Medela Freestyle Flex

Thread: "Exclusive pumping: best pumps? [MB]"

I EP’d for over 2 years with the medela freestyle flex. Their customer service is amazing and overnighted me a new one if anything went wrong. Wearables aren’t recommended for a main pump as they tend to not empty as well as others, impacting your supply. I personally would never EP again or recommend it to anyone….its a ton more work, it contributed to my ppd and I felt like I could never leave the house, even though I had an oversupply and only had to pump a few times a day. It’s a ton more work than nursing or formula feeding as you have to pump, feed, then clean bottles and repeat. I can’t imagine trying to do it with another child at home. I recommend getting multiple pump parts so you only wash 1-2 times per day. Good luck!

Thread: "What are the best Wearable pumps?!"

Elastic nipples here - i have the medela free style flex and medela handsfree , bellababy and momcozy s12 pro. For starters, im 11wks pp and I just realized that i have elastic nipples lol. Medela freestyle handsfree - did not work for me. I lost about 80% of my output. Tried fiddling with it from the lowest settings to the highest. My flanges are correct 24/21mm. Still didnt work. Motor also stopped working (wouldnt work unless youre plugged in to an outlet lol) after roughly 2 weeks of EP. Called customer service and they sent a replacement in 2-3 days. Medela freestyle flex - decent pump but I wouldnt recommend it for its price tag. I responded better with this than the wearables. Lighter suction but only has two options for suction types. Bellababy - i was so skeptical but I bit the bullet and bought it when the medela pumps died. I was amazed at how much more milk I produced! The suction is a lot stronger than the medela so i typically stay in the level 2-3. Have 4 different suction types. Would recommend for elastic nipples but you have to buy a flange that’s longer than what it comes with. I have the maymom’s pano series 21mm and nenesupply 24mm, both bought from amazon. Would have bought the maymom’s comfy series but not available in Canada. I couldnt justify ordering the recommended ones from the us bc of shipping. Momcozy s12 pro - bought this a few days ago bc it was on sale and I saw the review from one person saying that this was the elastic nipple way for wearables. I tried it out and i got maybe 90% of my output (just enougher here, every drop counts). Im pretty happy with this as a secondary pump. Im not losing too much. Cleaning is a bit of a chore on this one. Hope this helps future mamas!

Thread: "Breast pump recommendations for exclusively pumping"

I’ve been EP’ing for 20 months with the medela freestyle flex, I love it. I know a lot of people love the spectra but can’t imagine keeping up with a baby or toddler while tied to such a large pump. The freestyle flex can have motor issues but the customer service is amazing and they’ll overnight you a new one. I looked into some of the small wearable pumps but was concerned about a lot of reviews saying they leak and don’t empty well so didn’t want to risk mastitis or losing my supply. Good luck, EP’ing is extremely tough and time consuming!!

Thread: "Best breast pump for exclusively pumping available in Canada? [ab]"

I exclusively pumped for 8 months with my first baby and looking back, I really wish I stopped earlier. I’m a homebody, but I found it difficult to pump outside of the house so I felt chained to the clock/house. I didn’t realize how much my anxiety/mood was impacted by it until reflecting back. For my second baby, I’ll take what I learned and try to nurse and combo feed/formula feed as needed, but I’d never recommend exclusively pumping to anyone and to take pressure off number of pumps/“how many months” you do it.

Thread: "What are the best Wearable pumps?!"

Dumb question What is an elastic nipple?

Thread: "Best breast pump for exclusively pumping available in Canada? [ab]"

I got so lucky I got a sonata on clearance at Walmart for $150 and have used it for two pregnancies but didn't pump very much

Thread: "medela or spectra?"

I bought the Medela freestyle flex which was wonderful for moving around because it had a strap to put on your wrist or could fit in a large pocket which made loving around easier. I had two die on my though in a span of a year. I did pump a lot on it, though it said it’s supposed to be able to handle that. I pumped 8 times a day for 15-30 minutes each time at the beginning. The first, presumably because I didn’t use its charges exclusively, and the second because ? I will say the customer service is excellent! The first time, the pump was under warranty and when I contacted them they asked if it turned on when I pressed the button and if it was charged. When I said no to both they were like okay, we’ll send a new pump now it’ll be overnighted, keep your old pump. No crazy questions, no hoops, just we’re doing whatever we can. The second time, the replacement pump had issues after the first pump’s (the one it replaced) warranty. Besides an expat w pump dying, it was great. Having to replace it, not so great.

Thread: "[bc] breast pump- spectra vs medela"

I have the Medela freestyle flex and borrowed a friend’s Spectra S1. I would say that I liked the Spectra a lot in terms of the suction and ability to change the different suction rates, vacuum etc. All the parts are easy to clean. You can also get the spare parts from Maymom for other flange sizes. The only thing is that it’s big and bulky so taking it with you to travel is not ideal. This is where the Medela is easier but the Spectra is a well made pump!

Thread: "Best breast pump for exclusively pumping available in Canada? [ab]"

Im so sorry to hear it contributed to your PPD! This thread is making me think I shouldn’t be so afraid of breastfeeding and should instead introduce a bottle to my baby with expressed milk so I can have support. I have had friends tell me they felt the same way about breastfeeding though, like they couldn’t leave the house. That being said their babies never took bottles so their partners could not help at all. I’m hoping that I luck out with a baby who will take both or maybe I can work with a lactation consultant to help my baby take a bottle if it proves to be very difficult. I’m so excited to be a mom I’m just scared of doing a lot of things alone if my husband cannot help with feeding. Although he’s a great guy and I know he will help elsewhere, I just have this weird anxious hang up about feeding already.

Thread: "Exclusive pumping: best pumps? [MB]"

I feel the same way. I had to EP because LO had issues with breastfeeding. I made it to 7.5 months EPing but it was completely exhausting and emotionally draining. OP, if you are interested in trying to breastfeed, I recommend getting in touch with a lactation consultant. They are wonderfully helpful!! You might be able to have some meetings during pregnancy to prepare. There are also LC’s that can help with pumping. Bemybreastfriend on Instagram is a great resource for pumping. She is super encouraging for the EP-ing community! I used medela pump n style (don’t recommend for EP-ing), rented a medela symphony (amazing) and then bought a pumpables genie advanced (was also really happy with it). The down side to the Pumpables GA is the cost of shipping for consumables but you can hack the flanges so you don’t have to order replacements. Good luck with whatever you decide!

Thread: "Exclusive pumping: best pumps? [MB]"

I didn't deal with PPD thankfully but I have heard that pumping can make that worse. But nursing likely wouldn't be an option for us because we had a preemie last time and it just wasn't possible between hospital stays and needing the measure food intake. So really the options would be pumping or formula, we did formula last time cuz LO was allergic to everything else so we had prescription formula. But this time I really wanted to try doing my milk, I'm just not sure what the best way to go about that is. I've heard EPing is brutal but in my opinion so was having a preemie in the hospital. We bought about 20 bottles so we wouldn't have to constantly clean bottles and be stressed and my hubby did most of the bottles while I was postpartum so it was one less thing I had to worry about. I do have a really fantastic support system. As for multiple pumping parts, how do you get that? Like it seems to me you'd have to go buy several breast pumps in order to do that. Is it better to just buy 2 different pumps??

Thread: "[bc] breast pump- spectra vs medela"

My wife started off with a Medela Freestyle Flex. It was alright, lasted a few sessions, not the quietest. WE decided to pick up a Spectra S1 Plus and it was way better. It was super quiet, battery lasts so long I couldnt even tell you how many sessions it lasts. Only downsides are it being a larger unit meant for home use and the shields beign a pain to clean with all the parts. Whichever pump you go with I highly recommend picking up the Medela PersonalFit Flex shields/collectors. Wayyyy less parts to clean. Its just the housing and silicone membrane vs the multiple parts of the others.

Thread: "What are the best Wearable pumps?!"

Same here actually - and glad to see I am not the only one ! I am a bit more than 4 months into EPumping and used the Elvie wearable. Just works for me, it gives me time to do what I need to and I get c. 800ml / day while only pumping 5/6times * 10 mins each time. Not sure this is due to the pumps but I know that for my first one, having a non wearable pump meant it felt too much time consuming and I ended up stopping after 4 weeks.

Thread: "Best Breast Pumps Available In Canada for First Time Mom [NL]"

It all depends on how you’re going to incorporate pumping into your days, which is difficult to say before the baby is born. If you’re exclusively pumping, a wearable pump may not be strong enough to use all the time. They’re typically just not quite as effective, but they work really well if you’re going to pump up to a few times a day. I have the Medela freestyle flex (the regular version - not the wearable version) and a momcozy pump. I exclusively pumped for a while and the Medela was great for that. I actually still use the Medela more often than the momcozy because it’s easier to clean. The momcozy is great to stick in your bra while you’re doing other things, though. It’s much nicer if you end up needing to pump in public/on the go. I’m glad that I have both, but I would pick the Medela over the momcozy. Either way, I highly recommend a pump that you can move around with - one that won’t tie you to a wall or even to a larger machine (the downside of the spectra). Ideally you sit while pumping anyway, but that doesn’t always work in practice. I also like to pump in the car and have pumped off-grid while camping. If you end up going for a non-wearable pump, I highly suggest purchasing a pumping bra as well. I’ve tried all different kinds, but my favourite is the bravado clip-on pumping bra, which clips onto any nursing bra that you’re already wearing.