Breastfeeding/Registry Question

Wow...i think we are a real birth board now!

Anyway, my question is this. I plan to breastfeed...I also plan to pump on occasion. I am getting a pump from my insurance- but do I need to register for bottles- or just use the ones that come with the pump.

that a great question b/c i was thinking that i would have to wait until my insurance company gives the pump to me before i could pick out my bottles. they have stated that i would have to wait until after i had my baby to get the pump (think that is what she said, pregnancy amnesia).

With my insurance the lactation consultant orders the pump while you are in the hospital- and it is at your house by the time you get home with the baby. I heard they put you on a milking machine (think dairy cow) while you are in the hospital.

I bought the Medela Pump In Style when I had my son. The pump came with small Medela bottles. I planned on using the Avent bottles and had some already. All I had to do was buy some kind of part that allowed the Avent bottles to be compatible with the pump I was using. It worked great.

I am hoping that I will be able to breastfeed this new baby, but if I can't then I plan to use the pump again with the Avent bottles.

wait wait wait!!! Your insurance company is giving you a pump?? How does this work? i need to find out if my insurance company will supply me with one...is it brand new?

Yes..my insurance is giving me a pump. Its the medela pump in style- and it is new. Basically, it has to be ordered through a Lactation consultant- so after i have the baby- i tell the lactation consultant I want one..and it gets shipped overnight to my house. Call your insurance company and see if they cover it. They may say that there has to be a reason that you need one..but generally the lactation consultant will order one for you.

yeah, i just called my insurance company, and the said that my Dr. has to write a prescription for it so call.

I have Aetna and I called and the cover it if it's "medically necessary" i.e. the baby won't latch on. I'm hoping my doc or lactation consultant will write me a prescription or whatever they need to do!

You can just tell the lactation consultant that if you dont have access to a pump- you dont think you are going to breast feed. That should get you a script in no time.

When I pumped with my other dc, I would transfer the milk from whatever bottle was on the pump to the breastmilk storage bags so I could freeze them. As for when I went back to work, we used Playtex bottles so I would just slip the thawed out storage bag into the bottle and we were good to go.

Tip for freezing the storage bags, I didn't realize this until dc #3 (currently have 4 dc). Lay the bag flat in the freezer instead of standing it up. Then it freezes flat and you can store more that way.

So the milk storage bags fit into the playtex drop in bottle? Playtex sent me one of their bottles for free..but i thought it would be a pain in the butt to transfer the milk from the bag into the drop-in bag

I've used both Gerber and Lansinoh storage bags. I prefer the Lansinoh bags because they have a double zip lock and I had no leaks at all with those. Nothing is more frustrating than losing the precious b/m you just pumped!

Yes, you can use the storage bags in the nurser. Thaw it first, in the fridge. Then just slip it in, open the zip lock(s), and pull down the flaps over the edge of the bottle so that the zip lock is below where you screw on the ring. Quick & easy!

The Playtex bottles can be used with either the drop in liners or the regular bags. The storage bags are thicker plastic, to prevent freezer burn, but they still work well.

Thanks for all the advice ladies. I had heard rumors about insurance covering a pump, but thought that was too good to be true!

Sarah

I really like the playtex because the bags just plug right into the bottle. On occasion i have had a bag some how leak while sitting in the tempered water defrosting and had to quickly dump the milk in something. That milk is like liquid gold.. it takes so much work to get it out.. that you wouldnt want to waiste one single drop. In the beginning i would make 1 oz amounts in a ice cube tray. Once frozen i would pop them out into a freezer bag. I would defrost one or two cubes depending on how hungry i thought they were. Grayson wasnt a big eater.. 2-3 oz is all he would take even at a yr old. So yes i would buy a bottle that would work for you. Playtex are less cleaning so thats what i prefer. I use glass bottles right now and playtex. I stick them in the dishwasher.. lazy! Dont forget the nip pads and anti cracking lotion for the nips.

ok, this is clearly another one of those topics like cloth diapers where i had no freakin' idea how much there is to it!!

i'm glad i have 6 months to learn about all this stuff... what did a FTM do before birth boards??

GSDmommy wrote:ok, this is clearly another one of those topics like cloth diapers where i had no freakin' idea how much there is to it!!

i'm glad i have 6 months to learn about all this stuff... what did a FTM do before birth boards??

Live and Learn.. Remember that Luvs commercial? Its all a trial and error thing.. people ask their moms or best friends for advice.. Or you have people like me who were just born crazy to do this.

I'm so excited for you girls whose insurance covers the pumps...and a little jealous! I just called mine and they said no. Oh well, I bf my DD for about 6 weeks before we finally figured out she was allergic to my milk. Hopefully this one won't be, but you never know. I'll probably just rent from the hospital like I did before until I'm sure everything is working. I think it's about $40/month.