Breast pump recommendations?

[awallrising]

I'm a SAHM but still want to be able to pump occasionally.  I want a great quality pump but don't necessarily need all the bells & whistles that many come with since I won't be working.  I would appreciate any recommendations.

[mt_gooseberry]

Surprisingly, my recommendation is for a hand pump--the Avent Isis.  I know hand pumps are generally discouraged in the pumping community, but I also only needed it as a SAHM.  I eventually got so proficient with it that I did use it when I started substitute teaching when DD was about 8mo.  Pumping is a learned skill, and I guess I learned to get more milk out with that pump than I did with the electric pumps I experimented with.  In fact, I could get about 3x more milk out with my Isis than I ever got out of an electric pump.  It allows for a lot of customization and tweaking of technique.  It was uncomfortable at first (it has a lot stronger suck than the electric pumps I tried, even on the electric pumps' higher settings) but again, you learn to tweak your technique/get used to it.  For me the only downside is that you can only do one side at a time.  Still, I got done pumping with my Isis in about the same time I would get done with a double electric pump, just because for me the proficiency was a lot higher. 

In any case, what works for one woman might not for another, so see if you can try different options before you invest (although that's another good thing about the Isis--it's affordable!).  Also, remember that pumping is very much a learned skill, so how something works the first few times might not be a good indication of how well that product really works for you.  You really have to practice to get good at pumping (which makes choosing a pump kind of hard!)

Hope this helps...good luck!