Medela Freestyle Hands-Free Double Electric Breast Pump

Comments about Medela Freestyle Hands-Free Double Electric Breast Pump:

I used a Pump in Style with my first daughter and with deployment looming just 2 months after Baby #2 arrived, I spent a lot of time during my pregnancy trying to get a 220-volt power connection for my pump. No good. I finally caved in to the Medela folks' recommendations and got this, but am not thrilled. I can charge the unit at home on a transformer, then take to work - unlike my PiS, which required me to also tote a power converter (an extra 10 pounds). I like the set-up for the membranes and the connections for the hoses; I feel more confident that milk and moisture are kept out of the tubing. But I don't get as much suction, by a long shot, and after a few months it's affecting my supply. If portability is your first concern, this is a nice unit, but in terms of ease of use, performance, and noise, the PiS is a better pump.

Comments about Medela Freestyle Hands-Free Double Electric Breast Pump:

I am an exclusive pumper. I've tried 4 different (Medela) pumps, more out of curiosity than necessity.
1. Symphony-rented at the hospital-by far the Cadillac, but very expensive and not very portable. The suction action is very smooth and is not harsh. Only one adjustment to choose speed and force of suction. Range is very wide, from extremely gentle to pull your skin off. The quietest of all the pumps.
2. Original Pump in Style (~5 years old)-has 2 different adjustments: speed of pump and force of suction. Lowest force setting is approximately the lower mid to mid-level setting on the Symphony. Pumping is smooth, but somewhat harsher with it not having lower settings. About 30% noisier than the Symphony.
3. Pump in Style Advanced (Tote)-brand new-only has one adjustment like the Symphony to choose force and speed. Lowest force setting is approximately mid-range on Symphony. Seems a bit "harsh" to me when using. Noise is comparable to the Pump in Style Original.
4. Freestyle-has one adjustment like Pump in Style, but has the choice range of the Symphony (including a very gentle setting.) Also has memory option for force and time setting. Outstanding portability (but don't bend over far or you will spill.) I can definitely pump longer (30 minutes versus 20 with the PIS) and more often and am less sore. I have not experienced any of the loss of milk production that others are suggesting, but I pump every 2-4 hours (approximately 8-10 times a day). Noise is somewhere between the Symphony and the PIS.

I would recommend this one over any of the others because:
1. Portability: you can easily do things while wearing it, as long as you don't bend over far. This was very important to me as I was irritated having to sit in one place for 20 minutes while I pumped.
2. Suction: very smooth and offered a much wider range of suction force settings. I was less sore after using despite being able to pump longer and more often by being able to use a lower suction setting.

I would also recommend using an old sports bra made into a hand-free setup for pumping over the bustiers, especially if you are "blessed" like I am.

Comments about Medela Freestyle Hands-Free Double Electric Breast Pump:

Bought this solely based on reviews online. Wish I'd talked to a lactation consultant first. I don't recommend this pump. They got everything right except for the actual pumping action, which trumps all the other benefits, in my mind. I've used it 3x-4x day 5 days a week for 4 months.

Pros: easy to wash the parts, never got moisture in tubing or had to wash tubing, loved the timer, size, excellent portability (folding laundry, making food, in the car, just DON'T bend over or you'll spill your milk out of the bottles!). Plugged in the battery every night and could pump for four hours pumping time or more every day. Bag is nice too, and roomy if you don't use the included bottle tote. 4 bottles is not enough, so I bought a different bottle cooler and put filled bottles in the fridge at work. Those I transport separate from the pump bag. Used a SimpleWishes pumping bra, and it was perfect. No one told me you could use one of those bras and make any pump a "hands-free" pump, but it's true, those bras are awesome. If you have problems with the pump part membranes sealing, reattach the backing plates. They can be finicky. You can pop up just one of the tabs if the membrane is not completely circular to fix the suction. Dry all parts before use/reuse. I bought 4 sets of membranes/backing plates and wash everything at night. Use the Medela cleaning wipes to clean my one set of breastshields throughout the day (hint - cut them into thirds). Pump is good at pumping one or both breasts. Some days it took 30 minutes to pump 10 oz, some days it took an hour to pump 6 oz.

Cons: Feels like my breasts are being hit with a jackhammer. I'm not kidding! I have to slather on the lanolin before each pump session just to tolerate the vibration that somehow gets transferred from the pump to my breasts down the tubing. The Symphony didn't do that. I can't run it higher than a 4 suction because I can't handle the vibration. Pump is loud, but it's the vibration associated with the noise that really bothers me. I need a larger breastshield than the medium they sell with the pump, but they don't make SoftFit breast shields in any other size, and using a regular hard Medela breastshield made the vibration problem ten times worse. I think it's bruising my breast tissue as I have to have time to recover over the weekend, and my breasts are constantly hot and sore during the week. (No, it's not mastitis or an infection) Pumping three-four times a day for up to an hour, only getting 4-7 oz of milk. I don't think it's fully emptying my breasts. It worked fine until I tried to exercise, so if you have an overabundant supply it may be fine, but for me I have just enough, and once my supply dropped slightly due to trying to exercise, this pump couldn't help me keep it up. I'm avoiding pumping because it hurts and I dread it, so that is the opposite of helping me keep breastfeeding my child. Also, the bottles that came with it were useless for feeding a breastfed baby, in my opinion. Used them just to pump into, then poured the milk into his Avent Natural bottles for the next day. I recently discovered the OMomma bottles by Lansinoh - I AM IN LOVE with those bottles! They should really help his latch now that he's teething.

Note - I used the Symphony for several months at the beginning and LOVED it! Wish they were cheaper. I'm going to try a Pump in Style next probably - they have a totally different pumping mechanism than the Freestyle. My IBCLC says that after the Symphony, that's one of the most popular ones.

Comments about Medela Freestyle Hands-Free Double Electric Breast Pump:

This is my first time writing a review that is how much I am disapointed in this product. I am a first time mom and wanting what was best for my child I decided to purchase the free-style thinking more expensive meant better quality. Unfortunately that was not the case. I didn't really have any problems with it until my son was about 6 months old. The motor started going out on my pump. This in turn decreased the suction on my pump and lead to low milk supply. Unfortunately I did not realize that this was decreasing my milk supply until it was too late and I had gone through all of my frozen supply. He is currently 10 months old and I have had to quit breastfeeding due to not having any more milk supply to send to daycare. I thought this pump would be handy as hands free however the battery really doesn't stay charged up and the pump is really to heavy to attach to anything. I was really wanting to breast feed my son until he was one year old and unfortunately due to this pump I have had to quit early. I will not be replacing the pump or the battery as I am done with this pump and will purchase a completely different pump. If I could give it no stars I would.

Comments about Medela Freestyle Hands-Free Double Electric Breast Pump:

absolutely love this product. though i think the hospital grade was a bit stronger. this does the job. very portable. and LOVE the timer and memory. its well worth the extra money.

Comments about Medela Freestyle Hands-Free Double Electric Breast Pump:

Love this pump...it is quiet and very portable. It is much easier to use than the Pump In Style and more efficient.

Comments about Medela Freestyle Hands-Free Double Electric Breast Pump:

I used this pump with my second child and although it is EXTREMELY convenient (I could do just about anything while pumping due to it's portability!) I found that once I went back to work and was mostly pumping, this contributed to low milk supply. Upon trying everything and working with a lactation consultant due to my low supply, she asked me what type of pump I was using. When I told her the freestyle she said that just about every mom with low supply issues is using this same pump and they don't recommend it. Although it's convenient, the motor is just not very strong, resulting in low stimulation causing poor supply. I used the Medela pump in style with my first child and was successfully able to pump for a year without problems. Although it is bulkier and not as convenient, I definitely would recommend it over the freestyle!! It's also cheaper, which is a plus!

Comments about Medela Freestyle Hands-Free Double Electric Breast Pump:

This product performed exactly as expected, wonderful! I had no issues at all with it. Even when my milk supply started to dwindle when I went back to work, it certainly helped me get it back where it needed to be. If at any time, I have another child and need to get a pump again, I will 100% be getting this one!

Comments about Medela Freestyle Hands-Free Double Electric Breast Pump:

This pump is a little pricey but so worth the money. No pain when pumping with this pump! I am a first time mom and was a little scared about pumping because of stories I heard but with this pump you are safe from all those stories. Pain free! I mean don't get me wrong it feels a little funny but not painful. Happy pumping!

Comments about Medela Freestyle Hands-Free Double Electric Breast Pump:

its effective and hands free, I can pump and continue what I am doing or talk to the phone,which makes u feel relaxed and have better result.