a.m. to pump again (LO gets up around 7-7:30). However, I'm exhausted at night, and I'm only staying up so that I can have the 7 hour stretch in between the morning and night pump. I'd love to start changing up my schedule and pump 5 times a day, with my last one being around 10:00 so I can get some better sleep and stop fighting to stay awake. Although my supply is pretty regular, should that schedule change have any effect on it? I'd be dropping one pump a day and going for a longer stretch at night. Anyone have experience with that? We're planning on starting him on foods at 4 months, so he won't be limited to only drinking breast milk. 

olookasquirrel

How much of a cushion do you have supply wise? Is he eating all 30oz or are you able to freeze some? 

That being said, it's a calculation of sleep vs pumping. My LO is also STTN (about 8pm-5am), so I decided it was more important to me to sleep and not be a zombie. I do 6 pumps per day - 5am, then we both like to sleep in a little so 9am, noon, 3pm, 6pm, 9pm. I'm still pretty steady in terms of output. Are you tracking? I can recommend a great app for your phone, so you can quickly see if a given change is affecting your supply. 

Also, I should note that when I started sleeping longer stretches I noticed MORE production (although this was going from every 2 hours pumping to every 4 hours pumping). 

If you stretch that night period out longer and longer your breasts will adjust, just like if LO was nursing. Try finishing your last pump at 11pm, then 10:30pm, and finally 10pm should end up giving you a long enough stretch. You might wake up uncomfortable for 2-3 nights after each adjustment, but your body will figure it out.