A lifesaver for a working mom! Reviews Medela Pump in Style Advanced Backpack

I'm working it out pretty good and Medela Pump in Style Advanced Backpack is worth the investment. It's very quiet and with the right breast shield you I can feed my baby even on a full time job. The pump gives you the option to pump either one breast at a time or both breasts at once.

It's also great at home when I need to quickie feed (Baby plays more when nursing rather than bottle feeding) or pump because of engorgement. Medela electric pumps are the best! My first one came from my sister who barely used it and gave it to me. I used it heavily for a year with my first child, then passed it to my sister who used it lightly. Then she passed it to another sister who used it lightly. Then it got passed back to me 8 years later. Got new tubing and accessories and used it for 7 months.

• Uses standard outlet with AC adapter or battery pack
• Exclusive one touch let-down button
• Removable cooler carrier
• Double pumping accessory kit

The Medela Pump in Style Advanced Backpack itself is stylish - you really can't tell that it's anything but a fairly sophisticated-looking backpack. It's a bit crowded when carrying the pump, storage bag and all the parts - there's no room for anything else inside. If you remove the pump, you can fit a few things inside, but it's still not what I would call roomy.

Other recommendations from the lactation consultant:

• Always double pump
• You must establish your breast milk volume in the first four weeks
• Take Motherlove More Milk Plus supplement (she said Mother's Milk tea doesn't have sufficient quantities of the needed ingredients, but also said there's no empirical evidence that this improves your milk supply). It's more than ten dollars cheaper on Amazon than at Whole Foods.
• Nurse every 2 to 3 hours (I tried this but the first few weeks she's so sleepy that she just won't keep at it) and pump afterwards to make sure breasts are emptied
• Get the baby undressed to diapers, skin to skin, and use cross cradle position (she showed videos from Dr. Jack Newman's website of proper hold, proper latch, and how to tell if the baby is swallowing).

I pump 10-12 oz of milk each time, and it takes only 10 minutes to get the job done. I like the 2 minute let-down speed to mimic baby's sucking and then go back to the slower rhythmic speed. I usually have let-down in 10 seconds and pressed a button to get to the slower speed. They also sell hand-free kit but I decided just to use my write/hand to hold onto both sides while I read a magazine or even do emails.

My two cents is that if you're torn between the tote & the bookbag, get the bookbag - it may look silly, but you can actually wear the bookbag & pump at the same time, which is wonderful if you're at home by yourself - I can use this & pump while at the same time take care of errands around the house without having to be "tied down" to a chair. 

This Medela Pump in Style Advanced Backpack product earned 271 customer reviews and 88% are satisfied (as 11/12/2013).