Monday, September 03, 2012

Lansinoh Affinity Double Electric Breast Pump Review.

     When I had Tabitha, I didn't try to give her a bottle till she was 3 months old. And I didn't push it very hard. She had such a hard time learning to latch after our traumatic birth experience (I wish I had known all my rights and had a supportive nursing staff like my birth with Eva, but thats another story), that I was terrified she would say to heck with it and go for the bottle instead of nursing. Not that I really had to worry because she nursed till she was 32 months old, but my old pump SUCKED. It was horrible. It was a single electric (that the company doesn't even sell any more, and it doesn't offer any customer service for it either I recently found out).

       I had this old single electric for 3 years, and while trying to use it for Eva, I was in pain. It was awful. But one day a few weeks ago it just stopped working(It had done this so many times, I was used to it by now). I tried to fix it like I always had, but this time when I opened it up a plastic spring flew out and was broken. It was it, no fixing it anymore. Into the trash it went. I was then left with the hand pump I received from WIC. It gets the job done, but it takes a very long time and is a pain. I have been having to pump more often because I started Physical Therapy for my back and have to leave Evangeline and Tabitha with Morgen when I go, and no matter when I go, Eva wants to nurse while I'm gone.
       Trying to get everything around here done, with the girls and having to use a hand pump was just getting to be too much, so I contacted Lansinoh about reviewing their double electric Affinity breast pump. I was so excited when it came. I washed it, read the book and set to work. Some things that took some getting used to,

  • it has a let down cycle. It does a slow almost massage to encourage let down for 2 minutes, then it switches to pump and the flood gates open. This was different than my old single electric or my hand pump as they just go straight to the suck the juice option. 
  • you can change the pump length and strength settings. Luckily Lansinoh knows moms are not one size fits all.
  • you can use it as a single pump too! In the back of the pump there is a plug, you unplug one of the tubes and stop the plug up to make it a singe pump. I actually use it as a single more often than a double, because Eva tends to nurse on one side and fall asleep, so I pump the other side while she is sleeping. Its a good system for us. 
  • The Lansinoh Affinity pump is really easy to clean. I love that. No special pipe cleaners to clean things, like my last pump. 
  • All parts of the Lansinoh Affinity breast pump can be washed and sterilized in microwave bags or boiled except the tubing which doesn't need to be washed since it doesn't come into contact with the breast milk. 


       Lansinoh Affinity breast pump is easy to use, comfortable to use, and it takes so much less time than my old single electric or my hand pump. When I go to Physical Therapy, I like to leave Morgen with 4oz of breast milk for Eva. That 4 oz took me 45 minutes to an hour three days a week with my old hand pump. Now that I am using the Lansinoh Affinity breast pump, I can get 4 oz in about 8-10 minutes. I only pump 3 days a week, mostly because i'm lazy, and Eva has stopped eating rice cereal so I don't need it for that anymore. I would highly suggest you get a pumping bra so that you don't have to hold the pump if you are going to be pumping with any regularity. I can't say enough good things about the Affinity. If I had to pump all the time and couldn't afford a hospital grade pump (and actually probably if I could too, because the one time I used a hospital pump with Tabitha it hurt like crazy.) I would use the Afinity. Its light weight, and very easy to use. Its perfect for working moms who only have a short while to pump at work. 

      I've found that the Lansinoh website is a gold mine of breastfeeding advice and support. There is some great information about pumping, choosing the right pump, storing breast milk, introducing solids and even tips for dads.  If you are a working mom click here, to get a back to work checklist to help with your pumping. 

     If you would like more information you can sign up for Nurture Notes, the #1 breastfeeding newsletter from Lansinoh here. 

    You can also read some amazing articles and watch some insightful videos on the Lansinoh site here.

    You can buy the Lansinoh Affinity double electric breast pump at Target, Walmart, Babies r Us, Amazon.com, Diapers.com, Motherhood maternity and the Lansinoh website. 

    I would definitely recommend this pump to any of my friends looking for a breast pump. I've tried one other double electric before and this is by far the easiest to use and the best i've seen. This is the #1 breast pump in my book. 

    I received this breast pump for free so that I could review it and share my views with my readers. I would never recommend a product I wouldn't or haven't used. All views are my own.  

1 comment:

Jennifer said...

Thanks so much for sharing! I hated the pump that I used with my 2 girls - it hurt, it was loud, and sometimes it didn't get much milk. I'm looking to invest in a new one when we eventually have baby #3...I'll definitely keep the Lansinoh in mind!

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