REVIEW: Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature manual breast pump and bottle

I always hoped I’d be able to breastfeed, and express when baby came along. I remember researching breast pumps while I was pregnant and I decided that I would go for an electric pump instead of a manual one as they sounded easier, more comfortable etc.

But as the saying goes ‘never look a gift horse in the mouth’ and a member of a Facebook group I’m in for mums due in the same month, kindly send me a Tommee Tippee manual pump, as she had already had one but had been given another as a gift.

When it came to giving it a try when baby W was 7 weeks old, I was quite nervous – breastfeeding had been entirely painless but now I was staring at a contraction that looked like it could cause pain… and actually when I tweeted that I was about to use it for the first time, a few people said they’d had a tough time using it….

How I got on

So after washing it, sterilising it and getting my head around it, off we went…. after a few minutes of pumping, milk started dribbling through and in my first session I managed to pump over 100ml of milk – I was so pleased!!

I used this pump for another week or so before moving over to an electric pump. Personally I don’t think there’s a huge difference between the manual and electric pump in terms of output- I prefer using the electric one now as it’s lazier – I just have to hold it whereas with the manual one, you need to keep pumping to keep the milk flowing.

At first it feels like a strange sensation, but I quickly got used to this. I don’t think it should feel uncomfortable – perhaps if you’ve tried it a few times and it still hurts then for whatever reason it’s not the pump for you?

Closer to nature bottle

This bottle comes free with the pump, it’s what you use to catch the milk before adding a teat on to it to feed baby. Again, I was nervous about how baby would take to a bottle (if at all) after 6 weeks of exclusive breastfeeding and I’m delighted to say he took to it straight away and we haven’t tried any other types of bottles since so that we don’t jinx ourselves!

I believe these bottles/teats are supposed to be good for mums who are still breastfeeding, as the teats are supposed to be quite similar to the nipple thus making it easier for baby and reducing the chances of ‘nipple confusion’

My verdict?

I think this a great, value for money product. The RRP is £29.99 but I think it’s quite often half price in places like Mothercare which makes it even more of a bargain, so if you’re on a budget this could be the breast pump for you!

It’s very easy-to-use and I found it comfortable – I quickly got into a rhythm and learnt how to do it one-handed etc! You’ll know from my breastfeeding story that I have a plentiful milk supply, so I do think that helps with this pump – and I recommend you use it just after feeding, or when you feel that milk has come in – this will make it easier to use and you will get more milk that way! With that in mind, I wouldn’t bother buying this or any other breastfeeding products until you’re in ‘established breastfeeding’ i.e. been doing it for a few weeks!

As well as being easy-to-use, it’s very easy to clean and steriliser as it’

Another huge plus is the bottle you get with it – again, before rushing out and buying a huge set of bottles you can try this one and see your baby gets on.

The pump also comes with a steriliser travel box, milk storage bottles and breast pads but the girl who sent this to me had quite rightly kept those for herself – shame, as the steriliser travel box sounds really handy and I’m sure I’ll end up buying that!

When you add it all up, I think you get a lot for your money (especially if you can get it on offer!)

Any cons?

I honestly can’t think of any other than you have to do the work yourself by pumping – so this is not suitable for lazy people 🙂

 

Was this useful? Did you try this pump and find it as good as I did or did you struggle with it? Leave a comment to let me know, thanks 🙂

Disclaimer: I wasn’t asked to review this by anyone, I was given it as a gift and wanted to share my thoughts!