With every bite I was in pain and just about screamed.
Every other week we ask a Real Mom if they would like the NurtureGoods experience. These moms use a breast pump from NurtureGoods in order to describe and share their experiences. In this way, we hope to raise awareness of the NurtureGoods experience and help you make a choice. This week it's mom Kimlee's turn. Will you read along?
As special as I find breastfeeding, it is nice to be able to let it out of my hands for once.
Let me introduce myself, my name is Kimlee and I am a mom of 3 boys and bonus mom of another boy and a girl. They are all about 2 years apart. Thanks to a car accident several years ago, I am unfortunately no longer working. I do try to start my own business, but with so many young children it is very busy here at home and I regularly run out of hands. But what a wealth such a large family!
Last December I gave birth to our last child by Caesarean section. When I turned out to be pregnant, I knew right away that I wanted to breastfeed this baby too. To be honest, I was a little reluctant to breastfeed again. In the past 5 years I have been pregnant 3 times and breastfed for a total of 28 months. My oldest son stopped completely at 10 months and my middle son didn't stop until 18 months.
To my mind, I had only just finished the last one and now I would already have to go back to work. That's how it really felt to me, like work...hard work. With the 2nd one, my breastfeeding didn't start properly. Every hour I had to breastfeed while he didn't latch on properly, resulting in sore breasts and cracked nipples. It was toe-curling. Every time he sucked I was in agony and screamed. I don't understand why I didn't call a lactation consultant. I just felt like I should be able to do this myself.
When breastfeeding was finally going well, little man still often came in the night asking for milk. My partner regularly told me: "pump some milk so I can take over from you. But as it turned out, pumping was useless. Little man didn't want a bottle. And because he asked so often for a feed, not much happened during the pumping, which at that time I did with a hand pump. (Until my hands cramped up).
Many times I thought about giving up. It hurt so much but I also wanted so badly to persevere, because after all, it is beautiful that your child grows from your milk! (Not that I don't support artificial feeding, because babies grow just fine on that too). I still wanted to share those 1-on-1 moments with my baby. That I can feed him, skin to skin. Us together. Time goes so fast already. And still I was looking forward to it for the most part.
Recovering from a C-section, sore breasts and then also feeling that pressure to make it work. It made me feel insecure. NurtureGoods allowed me to test the dual efficient Smart 3.0 breast pump. Something I was reluctant to do at first. Because what if it doesn't work, both pumping and bottle feeding.
When I received it, I immediately fell in love with the design. Because say it. Look how beautiful! It has a touch screen and can be used wirelessly after being charged with a USB cable. The battery lasts for a long time! So you can easily take it with you should the need arise.
My son often has enough with just one breast, but the other breast is about to explode. So I like to pump that one right away. You can also pump both breasts at the same time! There is a massage cushion in the breast shield which feels very nice. Just be careful what size you need, there is 1 size included as standard. For me it was perfect! You can order other sizes on the website. The device has 9 different suction levels so there is something for everyone. It took some searching to find out what I liked best, but you will soon find out.
And thanks to the memory function, you can easily set what works best for you. So you don't have to search again next time. The pressure pulse massage technology increases your production by 20%! It also has a function with a nipple retractor, which helps to correct a flat nipple while pumping.
In brief:
Good value for money
Rechargeable battery
Pumping both breasts at the same time
Easy to clean
9 different suction levels
100% BPA free material + CE certified
All in all I am very satisfied with the pump, it feels great and I have a bottle full in no time. I enjoy our feeding moments together but it's also nice to be able to hand it over! And giving a bottle is something my brothers and sister love to do.
Much love, Kimlee
Want to know more about Kimlee? Then follow her on Instagram @future.mrs.dias