In her always articulate manner, Jean discusses the thread on epidurals and Pitocin and pumping.... << I think it is a mistake to jump to the conclusion that the pump or the epidural or the pitocin must be at fault. Only when the sinuses become somewhat overdistended and accompanied by very full ducts behind them is there better potential for the pump to yield any appreciable volume. >> However, Jean, two things: in our facility, most of the mothers are now getting the epidural just prior to starting the Pitocin. And, this is occurring in mothers who do not get Pitocin induction -- or perhaps just a little Pitocin stimulation towards the end of the labor, AND, it wasn't nearly as prevalent several years ago when fewer mothers were getting Pitocin. In fact, when I was working occasionally at another hospital where epidurals were NOT the norm, most mothers were able to begin to see signs of colostrum and actually *collect* it within two to three pumpings. I don't disagree that hand expression/compression is probably most effective, but given the work of Uvnas-Moberg, I think it quite possible that the exogenous pain relief in the form of epidural (and, perhaps, the concommittant overuse of Pitocin) may be impacting the mother's own oxytocin production. The half life of Pitocin is only a couple of minutes which is why it needs to run so continuously. But when a mother gets Pitocin for 12 to 14 hours, it does make one wonder..... Jan -- *********************************************** The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html