Nursing & Pumping

Hi. If breastfeeding has been established then it is not likely that baby will refuse breast if you plan to only pump for a few days. There are days where I am not able to nurse my baby and I only pump. Baby is able to accept the breast when next it is offered however will not stay at the breast long enough for a full feed, so is gradually growing to prefer bottle over breast but doesn’t refuse the breast when offered. Since this may be a one-off thing for you, chances of something similar happening with your baby is unlikely. In my case, this has happened repeatedly with me and baby over the past 5 months (I’m 23 weeks pp)

An alternative way to check is to follow your normal pumping schedule. At 9 weeks, I’m assuming you’re emptying the breasts every 3 hours since supply is still being established around this time. Then, at any time of the day that you choose, replace one pumping session with a direct feeding. Remember to pump immediately after to completely remove milk if baby does not empty breasts. Since you only removed one pumping session just to make sure baby is able to nurse, you should be able to estimate easily how many ounces you produce over a 24-hour period. This works great if your pumping schedule and baby’s feeding is aligned.