how much do working moms pump?

JuniperGaze · November 2014

I'm wondering how much the working moms get when they pump. I pump before work, 3-4 times at work and 1-2 times after work and only get about 15 oz which is exactly what LO needs during the day. I'm lucky to see her during the day for her lunchtime feeding. I never get enough to stash and sometimes I cut it really close. Is this average or does it seem really low?

ADC1979 · November 2014

Get out of my head, I've been wondering this same exact thing. But mostly because I have an oversupply that I'd like to cut down but I'm afraid of making it so the boobs get the wrong idea and try to close up shop.

Previously, I would pump once before work (after feeding LO), then once mid-morning, at lunch, and then mid-afternoon. That would net 20-24 ounces, depending on how LO drained me before work.

LO only takes 12 ounces to work (get a job, baby) daycare and sometimes has leftovers, so I was making way more than needed.

I recently moved to cutting out the before work pumping, and that got me down to 18-20 ounces.

Today and tomorrow I'm going to just try pumping twice at work. I've already done it for today, and netted 16 ounces. If the boobs can continue with that, then I'll be happy, but I'm really afraid they get the wrong idea and supply will tank.

SuperTinkerham · November 2014

Ugh. I pump in the morning right before he nurses, and usually get about 4- 6 oz. I pump once at work, and get maybe 2-3 ounces. Then I pump right at home, and my total (including from earlier at work session) is about 1 bottle. Lame. I am spending 1+ hours a day pumping for 2 bottles a day.

So I am sending 8 oz of breastmilk a day, and 3 4oz bottles of formula a day. He usually eats about 20-24 oz a day total, not including what he gets when he nurses in the morning and in the evening.

SuperKim13 · November 2014

I pump in the morning after he nurses and 3 times at work. I get about 18-20 ounces total from this. 5-6 ounces in the morning and 4-5 ounces per session at work. He was eating 16 ounces a day while I was at work, but has suddenly jumped to about 20 this week. Yikes! I'm hoping the girls will get the message and pep up!

hab83 · November 2014

I'm pumping 3x on Tuesdays and Thursdays when he's at daycare and getting 4-5oz each time. He has been taking 12oz each day, so I've been making enough, but yesterday he wanted 4 bottles instead of 3. I started pumping after feedings today to try to bump up supply a bit because he's waking multiple times still wanting to eat...or I've created a monster who will only go back to sleep if I nurse.

Kimmi1982 · November 2014

I nurse right before I leave and then pump 3 times at work. I average about 16oz everyday which is typically what LO eats while I'm away. I do 1-2 pump sessions over the weekend after she nurses, so I only get maybe 2-4oz every weekend, but it helps build the freezer stash little by little.

ashleymarie1027 · November 2014

I gotta hand it to yall for finding time to pump so much at work. I started out pumping once in the morning, twice at work and one at night... But I just can't keep up with work and get home in time to see my LO. So I'm actually making the switch to formula.

argonne · November 2014

I pump 3x and get about 15-18oz. She usually takes about 10-12oz. on a good day, so we're doing good.

dobbyisfree · November 2014

I work 13 hour shifts. I pump once in the morning at my inlaws and get 3-5 oz, and 3 times at work... I get about 6 oz each time. Baby normally eats 20ish oz while Im gone... today he had 24, but I think he is growth spurting. My mother in law said his face looks skinnier.

hab83 · November 2014

@argonne‌ How's your baby sleeping at night? I was thinking of having DH start taking a feed at night even if it means doing a little formula because DS is still waking 3 times a night on average. He's taking about the same amount during the day as your LO most of the time. I'm trying not to freak out and stop BFing prematurely, but I am just so sleepy! I'm also wondering if it would even matter if I did switch to formula. Maybe sleeping longer is just a developmental milestone he hasn't hit yet and not associated with how much he's eating during the day.

January Bride · November 2014

I bf my daughter from 6:15-6:30 daily. Then I usually pump at 9:30, 11:30, 2:30 and 4. I maybe feed my daughter around 7. I feed her 1-2 other times before the next morning.

I pump 16-17 daily to send to daycare (my production per session varies. A few weeks we had a great stash and the other weeks it has been a struggle.)

It is usually more in the morning, but if I'm short that day it is easier to just deal with grabbing a few oz from my stash rather than worrying about it.

melissaquinn106 · November 2014

Yikes this is what I have stayed up at night worrying about. I go back to work on Dec 3rd. And my mom willvw watching LO. I'm also a teacher so I'm fortunate to be home by 3 everyday. My plan is to feed her at 6 and then put her in the car with my mom at 6:30 and pump out the rest whatever that maybe. I'm hoping to just feed her from one side and pump the other getting about 5oz. Then at work I plan on pumping at 9:30, and 12:30. (Which I hope will be her feedings with my mom) I have no idea how many oz I will get but hopefully I can get 10 oz at work. Then feed her when j get home at 3 and then the rest of the evening.

I have been pumping every night at 10 and freezing it so I have a decent freezer stash. But I've been giving her a 5 oz bottle and then miring after for bed at around 7 to try and fill her up for the night.

Hopefully I'll be able to pump 15 oz during the day and 4 or so at night. Send the 15 oz with my mom and keep the 4 for myself for night feedings/freezer stash.

But I've basically been having a panic attack about it since mother keeps taking about wanting to give her 3 feedings at 8, 11, and 2. I guess we'll just have to play it by ear and hope for the best.

hab83 · November 2014

mimiq106 said:
Yikes this is what I have stayed up at night worrying about. I go back to work on Dec 3rd. And my mom willvw watching LO. I'm also a teacher so I'm fortunate to be home by 3 everyday. My plan is to feed her at 6 and then put her in the car with my mom at 6:30 and pump out the rest whatever that maybe. I'm hoping to just feed her from one side and pump the other getting about 5oz. Then at work I plan on pumping at 9:30, and 12:30. (Which I hope will be her feedings with my mom) I have no idea how many oz I will get but hopefully I can get 10 oz at work. Then feed her when j get home at 3 and then the rest of the evening.

I have been pumping every night at 10 and freezing it so I have a decent freezer stash. But I've been giving her a 5 oz bottle and then miring after for bed at around 7 to try and fill her up for the night.

Hopefully I'll be able to pump 15 oz during the day and 4 or so at night. Send the 15 oz with my mom and keep the 4 for myself for night feedings/freezer stash.

But I've basically been having a panic attack about it since mother keeps taking about wanting to give her 3 feedings at 8, 11, and 2. I guess we'll just have to play it by ear and hope for the best.

Generally speaking, your baby will need 4-6oz every 2.5 to 3 hours. If you feed at 6:30 and baby is up for the day, she should nap around 8:30 and probably be up again around 9:30 to eat if she takes an hour long nap. I wouldn't have your mother feed at 8 since that's only 1.5 hours after you nurse. She may not even be ready to eat by then. Hopefully, you can work the schedule so you can nurse when you get home and save yourself some pumping time.

honeybee434 · November 2014

I pump twice at work and I get anywhere from 13-18 ounces depending on the day. I started out pumping before work and then every 3 hours which was 3x at work. Then I went to before work and every 4 hours which was 2x at work and I was getting the same amount as I was with the extra session. I then cut out the before work pump and now just pump 2x at work. LO only eats about 10-12 ounces a day, so I still have quite a bit I'm putting in my freezer. That stash is starting to get out of control a little, but I just keep telling myself that if I keep rotating it out I can maybe keep giving LO BM after I try to wean her at 12 months which is the plan right now.

1982Babies · November 2014

I EP and pump when I wake, around 10:30, 2:30, 6:30 and before bed (so 5 times).

aurella79 · November 2014

I pump 3x at work (10.5 hours away from home) and average16oz.LO eats unpredictably- it varies from 12 oz-22! So far I've kept ahead of him and have a small stash. We'll see if I can keep up with him.

Tjacks09 · November 2014

I pump 5 x a day. No breast feeding, he never got the hang of it I think from being born 9 weeks early. I pump only between 22-24 oz a day total. He usually eats 28-32 oz a day. So we had to start supplementing when my freezer stash ran out when he was 4 months old. He gets about 10 oz of formula a day. We use enfamil gentlease. Wish I could make more milk, but even when I was pumping 8 times a day for the first 3 months I was only getting around 26-27 oz a day.

NADA-H · November 2014

I nurse my baby early in the morning and pump from both sides with an elec. pump for 20 mins 3 times at work and get a total of 15 Oz which is what she eats at DC then we get home and i nurse her once before bed and pump before i go to bed and that bottle goes towards her MOTN feeding, rense, repeat

EllaSmella · November 2014

I work from 9am - 2pm. I nurse LO at drop off and and pick up and she takes one bottle while I'm gone. I have been pumping around 7-9 oz at that session and her bottle is 4oz. I also pump at night before bed and get around 5 oz then.

I am thinking about dropping the PM pumping session because I have a huge amount of milk frozen and am worried I'll not be able to use it all before it goes bad, but I'm also worried about my supply taking a hit if I do that. My goal is to try to keep the PM pumping session until she starts solids in January.

I will say that how much you pump can depend on a lot of things. With my DS, I never got more than 4-5 oz per session and he drank every last ounce I pumped. With DD, I always have extra. I have a better pump this time, which helps, but I think DD was a better nurser very early on, and so my supply was better established than it was with DS.

SimpleComplexity · November 2014

I'm an EPer and pump 5-6 times per day. Baby eats about 30oz a day and I produce about 25 oz so I always have had to supplement with a little formula.

MegInPhilly · November 2014

I pump twice a day at work and get 3-4 oz total. I've tried pumping more with the same results. I get enough for barely one bottle. Been to the lc taking herbs etc. it was the same with ds1 I just don't produce much.

mamakiss · November 2014

On Monday I can get 15-18 oz, by Tuesday it's 12-5, and I'm lucky to get 8-10 Wednesday through Friday. I had a major oversupply in the beginning, but then i stopped responding to the pump as well. LO eats 10-12 ounces a day. I keep track of input/output from my stash and if I need to, I pump on the weekend to break even. If I forget my pump or skip a session, it throws me off for a couple days and I dip into my stash.