Medela Breast Pump Reviews

I bought the Medela Swing breast pump because it was smaller than most of the other battery and electric powered pumps. I knew that Medela was a name that could be trusted because many of my friends had used some type of Medela pump at one time or another. Plus, I had heard that the swing was very similar to the hospital grade Symphony.

I really like using this pump because it was so easy to use and carry around. I’ve always been able to pump between 2 ½ to 3 ounces during each pumping session, which is twice what I am able to get when pumping manually.

There are a couple of reasons why I didn’t give this pump five stars. The first being that it is a little noisier than I would like (although I’ve been told it is not as loud as some of the larger Medela pumps). The other reason is that you can only pump one breast at a time. It would be nice if it could be used with a double pumping kit.

I absolutely love my Medela Harmony! I’ve never had any problems with it, and I’ve always been able to express enough milk for my son whenever I go out with my husband or friends. I think the ergonomic handle helps to make this pump easier to use than some of the others. If you need a manual pump to express milk for the occasional feeding or to relieve pressure from engorgement then I definitely recommend the Harmony..

I have tried both manual and electric and get the best results with this manual pump. It may be alittle more work than an electric, but the results are faster and I can take it anywhere.

Overall, I am very pleased with this pump and would recommend it to any of my friends or family. I was worried at first when it didn't take me as long to pump, but soon realized it was that efficient! I have not used other manual pumps, so there is nothing I can compare it to.

My experience with this pump was awful. At first I thought that pumping was just supposed to be painful. I later found out that this is one of the least expensive Medela pumps and not many women have anything good to say about it. The fact that I got it free with a breastfeeding starter kit from the hospital makes it even worse because one would assume that the hospital would provide moms with a good, working pump. This pump made my breasts hurt so much everytime I used it. My husband brought home the Avent Isis one day after I called him in tears because of the pain that this pump was causing me. He said that someone at the store recommended the Avent pump because it has a massaging cushion. Well the massaging cushion did it for me. I have not had a painful pumping experience since I began using the Avent pump. If you receive a Little Hearts pump from the hospital tell them to keep it. Do yourself a favor and don’t even try it.

The PedalPump made manual pumping a little easier than I thought it would be. It is a bit bulky though so you really can’t pump on the go with it. I’ve only been able to use it when I’m at home. And it can be difficult to achieve a let-down as your nursings decrease as your baby gets older since it doesn’t provide a strong suction.

I bought this pump since I needed an occasional use pump. I only used it two or three times a week for less than a month before the motor died. I called Medela and they sent me a replacement motor which must have gotten damaged in the mail bc when I received it, the motor did not work. Then I called and they sent me a third motor which worked for about two weeks - this time my pumpings increased to about 2 to 5 times a week. When I called Medela, I was told that I was pumping too much. I am very new at breastfeeding, but I could not believe that 2 to 5 pumpings a week was more than occassional (I could honestly be wrong though). So Medela sent me a 4th motor and after a week and a half this one died too. Medela has been quick at sending me new motors, but I am thinking this pump is just not for me.

I finally contacted a few lactation consultants and did some online research and it seems that the Ameda pump is one of the best to use. I am going to order that one. Cross you fingers for me!

I just trusted the Medela name - I wish I would have known about sites like this before I purchased a pump and lost money.

If you plan to pump more often than once a day, I would not recommend this pump. I though it would be better than getting a manual pump since it ran on batteries and had an AC adapter, but this pump wasn’t worth the extra money for me. It worked pretty well at first, but the motor made a buzzing sound similar to that of an electric razor.

After the first few times I pumped, it started to lose suction. It was like the motor died down a little more each time I used it.

I thought this pump would be a good way to double pump when I returned to work, but I was so wrong. Although it is a double pump, it isn’t the same as other double pumps because it alternates from one breast to the other rather than pumping both at the same time and it does not have any speed controls.

I didn’t find this out until I started to have supply issues and met with a lactation consultant. She told me that this particular type of double pump isn’t designed for frequent pumping (I was pumping about 3 or 4 times a day, or trying to at least).

In an effort to build my supply back up, I forked up the extra money and got a Pump In Style. With a lot of dedication and 6 daily pumping sessions, I was able to build up my supply and did not have to supplement my daughter’s feedings with formula. Please learn from my experience. If you need to pump more than once a day the Double Select is not for you.

Didn't work for me
 
My nipples became very sore after pumping with the Medela Pump in Style and my supply started to diminish. Each time I had to pump I became more frustrated, and I eventually had to supplement my daughter's feedings with formula. I was not satisfied with my PIS. For me this pump definitely wasn't worth the price.

I bought this pump after a hospital-grade electric pump the Medela Classic. I thought that since it was from Medela as well that it would provide comparable performance, but it does not. The pump itself was not nearly as powerful as I had expected it to be especially after paying more than $250 for it. I did however like the tote bag and other accessories that came with it.

It would take forever to stimulate a let-down and then I still had trouble emptying my breasts with this pump. Even when I cranked it up all the way it would still take me twice as long to pump as I did with the rental.

I also found this pump to be quite noisy. Keep in mind that I had already used the rental so I did expect to hear some noise, but this thing made more noise and it always sounded squeaky like it was going to die out or something.

It's frustrating that I spent so much money on a pump that was so disappointing, and I can't even return it.

This pump is okay for an electric double pump, but I wouldn’t rate it as the best or anything. The breast flanges are designed in a way that requires you hunch over while pumping. If you don’t then your milk may leak out of the shield or into the tubing. So you end up getting a sore back or you lose milk (and have a lot of extra cleaning to do).

In addition to hunching over, I always have to play around with the speed and suction settings in order to letdown, which makes it nearly impossible for me to use this pump a double. In my opinion, this pump is not worth the hefty price tag that comes with it.

I have a 35 week old preemie baby, and breastfeeding for me was the only way to go to establish and bild up his immunity. However, he was in the NICU for a week, and I needed to pump to get milk to him - I could not be there around the clock breastfeeding. Now, that he is home, I am exclusively pumping and feeding him expressed breast milk.

In the hospital, I tried their hospital grade pump, but it did not compare to this pump's efficiency. The PISA works well - when it works. There is known faceplate issues with the Advance model - something Medela is well aware of - but the batches of defective pumps are still being sold on the market and in BRU stores. I purchased my pump on October 11, 2004, with a manufacture date (it can be found on the pump itself if you remove it from the bag) of 8/2004. And within 1 day the faceplate continually detaches from the unit - causing loss of suction and a disrupted pumping session. This happens at speeds above medium on the dial - if I use the pump on a low-medium speed the faceplate will stay on.

When the pump does work - I produce more milk than my baby needs - with a 12 day old baby I already have a freezer full of stored milk - thanks to the PISA. I just wish that Medela would have recalled their bad bacthes rather than keeping them on the market. For more reviews about the faceplate issues - babycenter.com has tons of reviews about this same issue.

My breast hurt at 2nd wk after using it. It is very painful around areolar area. My breasts are red for 6 weeks all the time when I use it. I was told by a nurse practitioner that my breast redness is mastitis. I completed a course of antibiotics. The pain and redness is still there. I know that it is from the pump. I have pain every time I use the pump and the pain is less after 1 hour. This pump is expensive and not do any good.

Because my child cannot latch, I had to pump his milk from day one and got the PIS Advance from Target coming home from the hospital. It stood up very well to 24/7 use for a month before I decided to wean for breast health reasons (nothing to do with the pump). It was comfortable and made such frequent pumping tolerable. It is very comparable to the hospital's Medela, but very light and portable. I recommend it.

I have back pain and found that breastfeeding my little one would require me to sit in a shoulders hunched position too long for me to bear. This pump allows me to pump out my breast milk in under 10 minutes and feed it to my baby in a much more comfortable position. I use it almost every 3 hours each day and it is still working as good as ever. I hear the other pumps aren't meant for daily use. I also use this while traveling, it allows me to pump in the car and feed my little one warm milk while on route. We don't even have to stop for his feedings.

I bought this pump because as a mom and a full-time college student I have a very busy schedule. I have to say that I am disappointed with my pump choice. It makes a lot of noise! The let down reflex doesn't work me. I like to be in control of the amount of suction and speed.

My baby is able to get milk out a lot faster than I am able to with this pump. I wish that I could try another pump, but a student’s budget isn’t really cut out to purchase one $300 pump let alone a second one.

This pump is great for any mom who needs to build up her milk supply. I was an exclusive pumper, which meant that I was pumping more than 7 times each day to ensure that I was able to collect enough milk for all of my daughter’s feedings. Although this pump is not as portable as some of the other pumps available it works wonders for frequent pumping. I rented this hospital grade pump from my lactation consultant and for 9 months I was able to provide my little girl with breastmilk. If you’ll need to pump frequently I suggest that you rent a Lactina.

The Medela Classic helped to increase my supply when I needed to pump full-time. It is used by most hospitals so you know that it has to be a really good pump. I rented this pump after my son was born prematurely, and I was able to successfully express milk for him until he was able to nurse. My only complaint about this pump is that it is so heavy and you can’t really take it along with you easily.

I hated using this pump. It was given to me at the hospital and I quit using it after 6 weeks because it wasn’t efficient. I would pump for 30 minutes to get an ounce of milk – that isn’t a realistic option for a mother of a newborn. After I threw this pump away I started using formula for my son’s feedings because I couldn’t bare the thought of going through this with another pump.

This pump is exhausting to use because it requires that you use both hands. Every time I pumped I would get worn out so quickly. Also, it caused me a lot of pain and soreness because it pulls so much. This pump definitely isn’t worth trying.

I started renting this pump from my lactation consultant right before I returned to work when my daughter was 3 months old. I was amazed at how much the pump actually felt like my daughter nursing. The only problem is that the Symphony does not have a speed setting so now that my daughter is getting older (she is close to 7 months now) she is nursing at a faster pace and I cannot get the pump to simulate her nursing as well. I will be switching to the Lactina at the start of the new month and I hope that it will be better for my situation. I’ve been renting the Symphony for $50 a month and have been happy with it, but I’m not sure that it would be worth buying for $1200.