Part 2: The Medela Swing Maxi – A Missed Opportunity

Introduction

Leaving the hospital, I was hopeful that things would get easier with my breastfeeding and pumping routine. Spoiler alert: they didn’t. Instead, I found myself struggling all over again, this time with the Medela Swing Maxi, a pump I hastily ordered from Amazon in the hopes it would solve all my problems. In hindsight, I made a few missteps, but I also lacked the education and support that could’ve made the world of difference. This post is about how my experience with the Medela Swing Maxi nearly derailed my pumping journey.

From the Hospital to Home: A False Start

Still running on barely any sleep, I was desperate to get my breastfeeding established. So, naturally, I made a rash decision from my hospital bed and ordered the Medela Swing Maxi off Amazon. I had no idea that I could have rented the hospital pump, or that there were options like renting from a chemist, community midwives, or even my GP. I was just trying to keep things moving forward, and the Medela seemed like an easy fix at the time.

It didn’t quite turn out that way. From the first time I used the Medela, I struggled to get a consistent output. I’d spend an entire day pumping, and if I was lucky, I’d end up with 100mls. It was demoralizing and disheartening to say the least.

Definitely may have cried over that milk she boked up.

Calling in the Experts

Feeling lost and frustrated, I decided to bring in a private IBCLC for help. She reviewed my case, referred me to an osteopath for my daughter, and gave me a plan to continue triple feeding—expressing, breastfeeding, and formula feeding. But even with all this professional support, I was none the wiser on the finer details of how to actually use the pump .

I had no idea at the time just how important those details were—I figured my larger breasts would mean larger nipples so bought 30mm flanges in the hope they would help, I would later find out my nipples are actually closer to 11mm-12mm, I was off by over half! I wasn’t using the right tools to support my pumping journey, which made things even harder.

The Medela between me and my baby, both literally and figuratively.

Small Wins Along the Way

Thankfully, the osteopath worked wonders with my daughter’s latch, and with the help of some trusty nipple shields, things slowly started improving. I learned to stop relying on the pump as an indicator of how well we were doing. Instead, I measured progress by counting wet and dirty nappies, reassured that good output meant good input.

Once I was able to drive again, I started attending a local breastfeeding support group. Honestly, this group was a game-changer and most definitely saved my breastfeeding journey. It gave me the emotional and practical support I had been missing, helped me build my confidence in feeding my baby and formed the foundation of a strong village of other mums. Where so much of my journey had been a challenge, this was easy and reassuring.

Little by little, we transitioned off the nipple shields, and by around 10 weeks, I had finally put the pump away. I only used a Haakaa in the mornings for the odd bottle, but that was it. The pump had helped keep my milk supply going in those early days, but it wasn’t the solution I thought it would be and as my daughter’s weight continued to steadily increase, I savoured being able to be responsive to her and in my body’s ability to nourish her.

Conclusion

The Medela Swing Maxi and I weren’t a match made in heaven, but it taught me an important lesson: proper education and support are everything when it comes to pumping. If I had known more about flange sizing and had the right information from the start, those worrisome earlier days would have gone smoother.

In the next post, I’ll share how my return to work reignited my need for a pump and how I finally found the right one after a lot of trial and error. Stay tuned!

My Own Pumping Journey: Part 2 The Medea Swing Maxi