Category: Health

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Cole Family & Friends Health Ryan

Ted

We have had a crazy, busy, week, trying to catch up on everything we got behind on from last week, and Cole has had another fever for three days, and has been basically crying non-stop.  I think he is teething, and he keeps clearing his throat, so I believe he probably has a sore throat.    I didn’t have too much time to blog.

This week will be busy as well- Ryan starts his next session of swimming lessons.  He is really looking forward to them.  He asked me every day this week, if today was the day he got to go to swim lessons, so he should be excited on Monday, when that day is finally here!

This coming weekend we also have a big family birthday bash for my father in law, celebrating his 80th birthday!  He turned 80 in March, but decided to have the party during the summer so his siblings and relatives could come in from out-of-state for it.  We have been looking forward to this for a while, and it should be lots of fun.  We are hoping Ryan will sing Happy Birthday with his cousins at the dinner on Saturday night, so we’ll see.  Maybe if he doesn’t want to sing, we could get him to dance and show some of his moves.  🙂

We had a hard day today, with Cole crying- I was at the end of my rope.  To top that off, on Thursday night, our tenant called and said there was water leaking in one of her closets.  Since we live next door, Joe went over and determined it was a broken float from the swamp cooler, so he had to turn off the water to her cooler, and ours.  Needless to say, we had a hot couple of days, until he got it fixed early this afternoon.  We now have cool air again- yea! 

Cole seemed to be feeling better tonight, but after 3 days of crying, fussing, and about 6 hours of total sleep for me (in the 3 days-) I am just worn out and exhausted.  His fever has kept him from sleeping well, so he just wants to be held, but then he just squirms around, so obviously I can’t sleep either.  I was about on my last straw today. 

I finally got dinner on the table, and Cole actually wasn’t crying, and the doorbell rang!  We tend to get a lot of solicitors so I have a sign near the door that basically lists everyone that I do NOT want coming to the door, and it works well!  So I wondered who it was.  I was irritated though- I just wanted to sit down and eat, but I went to the door, with Ryan following behind me.

I opened the door, and saw our next-door neighbor, and he asked if Ryan wanted a pony ride! 

I was like “huh-pony?” (that is my conversation level when sleep deprived).  He pointed over to his yard, and sure enough there was a pony in the yard!

I told Joe to get his shoes, and he grabbed Cole and we went over to see Ted, the pony.  Ryan petted him, and our neighbor explained that they had just bought him at an auction for his 6-year old stepson.  Ted was so cute.  There were cars going by, and he was really calm.  The neighbor’s wife explained she had horses on some land about 30 miles away, so they were going to move Ted there, but her horse had thrown her son, and so they were hoping Ted would get her son back on a horse.

They showed Ryan how to pet Ted, and then he was ready to climb on Ted.  Look at this picture- do I need to say more?

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Right after this picture was taken, they led Ryan around in their yard on Ted, and he was thrilled!  Cole got to pet Ted a few times, but with him being sick, he didn’t quite get to the excitement level as Ryan did.

Ted was a nice surprise and we joked with the neighbors, we now know who to call if we need a pony for a birthday party!

Categories
Breastfeeding Cole Health Mothering Parenting

First ER Visit

As your baby grows, you can’t help but mark events by the “firsts.”  First smile, first tooth, first time they sleep through the night, etc. 

I count myself lucky that in the 3.5 years, since having children, I have not had to have that “First-visit-to-the- emergency-room,”- until last night. 

Cole had a fever all day on Wednesday, and he felt unusually warm.  He was drooling up a storm, and his gums were swollen, so I figured he was teething- maybe getting in a molar.  At 8:30, before bed, I gave him the suggested dose of infant Motrin for his age / weight (1.875 ml).

He went to bed, and I was wondering why he felt so warm- even when he is teething, he never felt that warm before.  I could hear him on the monitor, kind of calling out in his sleep, but he didn’t wake up until 10:30, and when I picked him up to nurse, I was alarmed.  He felt extremely hot.  I took his temperature, and it was 103. 

I remember from once when Ryan had a fever, we called in after hours to the Children’s Hospital, and the nurse said until he had a fever for 72 hours, or it reached 105, there really was no need for him to be seen by a doctor, so I figured I would watch Cole, and just keep monitoring him.  Sometimes it is good to let the fever work itself out on its own- it is the body’s way of building up the immune system, and fighting whatever it is.

I went to bed around midnight, and slept for an hour.  At 1, Cole woke up, moaning, and he was still burning up.  I nursed him again, and placed a cool washcloth on his head (what my mom did for me, when I had a fever, but he didn’t like it) and he drifted back to sleep, but I was wide-awake. 

Something just didn’t seem right.  He was way to hot, to just have a fever from teething.  As I lay there, listening to him moan, and roll around, kind of delirious, I wondered if something could have bitten him.  He has been playing outside a lot lately with Ryan, and maybe a spider could have bitten him.

I hadn’t noticed anything unusual when I gave him a bath, earlier that evening, but I hadn’t been looking either.  I turned on the light, and started checking every inch of his body.  I didn’t see anything.  I woke up Joe, and told him Cole had a fever.  We talked about what it could be, and then I took his temperature again- under the arm- and it had dropped to 102.5. 

I felt better, like it was dropping a bit, and there were no spider bites bulging out on his body, so I went back to sleep.

Cole woke up at 3, wanting to nurse again, and when I picked him up, he felt very hot again.  I nursed him for about 10 minutes, and he started to gag, and then he vomited.  I stood up, to try to get him to the bathroom, and he vomited again, and again.  He was crying, his cheeks were flushed, and his eyes looked glassy.  Poor little guy!

I placed him on the cool bathroom floor, and took off his PJ bottoms, (earlier, I had taken off his top to keep him cool), and took his temperature, rectally.  It was 105.2.  He was shaking too.  I cleaned up the vomit off my arms, and Cole, and then brought him into Joe.  He was crying, and I told Joe, I was going to take him to the ER, since his temperature was so high, and he had vomited.   I quickly got dressed, and put a romper on Cole.

We live less than five minutes from the hospital, and at 4am, there was no traffic, so we got there quickly.  There were no  other patients in the ER, so we didn’t have to wait at all. 

The triage nurse took his temperature again, and it was 104.7, and she said the dose of infant Motrin that I had given to Cole before bed, was hardly any at all.  (funny since that is what the box said to give).  Anyway, they brought him a dose of Motrin and Children’s Tylenol, and said that would help bring the fever down.

Cole was awake, and did NOT like to have the nurse touch him. He screamed the entire time she was checking him.  She took us to a room, and said, the Dr. would be in, shortly.  He calmed down after a few minutes, and everyone left.  Since he had just gotten the medicine, and he had been vomiting, I didn’t want to nurse him in case his tummy was full.

The doctor came in after about fifteen minutes, and asked lots of questions, and checked Cole’s ears, throat, and diaper area. 

He said he probably had a virus or a viral infection.  He said they wanted us to stay until his fever went down a bit, and to see if he could keep some liquids down.  I told him I wanted to nurse him, and surprisingly, he said, “That would be really good for him.”  So the doctor shut the door for us, on his way out, so we had privacy, and Cole nursed for about 5 minutes and then fell asleep, for about an hour, while we waited.

A nurse came and took his temperature and it had dropped to 102.  Cole nursed again, and a few minutes later the doctor came back, and said he said he didn’t see anything out of the ordinary and since he didn’t have a lot of secondary symptoms (like coughing, diarrhea, etc.) and since Cole was up-to-date-on his immunizations, he wasn’t going to torture him, and order blood work.  

He said it was good I brought him in, and he said when babies his age get high fevers, they can have seizures.  The nurse also added that if you try to bring down the fever too quickly, a seizure could also occur.  The doctor  said to watch him for the next few days, and if Motrin & Tylenol didn’t control the fever,  or if he starts having any secondary symptoms, to go to our regular doctor for a follow-up.

He asked me if he had nursed him, and I told him yes, and obviously he had kept it down.  Then the doctor stunned me and asked if he had been breastfed since birth.  I told him yes, and he said, “That is great.  That is so good for him, and you should keep doing it as long as you want.  He looks like an extremely healthy baby.” 

I thanked the doctor and nurse for their help, and the nurse went over the doses of medicine to give Cole, and we got to go home.  We got home at 6:30, to Ryan awake, and Joe getting ready for work.

I was stressed out, realizing Joe was going to work, having had virtually NO sleep, and the prospect of the day ahead, which included taking Cole over to Joe’s parents house, while Ryan and I went to his swim lesson.  I also had to clean up the bedding, and Joe said he would clean up the carpet when he got home.  I turned on PBS, and while Ryan ate breakfast and watched Clifford, Cole and I caught a 45-minute nap. 

We got going and made it to Grandma’s and our swimming lesson.  When we were done, we went and got Cole’s medicine, and went back to get Cole.  He had done great, and had taken a nap.  He still felt cool as well.

Later in the afternoon, after his nap, his fever was back, at 103.5. I gave him the Motrin and Tylenol before bed, and he has been sleeping soundly since.  I am so glad he seems like he is doing better. 

It is so scary when something like that happens to your baby, and they can’t talk to you and tell you what is wrong.  I am glad that we did take him in, just to know that there isn’t a bigger problem looming.  It also was wonderful to hear from a doctor (that was around my age) that breastfeeding is good, and to keep doing it.  It kind of gave me hope, that the medical profession is realizing and knows that breastfeeding is so important for a baby.

I hope Cole’s temperature will stay down tonight and he’ll feel better tomorrow.  He is such a sweet little guy- I hate it when he isn’t feeling good. 

So that concludes my story of my first trip to the ER as a mother.  I hope it will be a long time before I have to go again, or better yet- I hope I won’t have to ever go again.  But with two active little boys, I have a feeling I’ll be there again.  🙂 

Categories
Family & Friends Health

Are We Getting Old?

Joe and I have been wondering this lately- not sure what is happening to us, but we have both been having aches and pains, and feeling old.

We are both recovering from car accidents, so maybe that is contributing to some of the aches, but I don’t think it can explain why my feet and legs hurt in the morning when I wake up.

I couldn’t deny it anymore that something had changed, two weeks ago as I actually had to ask the clerk in Target, where the Ben Gay was.  YIKES!!  I felt like an 80 year old!  I have seemed to developed a case of tendinitis in my left elbow, I think mainly from having to have Cole sleep on my arm for the last year.  Now that he is sleeping in his crib for most of the night, it is slowly going away, but some days it just starts hurting, and I notice it now every time I lift something, somewhat heavy, like a gallon of milk, or one of my sons- there is a dull ache.  I now could carry on a conversation with a senior citizen about my trick elbow.

My dear hubby, is a corporate trainer, and he is realizing in his classes, he is teaching employees that in theory, are young enough to be his children.  The other day, a group from his class asked him to go to lunch with them.  They insisted he come, and said they would drive.  As they were driving in a trendy, young, hip, VW Bug, one of the girls in the group started talking about the radio in the VW and the driver said she actually could have gotten an 8-track player in it.  One of the other people in the group turned to Joe and asked him, “You remember 8-tracks don’t you?” 

Joe doesn’t remember 8-tracks, and told them so, but didn’t think they believed him.  Then the group started asking everyone how old everyone one, so Joe heard, “21,” “22,” and “23.”  No wonder they thought he remembered 8-tracks.

Finally, a more somber event:  Joe heard yesterday that a former co-worker that we both actually worked with several years ago, died from a heart-attack on Sunday.  Evidently, he was water skiing, felt dizzy, and went to rest under a tree.  When someone from his group checked on him, he was passed out, and they were unable to revive him.  He died from a heart attack.

After Joe told me this, I dug out a paper and realized that I had seen this person’s name in the obituary section of the paper, but it didn’t register at the time.  I read the obituary, and was startled to learn this man was only 37!  He left behind a wife and two young children, around the same ages of our boys.  He was only a few years older than me, and only a few years younger than Joe.  He was just a month older than my older brother!  I feel very bad and sad for his family. 

This prompted us to realize life can be gone in a moment, and our aches and pains are nothing compared to what some people have to deal with every day, or what this poor man’s family has to go through now. 

At least we are alive to get older, and to feel our aches and pains.  

Categories
Attachment Parenting Cole Health Parenting

Following My Instincts / Not Crying-It-Out

Last night I had Cole down sleeping, and was trying to read Ryan a story to put him in bed (Joe wasn’t home), and sure enough, Cole started crying.  I was hoping it would only last for a minute or so, and he would go back to sleep, but he started getting more and more upset. After a few minutes, it was obvious, he was now fully awake, and despite having an upset three-year-old, who was NOT happy his story was being interrupted, I had to leave Ryan to go attend to Cole.

It has been a week since I have started nursing Cole to sleep, and then putting him in his crib, next to our bed and it is working a lot better than having him sleep in the bed, but he still wakes up a lot.  So he was in his crib, and after my eyes adjusted to the darkness in the room, what I saw, just about broke my heart. 

For my kids, I don’t believe in “crying-it-out.”  I firmly believe that when a baby is crying he needs something.  He may be scared, and just need the reassurance that his mama is still in the vicinity of the house.  I certainly don’t think a couple of minutes when  I can’t get to Cole is making him cry-it-out.  I am talking about leaving him while he is crying in a crib, obviously distressed for a long-period of time.  Also, I just don’t have the stomach for it.  For me, there is nothing worse than hearing your baby scream and cry for you, while they are in a dark room- alone. 

Plus there has been some research from Harvard and Yale, that have shown “when babies who are routinely separated from parents in a stressful way have abnormally high levels of the stress hormone and  lower growth hormone levels.  These imbalances inhibit the development of nerve tissue in the brain, suppress growth, and depress the immune system.” 

This subject was also brought up on a recent Dr. Phil episode that featured three of the Dr. Sears’s. 
Dr. Bob Sears said this about crying-it-out on the show:  

“When a baby screams for 10, 20 minutes, or a half-hour night after night, what actually happens to the baby’s brain?” asks Dr. Bob Sears. “The blood pressure goes up. The pressure gets so high, new blood with oxygen can’t flow into the brain. So the brain can be deprived of oxygen, you guys. And that’s not all. It gets worse. The brain can be flooded with stress hormones, and we know that stress hormones can damage sensitive developing nerve tissue. So, night after night, weeks and weeks of crying can actually harm a baby’s brain. That’s why we encourage you both to respond to your maternal intuition.  Robert, develop your fatherly intuition, so you can both really thrive as a family. Respond to your baby. “

So back to Cole- in the few minutes before I could get to him, he had stood up in the crib, put his hands through the slots, and was feeling / squeezing my mattress.  I knew he was trying to find me.  Even though he is in his crib now, he knows where I sleep, and he was looking for me- he needed me.   

I picked him up, and instantly the crying stopped.  I sat down with him on the bed, and even though his eyes were closed, he started cooing.  I nursed him for a few minutes to calm him down.  Then the most amazing thing happened.  His eyes were still closed, and he took his hand and started tracing and feeling my face, the way a blind person would.  It was like he was trying to memorize my face by feel. 

I am in awe on the way babies brains work, and I think there is so much we still don’t know about this.  As he was feeling my face, I got a tear in my eye, and I felt so grateful that I have been able to follow my instincts on what feels right. 

I couldn’t help but think, as my sweet baby was stroking my face, if I had gone against my instincts and had allowed him to cry-it-out,  yes, he may have curled up and gone to sleep, after it was clear to him, his mama wasn’t going to come to him, but the way it was going, he would have just become more and more upset anyway.  He would have been very distressed, and he was looking for me!  Two, I would have completely missed this tender moment with him, that I will never forget. 

Categories
Breastfeeding Health

Re-Using / Sharing Breastpumps

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I want to start this post out by saying it is wonderful when a mother, and or family, decides to breastfeed their baby.

There are so many unique benefits to breastfeeding; listing all of them would be an entirely different post, (one I hope to write soon.)  By deciding to breastfeed, you can be 100% certain that you are giving the absolute best to your sweet baby.

I wanted to share some information that I have come across in my research on sharing or re-using breast-pumps.  After Ryan was born, I knew I was going to return to work part-time when he was 4 months old.  I bought a hand held manual pump that didn’t work for me.  It would take a half an hour to express 1 or 2 ounces of milk.  I decided I needed an electric pump, and had heard and read rave reviews on the Medela breastpumps.

After seeing their prices (ouch!) I wondered if I could find a used one for a lot less.  I saw them listed on e-bay, and even saw them sometimes at some second-hand shops.  Since the thought of using a previously owned one, kind of freaked me out, I started to do some research on it, and I was really amazed on the potential that exists for contamination on the “open system” pumps, even if you purchase new tubing.

On the Medela there is an internal diaphragm that can’t be taken out to be sterilized, so if there is blood in there (from a cracked nipple) or droplets of some other pathogen (from the milk), every time there is suction from the pump, these items could contaminate your milk.  That alone was enough for me, but having worked as a safety consultant for doctors’ I know that many bloodborne pathogens can live in and on surfaces and dried blood for a long period time.  Hepatitis B (HBV), is just one example. Also, some people can be carriers of diseases and not show any signs or symptoms for years- they could have HIV, or HBV and not even know it!  I was also surprised to learn that the FDA and experienced lactation consultants advise against sharing or re-using breast-pumps, because of the potential risk. Medela also will also void the warranty on a pump if it is being shared or re-used because of the legal implications involved.

Furthermore, not knowing who had used the pump previously, or any medical history of any other people who may have used the pump before me, definitely made me decide it was not worth risking the health of my baby to save some money.  I kind of view it like handing over my baby to a stranger and asking her to nurse my baby for me.  I also think on some baby items, save money by all means where you can- buy nice second hand clothes, buy diapers in bulk, or use cloth diapers, etc. but when the risk exists for exposing your baby to an illness at the very least, or a life threatening disease or even death, at worse, this was not an area that I wanted to compromise in, however small the risk may be.

You may be thinking you agree with me- that you would never use a used pump from someone you didn’t know, but it is safe if you know who the mother is, or even if she is your friend, co-worker, or relative.  While the potential risk for infecting your baby could decrease if you know the mother’s medical history, there is no guarantee that you still would not be exposing your baby to an illness or some other infection, because bodily fluids are being exposed, and there is always a risk when this happens.   

To illustrate: about a month ago, I had a milk blister and a plugged milk duct, and I popped the blister with a sterilized needle.  I pricked my nipple too deep, and my nipple bled.  I was trying to relieve the pressure from the clogged duct, and since Cole was sleeping, I pulled out my Medela pump to pump milk, from the released blister.  I pumped for about 10 minutes, and there was a lot of blood in the milk.  I threw that milk out, but who knows if any blood is trapped in the internal diaphragm?  Another example from a friend, is she knew someone who used a previously used breast-pump and had constant problems with thrush.  The mother and the baby kept passing it to each other, even though there were no outward signs of either one of them having it.  My friend suspected there could have been thrush in the pump, and eventually this mother gave up breastfeeding because of this. 

Obviously, there are people who have shared and re-used breast-pumps with no problems, but there is always a risk involved.  When my sister was looking into this subject, she was surprised that none of her pregnancy books mentioned the possible risks involved, and I had to look outside my books as well, when I was researching this. 

My goal in this post is not to scare or alarm anyone needlessly, or to make anyone feel bad about their choices, but only to raise awareness to some of the possible harmful and potentially life threatening risks involved- no matter how small they may be-in re-using breast-pumps.  I would hate for anyone to unknowingly expose their baby to a disease or illness, simply because of a lack of information.

When discussing this with my sister, she has a friend who is a nurse, who had never heard of the risks involved, and pointed out that if you don’t want to re-use a pump only because of the bacterial risk, then you probably shouldn’t be re-using them with any other children as well.  I see her point in that if you never clean or care for your pump, it will become a breeding ground for bacteria, and if you never clean your pump, it probably wouldn’t be good to be using that with any baby.  However, I am discussing passing a normally maintained pump from one mother to another and the risk involved because of bodily fluids. 

Please note that this only applies to personal use pumps, or “open system” pumps that have internal parts that cannot be removed or sterilized. This does not apply to hospital grade pumps that have “closed systems” where the parts can be removed and sterilized.  Many hospitals rent the “closed system” pumps, and their NIC units have these so mothers can pump for their babies.  Please see the Medela link for more information on open and closed systems.

Below, I have posted links to three websites that I have used in my research, and an excerpt from the articles. There is more information in each article.  A fourth link is to Medela’s website and what they say on the subject, but I did not include that in my research, since it could be argued they would tell mothers it was not safe to share pumps, so they could sell more pumps.

If you want to breastfeed and need a pump, but can’t afford a new pump, many hospitals will rent the “closed system” pumps.  It is worth checking into.  Also, please keep in mind, that even if the new pump is $250, if you buy one can of formula at an average price of $20 a can, it would only take buying about 12 cans to pay for the pump.  After my research, I ended up buying a brand new Medela Pump In Style backpack off of e-bay. It was brand new in the box, never opened and still had the unbroken seal.  The seller said she thought she was going to go back to work, but ended up not, and never opened the box.  I saved about $100 off the price of a new one, even with the shipping charges. 

I hope this helps in making an informed decision on whether to use a previously used pump, or to even give a used one out, or to re-sell it.  Breast milk is the best, and I know we all have our babies best interests at heart. 

LINKS:

FROM BABYCENTER:

https://www.babycenter.com/refcap/pregnancy/pregnancygear/429.html“…Note: Though it may be tempting to share or borrow a friend’s personal-use breast pump, or buy one used, the FDA and breastfeeding experts caution against it. Breast milk can carry bacteria and viruses — including hepatitis, HIV, and cytomegalovirus — that can contaminate these pumps and pass an infection to you and your baby. Because droplets of milk can get into the internal parts of these pumps, using your own collection kit doesn’t necessarily make them safe to use. Pumps designed for multiple users, like rental pumps and hospital pumps, don’t have this problem. They’re designed to prevent breast milk from getting inside the pump. So as long as you use them with your own personal collection kit, they’re safe.To find out whether a pump is okay to use secondhand, check the packaging or call the manufacturer. If it’s designated as a “single-user” pump, it should be used by only one person.” 

FROM LA LECHE LEAGUE:

https://wwwllli.org/llleaderweb/LV/LVJunJul04p54.html  Open Systems vs. Closed Systems

“…Some mothers mistakenly assume that because rental pumps are safely shared by mothers that it is also safe to share purchase pumps. This is not true. Rental pumps and purchase pumps are designed differently. The collection kits (the bottles and tubing that attach to the pump) used with the rental pumps are designed so that the milk never touches the working parts of the pump that are shared with other mothers. This is considered a “closed system.” Most purchase pumps, for example Medela’s Pump In Styles, DoubleEase, and MiniElectric, are “open systems.” This means that the pump motor is “open” to contact with the mother’s milk particles. In a Pump In Style, for example, the breastshield (the part held against the breast) is open to the tubing that attaches to the back of the shield, which is also open to the diaphragm on the pump motor that creates the suction and release. This means that an invisible mist of milk particles can travel from the shield into the tubing and back onto the pump diaphragm. The diaphragm cannot be removed or sterilized, so it cannot be cleaned well enough between mothers to insure safety. When there are milk particles on the pump diaphragm, even with a brand new set of bottles, tubing and breastshields, with every suction and release another mother’s milk particles will be blown into your milk. Even if milk particles are not visible, they can still be there. (One sure sign is mold growing in the tubing, which sometimes happens with normal use.)

Health and Hygiene Issues

Does it matter if your baby receives another mother’s milk particles? Potentially, yes. Although your milk is without a doubt the best possible food for your baby, it is currently recommended that any donor milk a baby receives from a milk bank or from another mother be pasteurized to kill viruses. Your baby has already been safely exposed to the viruses in your system during pregnancy, so there is no risk. But if another mother carries a virus in her system that you do not, it can be passed to your baby via the other mother’s milk and your baby may become seriously ill.”

FROM BREASTFEEDING ONLINE: https://www.breastfeedingonline.com/pumps.shtml

Used Breast Pumps

The concern of buying a used pump is something many breastfeeding moms encounter. Although a used pump may be more affordable than a new one, there are real health implications involved.The practice of re-using single user pumps may be dangerous because some disease organisms are know to be present in the breast milk of infected women. Additionally, if a woman has used the breast pump during an episode of cracked bleeding nipples, blood contamination may have also occurred. Home sterilization methods are not always reliable to ensure the safe destruction of all pathogens especially in the rubber parts such as washers and diaphragms. Some pumps have internal diaphragms that cannot be removed and cleaned or replaced. In addition, even if you get a new collection kit (the part the touches your breast and collects the milk) it may be possible for air-born pathogens or droplets of milk that are not visible to the naked eye to get into a pump motor and cause contamination to the next user. Most single user pumps are “open system” pumps and do not have any protective barrier to prevent cross contamination to multiple users. Many of the diseases that can be found in the milk of infected women are very serious or life threatening. Pathogens like Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis, cytomegalovirus (CMV) and others can be found in the breastmilk of infected women. (Lawrence 94) These diseases frequently go undetected for long periods of time, so even if the former user of the pump is trustworthy and willing to share this personal health information with you, she may not be aware she or her partner are carriers. Though there have not been any documented cases of mothers or babies being infected through the use of a second-hand pump, I don’t believe sharing single user pumps is worth even a very small or theoretical risk.

Other very difficult to clear fungal infections like candidiasis, more commonly known as yeast or thrush, may also be transmitted. Yeast organisms are very stubborn pathogens that can live on surfaces for long periods. Some lactation consultants will go as far as recommending replacing old pump equipment when working with a mom who has an especially persistent yeast infection because of the difficult in ensuring the complete destruction of the fungus even with careful cleaning.

FROM MEDELA: https://www.medela.com/newfiles/faq/preownpump.html

Personal Used Breastpumps
Personal use pumps that you buy at the store are personal care items, much like a toothbrush. Personal use pumps should never be resold or shared among mothers. The Medela Pump In Style® Advanced has an internal diaphragm that cannot be removed, replaced, or fully sterilized. Therefore, the risk of cross-contamination associated with re-using a previously owned pump such as the Pump In Style cannot be dismissed, even when using a new kit or tubing. Similarly, the Medela Single Deluxe™ and Double Select™ Breastpumps have internal motors that cannot be removed, replaced or fully sterilized. Another consideration when deciding to borrow or even lend a previously owned electric pump is the pump’s motor life. A high quality electric double pump might last through the breastfeeding of your second child, or even several children. However, like computers or other electronic products, an electric breastpump has a limited lifetime. Medela guarantees its pump motors with a one year warranty. If you use an electronic pump that has been used for more than one year, there is no guarantee that it will generate as much speed and vacuum as it did earlier in it’s life. By using your own pump, you can compare the pump’s performance with each child. However if you borrow a pump, you cannot gauge its performance to ensure it is operating at full capacity.