1. I used a rented hospital pump that worked very well, but my insurance covered nearly all of the cost because I had breast reduction surgery. I'm sure there are other strategies for getting insurance to help. They told me all that was required was a prescription from either my OB or my child's pediatrician. I went the OB route.

At work, I used a Medela Pump In Style, which definitely falls into the bank-breaking category, but it worked as well as the hospital pump in a portable size.

I tried some less expensive options but found they didn't work well enough. I was pumping as much to increase/maintain supply as I was to get milk. I think this is one of those "you get what you pay for" kind of things.

Posted at 7:32AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Kim

2. I pumped exclusively for 7 months (and part-time for the next 4) and I just used the Medela Double Select. I want to say it was about $160. (I should have, however just splurged and bought the $300+ Pump In Style since I ended up burning through my first motor!) It worked fine for me and I was able to squeeze out 8-10 ounces per 20 minute pump. It might be harder if you are only pumping occasionally. Pumping, however, was always painful as well as physically and emotionally draining. Good luck finding something that works for you!

Posted at 7:50AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Kate

3. I am on baby number 4 and have tried the Medela Pump In Style, cheap walmart pumps, and pretty much everything in between. I can honestly say that the pump that has been my breast oops best friend is the Advent Isis. It's a manual pump but quite nice and easy to use. It won't break the bank and doesn't cause masive pain. Good luck on your search!

Posted at 7:51AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Tina

4. I had a ameda purely yours i got from the wic office when they were promoting breastfeeding. I can pump like 4 ounces or 6 depending on how much milk i have in the breasts but it really works and see the ameda pump unlike the pump in style the milk and the tubing never come together. It is the only pump recommended by the FDA and it is expensive I think 250 but i had lent mine to a friend and bought mine on ebay for 117 bucks and it was in wonderful condition and it was a backpack so i could carry it around and no one would know i was carrying a breastpump. Anyways i hope you find a good one for you that doesnt hurt too much..

Posted at 8:07AM on Jun 11th 2006 by sonya

5. I used a hospital grade pump and I almost fainted from watching my nipples the first time, but it wasn't painful ALWAYS start at the lowest setting, I used the Medela and there is a secret that I didn't know for awhile (maybe its in the manual but this was at the hospital) there are two adjustable settings the suction strength and on the piston bit there is a setting for how far back it pulls which also effects how often it pulls. I find a long less powerful suction waaaay better for me (which is funny because babies do pretty much the opposite).

The breastmilk also does not come in contact with the tubing, and since they all use the same kit with the machines I imagine it is true of all their models.

However I do have to say the little, itty, bitty reusable filter bits SUCK.

Posted at 8:20AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Brenda

6. I WOH FT and have been pumping with the PIS for the past 11 months. Very comfy and it has maintained my supply. It is costly.

For occassional pumping, I would go with the Avent Isis. Comfy, affordable, efficient, and easy to use.

Posted at 8:56AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Amanda

7. I use the Medela Single Deluxe (about $65). In the mornings I pump 5 ounces in about 10 minutes. For a manual pump I had an Ameda that I loved and was really good but it stopped working. I bought the evenflo since it was so cheap it it lasted 1 week before the motor stopped working - so I don't reccoment that one!

Posted at 9:12AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Susan

8. I breast fed my daughter for 15 months using the Medela double pump. I began using it almost immediately upon coming home from the hosptial to help me establish good milk production. At 5 weeks Julaina took her first bottle of breast milk allowing me more independence. It also has an adapter to use in the car (which I used a lot more than I ever thought I would). The pump never failed me once and I'm sure I'll be using it in the future for my second baby.

Posted at 9:14AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Theresa

9. First of all - my son's name is also Nolan - you don't meet many people with that name!

My vote would also be the Avent Isis Hand pump - it is comfortable, works well and i think is only $30-40. I pumped for my son while i worked full time for his first year using at first the Isis and then later i broke down and bought an Ameda pump. Both worked well, but for an "occassional pumping", i'd say go with the isis!

Posted at 9:27AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Kristen

10. A lot of moms like the Avent Isis for a manual pump.

I used the Medela Pump In Style with great success for my first.

You can save some money on purchasing a pump a couple of different ways. First off, get a prescription from your doc or baby's doc if they'll write one. Then you can #1 - make sure not to pay any tax because there is no tax on prescriptions and #2 try to turn it in to your insurance and see if you get reimbursed for at least part of it. Another thing you can do, if you live in the states, is to try to buy off the web from a Canadian company. I bought mine (7 yeaars ago!) from http://www.babyloveproducts.com and because the USA/CANADA exchange rate is usually pretty good, I saved a good bit of money.

If you qualify for WIC, check with your WIC office. Sometimes they have pumps for mothers who qualify.

If you only need milk to mix into solids (as opposed to making full bottles to drink) you could try hand expression. I ended up hand expressing milk for my girl's solids instead of pumping most of the time. I'd hand express directly into the bowl for the cereal or into the pitcher for the blender if I wanted to mix it into homemade babyfood to thin that out.

Posted at 9:31AM on Jun 11th 2006 by momma2mingbu

11. Medela Pump in Style worked great when I was pumping while my baby was in the hospital. Later on I used the Avent Isis hand pump for an occasional baby sitter. Highly recommend both!

Posted at 9:34AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Kim

12. I love my Isis. I am a SAHM, so I don't need to pump multiple times a day or anything, but for whenever I had to be away from my baby, it was great! At first, I only got 1 or 2oz total after 15min per side. Now (@14m) I can get 3-8oz in 10min, and I'm more adept at getting a letdown on the pump. Here, the ISIS was $40 or so, I think. There was a steep learning curve -- the first several times were very frustrating, but once I figured it out, it was so easy.

Posted at 9:50AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Nessa

13. My youngest is now 16, but with her and her now 22 year old brother, I used a breast pump at work so they could be breast fed until they were a year old. I used a hospital one I rented at first at home, then I bought a little battery operated one at Toys R Us that fit in the cooler pack with the bottle I pumped into and the ice pack after I returned to work. It worked fine. I don't remember the brand, but I would pump at lunchtime and at my morning and afternoon breaks and I got enough to freeze at home for the baby to have only breast milk while I was at work

Posted at 9:58AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Karen S.

14. I used Medela Pump In Style...only the highest setting was painful! Low to medium was just fine and I was about to get about 5 ounces at each pumping, depending on recently I fed my son. Our insurance covered the cost so I did not pay one cent. Hopefully your health insurance can cover a hospital-grade pump for you!

Posted at 10:14AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Keri

15. For baby #1, I first tried a drugstore pump--NO WAY! Just as you described. In tears, I called a friend who had just stopped pumping, and her hubby hurried over with her Medela Pump In Style. Let me just say, night and day. It worked, it was fast, and it didn't hurt. She needed her pump back by the time my baby #2 came around, so I had to buy my own. Did some research, and got the Ameda Purely Yours. It's pretty much equal to the Pump In Style, but there were a couple features I liked better on the Purely Yours (more adjustable cycles--seemed faster). I CANNOT recommend it more highly!! Worth every last penny.

Posted at 10:21AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Kristina

16. I SWEAR by the Avent Isis, and recommend it to everyone who will listen. I began pumping at the hospital to help my milk come in, once my milk production became established, I easily pumped 24 ounces or more a day. I am a working mom, and I would nurse before work and empty my breasts with the pump (usually getting around 4 ounces). I would take a morning pumping break (pumping 8-16 oz), go home to nurse the baby at lunchtime, and take an afternoon pumping break, with same results as morning. I would nurse him in the evening as needed, and once we got to the point that he wasn't nursing both of us to sleep I would empty my breasts after the nighttime feeding. I collected so much breast milk that my son never had to have formula as a supplement, he was breastfed exclusively for 6 months when I added solids, I stopped pumping at 9 months and finished up our milk supply right around his first birthday, when we stopped breast feeding. Additionally, the Avent nipples allow the baby to suckle in the same way as he does on the breast, avoiding "nipple confusion", and since you can pump right into the bottles it is extremely convenient. By the way, my secret for a good "let down" was just to think about my son nursing. That really seemed to do the trick.

Posted at 10:22AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Jill

17. I never had much luck with the Avent Isis. I got hand cramps before I got more than a few drips. With the Medela Pump in Style I could pump 3-4 ounces from each breast in 20 minutes. I found the Medela Mini Electric to be an adequate substitute when we traveled and I didn't want to lug along the PIS. While it is not as comfortable as the PIS, it has adequate suction, and you can use either an AC adapter or batteries (although it does eat up the batteries fairly quickly.)

Posted at 10:33AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Rebecca Sweetser

18. I also pretty much gave up on pumping because of the pain. I used the Advent Isis, but as a large breasted woman I found that there was a fit problem. I needed 2 hands to get the pump to work at all and not much milk for all that work. Good luck!

Posted at 11:07AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Gwen

19. I pumped exclusively for my son for a year. I used a hospital grade pump for the first couple of months to get my supply well established, then used an Ameda Purely Yours for the rest of the time. I don't know about the cost, since I purchased it from a friend who used it for just a week or so before it got to be too much with her twins.

I was able to maintain an over-supply with the pump, so I know it worked well for me. I did end up switching out the Ameda horns for the Medela horns I used with the hospital grade pump. They were just more comfortable for my breasts.

The big thing that I have to say about the Ameda is that they have INCREDIBLE customer service. I had a problem with the pump at one point and they actually sent me another one via Fed Ex. I had it within a day or two. They asked me to send my malfunctioning pump back to them and paid for the return shipping.

Posted at 11:08AM on Jun 11th 2006 by marnie

20. I used the Isis as well and I loved it. I could pump 6 oz in 30 minutes and it never hurt. I really loved that the bottles just screwed on to the pump and when I was finished I could pop the top on and throw it in the freezer or put a nipple on it and hand it to my husband. Now that I am pregnant again I am thinking about buying the Isis IQ DUO electric pump. Its got a pretty hefty price tag on it and I'm wondering if it will be worth it. I'll probably wait until after the baby is born to see if there is really a need for it.

Posted at 11:49AM on Jun 11th 2006 by Crystal