Breast Pump
Unless you are good at hand express, or only want to nurse directly without expressing, I’ll suggest pregnant mother who has intention to breastfeed invest in a set of good breast pump first before baby is out.
You won’t need the breast pump that soon if your baby is able to latch on well as soon as possible. If you prefer to equalize your milk production to your baby’s demand, then try not to pump for the first 6 weeks. However, if you are badly engorged, you need to empty the breasts, as sometimes newborn babies can take that much milk. The more you empty your breast, the more milk your body will produce! That’s why you need a breast pump!
I have only tried out 2 types of breast pumps. My first pump is Avent ISIS. It’s a manual pump, and I bought it after reading some good reviews about the pump. I bought the traveling set which comes with a cooler bag and cool pads. I don’t like the cool pads as they can only keep my milk cool for 6 hours, so I hardly used that bag and the cool pads. I bought Colebag cooler bag and ice bricks instead, and they can last for 12 hours, which is more practical when I was working for more than 10 hours last time.
As for the pump, I could get letdown easily with it. Maybe it’s the suction of the pump which is very confortable and manage to relax my mind to trigger letdown faster. The pump is also designed to imitate baby’s suckling. However, it’s hard for me to get spare parts here in Ipoh and the only service office of Avent is in Sri Hatamas KL. When my old pump was worn off and yellowish due to prolong sterilizing, I bought a new set before giving birth to Isabelle.
Then, out of the blue, I went shopping a few days before Isabelle popped and bought Medela Mini Electric. Ok, it’s was an impulsive buy, but I have never regret about it! Since I prefer to nurse and pump at the same time, Medela Mini Electric is superb! My hand is less tiring and I don’t have many parts to be washed and assembled too!
Anyway, there are still a few more brands in the market which I haven’t tried out. So, happy breast pump shopping! 
I also bought the Avent travel set. Yes, the ice pack is lousy. I don’t think it can even last 6 hours. I think 2 hour is the max, especially inside that cooler bag - it is not insulated enough. I had to buy extra ice packs which costs me a lot more at the end.
But no doubt the pump is good. I still use it when traveling, although I have a Medela PIS for my daily office use already.
Hi Suzette,
I’m wondering if you would like to share your experience here? For mommies who travels a lot?
[…] If your baby is diagnosed with jaundice, try to stay in the hospital with him. If not, express with breastpump (here and here too) and supply your milk to the hospital as much as your can. I prefer to nurse […]
i bought Pureen electric pump at Jusco for my wife. my sister is using it & it works ok. so wife will need cooling accessories if she’s expressing at work to bring it back home. what should i get for her to easily transport the expressed milk?
Alan, you can get Coleman cooler bag from www.fabulousmom.com.
It’s very convenient and remember to get Coleman ice bricks too, they can stand for 12 hours. The techni ice didn’t work that long for me. You are such a great husband in helping your wife to breastfeed successfully.