Making sure you have the right flange size

Being a pumper is hard work!

It is not comfortable  at all to be hooked up to a pump 15-20 minutes a day for 8 to 12 times a day. It inhibits flexibility, getting out of the house, soothing your baby (although if you have a hands free bustier, you can diaper, feed, play with your baby, and blog while you are pumping (guess what I'm doing right now), and taking care of other things (like other children, eating a snack, getting water to drink).

Pumpin' Pals flanges. I want to try these1 I've heard wondrous things about them!

But what can be even more uncomfortable is when you get a blister from your nipple/areola rubbing against the side of your flange. FOr this reason, I recommend oiling up your flanges before pumping--it's almost pain free, and you can just be left with irritation of having to be still when you want to go for a run.

Because pumping is so uncomfortable already, it is vitally important that you are wearing the right sized flange. One size (especially the standard that comes with your pump) does NOT fit all. I started with the medela 24 mm, and when I got the WIC Symphony pump moved up to the 27mm and it increased my supply a lot--all that milk finally getting out!! After my pumping consultation with the lactation consultant at WIC, she commented that I had rather wide nipples ---i.e. large-- and I had to purchase the size larger 30mm. There are also smaller and larger sizes, custom sizes and each brand of pump runs different mm flanges. I came across a diagram with information about being sized for flanges.

http://www.medela.com/IW/en/breastfeeding/good-to-know/right-size-of-breastshield.html

This website shows what the incorrect flange size will do with your breast.