How My Breast Pump Saved My Life

Breastfeeding (exclusively) and pumping saved my sanity. I really believe this helped me prevent or get through postpartum depression. Being a stay at home mom and going through all these changes (especially in my situation) can very lonely. Being at home all day when everyone else has somehow “gotten over” the baby fever and I’m left alone with him. But all this fulfillment I had was through ofcourse caring for him and being able to feed him completely. Motherhood and breastfeeding had given me purpose like nothing ever had.

It helped me chill on the expenses. As a stay at home mom and being out of work and income for a while now and giving birth and having my baby, it can be quite stressful to think of providing. When I gave birth my husband was also out of work and diapers can be quite expensive so we just felt so blessed that we didn’t have to buy formula. It eased my mind that I am doing my part and being able to provide in that way.

It’s a cure for anxiety: they say releasing breastmilk releases endorphins. Benefits of endorphins is boosting positive feelings and self-esteem which is ofcourse important at this stage. It’s also been found to help you lose weight because it regulates your appetite and lessens your eagerness to stuff your face by alleviating depression. 

Relaxation and less stress. Whenever I breastfed my son I thought it forced me to be in one place seated for hours on end. But when I changed my mindset – it made me be in the moment in this fast paced world. I watch my son feed, I love him and enjoy him – I could rest and just be.

Then I could also be a total couch potato and catch up on Netflix and be on my phone and relax. Our babies are connected to us and I do believe that they stay attached to us to keep us calm and find rest with them. And with that I learned the balance.

My first breastpump was a gift to me and it was very affordable too. It was the best breastpump for that time in my life when I was just trying out pumping first and see how I like it. But well after that phase, I tried investing on my Spectra S1 which is one of the most famous and highly recommended hospital grade breastpumps. It was quite pricey but it is definitely worth the investment because of how efficient it is, it saves me so much time and pumps out in about half the time I used to pump before so I get more time to do other things. It’s also rechargeable and portable so it didn’t have me stuck on a wall plug!

This thing also took out all my clogged ducts and saved me from fever and chills! It also helped me to save a ton of milk since it draws out milk so well!

Building up my milk stash also gave me time away for date nights, rest, and it bought me time to heal when I got a bleb!

Time management and discipline. It helped me become more organized. Before being a mom or a breastfeeding mom at that, I used to get things done here and there at my own pace and in my own time. But now, each time I set my baby down for a nap or for bedtime I knew my clock was ticking so I literally had to schedule each chore and anything I wanted to get done. At first I thought I was paralyzed and that I would never get to a place where I can balance it all but I got used to it and I got better at managing my time. Now, I get to take care of the ones I love and do what I love both at the same time.

Responsibility. Aside from being a mom, you also need to provide and make milk (this takes a lot of energy too, believe me), also prepare and secure it (pumping, ‘making’ a whole bottle, and making sure it’s stored safely and correctly).

Faith and Spirituality: it strengthened my faith and dependence on God in his miracles and provision everyday- you never know when you might dry up and everyday is a blessing- its beautiful and refreshing. It was so beautiful to see how God made a woman with purpose and how I felt that this is what I am made to do. I can nurture and nourish my child because of my body and his blessing.

Along with that it helped me appreciate the female body. I used to think women are weak and its just biologically how we were created. But it was just realization upon realization on how much women can endure. We cannot deny the strength of a man but its just that women’s strength is of a different kind. It may not be as strong, but it endures, it perseveres. It helped me pride in myself on what my body can handle, how it restores and replenishes.

It brought out the researcher in me. it made me a herbal hippie freak who just rubs breastmilk on everything. I also read so much about its uses and its miracles in every drop.

It made me think healthier, take care of myself along with the baby because I knew what I ate and my whole well-being also affects my breastmilk production. This is is such a great benefit to me since it keeps me strong enough to endure the sleepless nights and also possibly lose the baby weight or even more.

It made me be one with community: with other moms, stay at home moms and pumping moms, etc. And mind you, that is so not me. But it made me really believe on that quote that no man is an island and mothers bear lots of responsibilities and honestly I would not have made it on my own without other moms on social media who are so nice! They honestly respond to comments on Instagram, Youtuber moms. There is this mom world and community that is so loving and accepting.

It made me want to mother every other child out there. I felt that there was so much love to give. I read about this journey of women in tribes who breastfeed each other’s babies as if they were their own hence the quote “It takes a village”. I felt that I was so blessed everyday and I wanted to share that with other people so I joined a Facebook group with moms with premature babies asking for some breastmilk donations. I just think that being able to exclusively breastfeed my son and pump on top of that is already astounding and its a blessing meant to be shared.

It revealed my commitment, dedication, love and passion that I never knew existed in me. I have never had such a strong belief and principle in something such as promoting breastfeeding, normalizing it, and spreading education about it which I continually do to this day after 18 months of breastfeeding. I post, blog and answer anyone’s questions about breastfeeding and anything I can do to help to spread knowledge to everyone. It needs to be everyone to normalize it and knowledge so they would understand why.

Girls, women, mothers and future mothers need the education that I never had before having my son. Men need to know in order to not take it maliciously and thus, normalize it. This is not to accept ‘nudity’ but accept it as a natural thing simply because it is. Boys, men and future fathers should also be educated so they would support their wives in their breastfeeding journey because it really is hard.

And for the public, for elders, people who choose not to have children and the like; even if it doesn’t affect your personal life, it’s still important to know about it so you would be more open to see it in public places. For elder men or women who never breastfed or maybe you are just more conservative – yes, I get that. But in my experience my son hated a breastfeeding cover and it was never my choice but my son’s. It’s also very hard to breastfeed in public while handling a child and maybe I can never actually truly explain that, but all I ask is empathy for mothers like me and know that its honestly never the intention to offend you or ‘flash‘ you. And besides, why would we?

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You Had Me At Merlot: Wine Tasting

I went to a wine tasting dinner with my sister since we haven’t bonded ever since I had my little bub! It was sooo fun especially that we got to bond and drink again together after a very very long time. I didn’t even get to drink much since I’m still exclusively breastfeeding my son so I got my sister drunk instead, haha!

We had a delicious spread of hors d’oeuvres and there’s something about having them perfectly paired with what wine goes with it. The hors d’oeuvres were especially made by a chef for us and wines chosen by a connoisseur. The man who spoke to us and educated us about types of wine had 10 years of experience in the industry and has been through many wineries in New Zealand, Spain and Paris!

It was so amazing to taste and actually appreciate different kinds of wine for their own authentic and specific qualities. There were tastes in my palette when I rolled wine through my tongue that was pretty astonishing to discover! I never knew wine could have such different effects on the palette such as spicy, nutty or even buttery feels! Who knew? My sister really wanted us to get educated on this and it was well-worth it with the amazing ‘meal’ that came along with it. Warning: You may not get full and you may get drunk since you’re drinking on an empty stomach! Haha.

The ambiance was such a great feel for a wine tasting. You really feel the whole vibe of it and you get to meet other fellow wine lovers. You even get a certificate after and it’s essentially a fun class and almost like a saloon too, where you can actually converse and ask questions about certain wines. We were actually pretty surprised that there were certificates after and found it so cute! After the class they asked which your favorite was and give you another glass! Definitely Prosecco for me! If you’re a wine lover, this is a good class since you actually get to know it in another level and in another way of appreciation especially those really bold and earthy wines. It’s a fairly good spread too sooo sooo delicious.

TIP!

It’s also great for couples for a different kind of date – Even great for a first date! To avoid those awkward silences. After the class my sister hung out outside where there were couches and continued catching up – I think it’s a great idea for people getting to know each other and there’s something to talk about after. It veers away from the boring dinner and movie and I’m pretty sure I would be so appreciative of my date for taking me to something not just different but definitely interesting! It could also be great for couples who want to try something new together – couples who’ve been together for quite a while and might wanna shake things up a bit too!

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What’s in my diaper bag? Birthday gift too!

I chose a mommy bag over jewelry or anything else for my birthday. Well, because, mom life! And besides, I always have to lug it around everywhere – its essentially my bag too. Hence, ‘mom bag’ instead of ‘baby bag’ (Plus I’m just more practical that way). I always end up thinking its not my style nor does it go with my outfit and I’m guessing the sleekness of this Paul Frank backpack would be much more suitable for me aside from quality-wise.

Don’t get me wrong, I loved my first baby bag! I think at that time it was the best decision I would have made since I exclusively breastfed my son, we always needed a cooler to keep the temperature of his milk when we go out. It was quite sturdy since this bag has been ripped to shreds. Its been thrown, it’s been wet, soaked with breastmilk, and it has certainly been places! For the price, the quality and the sleek look – it’s definitely worth it but its also already served its purpose.

My previous bag was branded Colorland which is all over Lazada when you look up baby or mommy bags (insulated/thermal backpacks). Their bags are often insulated and come with its own changing pad too! You can use it as a pumping bag as well, it can fit quite a ton of pumping supplies, no doubt!

I used to put my son’s breastmilk in the cooler, some baby food and a sippy cup. At the top, I can fit 2 burp cloths, a change of clothes, 4 diapers, my mommy things in the zipper, snacks, his sandals (in a drawstring bag) comfortably. If I needed to I can still fit quite a few stuff like a breastfeeding cover, a toy, and even an umbrella – yes, an umbrella. With just a bit of packing tips to ram all those things in that backpack, I’d turn you into Mary Poppins!

Now lets talk about my pretty new member! I love the color, the design, the material of the zippers and metals. I chose this gray color so it’s unisex for my husband (there was another color option which was pink) and my previous bag was already black. There is a big back pocket where I can keep my mommy stuff like my wallet, cellphone and etc where they are really safe and I can be more carefree. I love that it has a tissue/wet wipe holder, it just makes on the go diaper changing a breeze.

It has one insulated cup holder which is fine with me – I only bring 1 bottle of breastmilk anyway, sometimes I don’t and just breastfeed him directly! I’m sure with how I pack my bag, I can fit his sippy cup just right and snug (his sippy cup is non-spill and insulated anyway). I would have preferred probably two thermal bottle holders and that would be enough now that my son is bigger and eats solids. A sippy cup and one bottle of breastmilk (plus snacks) and his little tummy is happy. It doesn’t comes with a changing pad, but my old one had one so I just transferred it. I love the separate compartments (no need for a bag organizer!) and the “wet pocket” as I like to call it where I put anything that can spill like alcohol and baby oil to avoid any messes. I use the middle compartment for diapering like his changing pad, diapers and wipes which makes it such a breeze for changing time!

 

I essentially pack the same old things, just in a different order and its definitely more spacious without the cooler bit of it. And super duper cute! I used to pack my mom stuff in the front pocket but I have to check it often if anything goes missing, especially from thieves, a backpack isn’t as safe as I would want it – but it’s the only easiest way to go out with a toddler. But hey, with this backpack’s mommy pocket is at the bag and essentially not visible when worn so I can keep all my valuables there! I really love backpack baby bags, I really do suggest it, if you go out with your toddler alone often or you are a single mom. Really love this new purchase/gift! Happy birthday to me!

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