exclusively pumping, question about cutting out a session and completely stopping

I have been exclusively breast pumping at first i was doing evey 3 hours not missing any session i then switched to every 4 hours i currently pump a total of about 3.5 - 5 ounces each time. I am pumping enough to keep up with her demand. My plan as always been to only pump for 6 weeks and it still is (though I am feeling slightly guilty for some reason but at the same time i cant wait to stop). I am currently in week 4.

I want to know if cutting out the overnight pump now (which would be my 330AM one) is a bad idea? I would still pump at my and 11:30 pm one and then at the 7:30 am one. Also i currently have a small freezer stash too if that makes a difference. I know its only 2 more weeks and if I had too I would tough it out but I really could use the sleep; i am currently not napping at all during the day and I am getting rather tired and cranky!

Also when I want to stop should I just stop pumping all together or do i need to stop slowly. If i need to sop slowly how do i go about doing this?

thanks for any input given

Re: exclusively pumping, question about cutting out a session and completely stopping

It will depend how many ounces she is taking in a day. It's just math lol. Count the ounces you have stashed, add up the number you pump per day (times 14, since that's how many days you have left). Then add up what she drinks in a day and times that by 14. That's how you can figure out if you can drop a session.

As far as stopping, you don't *have* to do it slowly, but it is definitely recommended. If you stop cold turkey, you will have to deal with engorgement (which can be very painful!) for at least a few days. This can also lead to clogged milk ducts, infection, and mastitis. Alternatively, if you drop one session every couple of days, it will give your breasts the chance to figure things out and they will slowly stop making milk at those times. HTH!

Re: exclusively pumping, question about cutting out a session and completely stopping

I went from every 3 hours to every 5- I did it over 2 weeks because I am going back to work soon- the first couple days I extended the time by 30 minutes, I had no pain so I went to a full 4 hours and then slowly worked up to the 5 hours

Re: exclusively pumping, question about cutting out a session and completely stopping

thanks for the info