Worth it to rent hospital grade pump?

[LittleBirdy]

I have been back to work for a month now and pumping with the Ameda Purely Yours (which I bought brand new).  I still cannot seem to pump more than 8 oz per day (yes, per day, total, not per session).  I pump at least 2x per day (and nurse him at lunch).  Some days I pump 3x plus the noon time nursing.  Some days I can't even get the 8 oz and occassionally I may get an oz or two more.

I believe my supply is fine - he gained well being EBF before I went back to work and he seems satisfied on weekends.  He has been taking 4 oz of BM (or formula, once the BM is gone) every 2 hours at daycare but lately they say they think he wants more like 6 oz at a time.  So that's stressful, because he'd go from getting 2 - 6 oz of formula per day to more like 12 oz or more.

I am trying to figure out if I would respond better to a different pump, so I thought about renting one from the hospital for a week just to see if there's a difference.  However the cost to rent a hospital grade pump is $70 per week.  Even for one week that's a lot of money, especially considering I'm just starting to get paid again after maternity leave and the holidays are coming up, so I'm trying to decide if it's even worth trying?

(BTW, taking Fenugreek, eating oatmeal, drinking water, cosleeping & exclusively nursing whenever with the babe.  If he would sleep a little better I'd do some extra sessions before he wakes up and after he goes to sleep but as it is right now I'm needing to sleep almost as much as he does - and I know lack of sleep can affect supply, so I make sure that I am rested before anything else.)

Edited by LittleBirdy - 11/17/10 at 7:57am

[tibeca]

Not all women can produce for a pump. Also, 6 oz, depending on the age of your LO seems like a LOT of milk.The average mom produces between 25-30 oz of milk in a day for the average breastfed baby. 6oz every 2 hours means your baby would get like 48 oz during the time at daycare.Even 4 oz at a time makes 24 oz. It sounds more like your care provider may be over feeding your babe. If you really believe your little one needs the extra milk, you could try adding a few extra pumpings during the day. Perhaps 1 in the morning before you go to work, right after or during your morning nursing? Also, you may find pumping a few times during your weekend (while baby is nursing, so you aren't feeling tied to the pump all weekend too) may get the extra milk you need.

If you're interested in finding out whether your provider is over feeding, find out what other things they are trying to do to soothe your baby aside from bottles. Check out the links below:

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/bottle-feeding.html

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/milkcalc.html