[ShelaVenna]

I got my goats rue, fenugreek, and massager today. I also made some yoga mat padding for my domes but I haven’t tried it out yet. I just want to have a record of exactly when I started with the new additions to my program. I’m back to using my Brava pump for now.

[ShelaVenna]

My new Calypso pump already showed up. I was wrong about the noise. The other louder Calypso pump was definitely already broken when I bought it. This new one is very quiet. The sound will be very easy to sleep through. It’s nowhere near as a quiet as the Brava pump, but the brava is probably the quietest breast pump ever made. I said before that I was worried that a new fully functional Calypso pump might be  much stronger than the broken pump, but it’s not. It’s very gentle.

[ShelaVenna]

I’m posting this now to hold myself accountable to post photos and measurements later, but also because I finished week 8 of pumping a few days ago. It was week 12 of my overall program. I averaged only 2.5 hrs of pumping per day last week. That’s 308 total hours of pumping so far.

The main reason I pumped so little was because I tried to switch to yoga mat padding and so I removed the blue tac I had been using. It turned out to be a lot harder to remove than most people say. Maybe I left the blue tac on the domes a lot longer than most people do, or maybe it was because of the brand I used. I’m not sure why it was so difficult to remove. The yoga mat padding didn’t work out, and I ran out of blue tac, so I couldn’t put new “rings” on my domes. I didn’t want to use the domes without padding, so for the last few days I haven’t pumped all. I’ll be starting again tonight. I’m not sure yet if I’ll make another attempt at using the yoga mat or if I’ll just use the new blue tac I ordered.

The Calypso pump didn’t work out in the end. It seems to over heat or something after around 3 hours, at which point it displays an error message and shuts itself off. I’m starting to doubt that there are any decent electric alternatives to the Brava pump for very long pumping sessions. I’m still glad I tried it out, because I really wanted to find a cheaper option to replace the Brava pump when it inevitably breaks down. It was at least worth a try IMO. For now, the Brava pump is still working just fine. Air locks and a manual pump are still a good cheap option for sleep pumping for a lot of people. It didn’t work well for me when I tried it years ago, but I didn’t have good enough padding options back then. I may try using airlocks again when my Brava pump breaks down. If it works, then I won’t bother buying another expensive pump.

The only other update I have is that the goats rue and fenugreek don’t seem to have caused any immediate swelling or any other obvious changes. That’s not a surprise, and I promised myself I would actually be patient this time. Usually 12 weeks or so is the point where I’d get really discouraged and dissapointed that I wasn’t getting the quick results I hoped for. I’d usually just chuck all my NBE stuff in the trash and abandon the forum. I refuse to do that this time. Like I said before, I’ve had a lot of failed NBE attempts in the past. I’m convinced the reasons are mostly genetic.

I’m considering keeping track of my hip measurements, since I know a lot of people theorize that the hips of naturally pear shaped women “steal” all their potential NBE growth. So far I don’t think that’s been happening to me, but I can’t rule it out yet.

[ShelaVenna]

Here are my 12 week update photos. The 2 new photos are first, and then there’s some before and after collages to make it easier to compare. There’s an obvious difference in the bra pics, but the nude pics barely look any different. I think I’ve grown roughly half a cup size.

[Bustyprincess]

Here are my 12 week update photos. The 2 new photos are first, and then there’s some before and after collages to make it easier to compare. There’s an obvious difference in the bra pics, but the nude pics barely look any different. I think I’ve grown roughly half a cup size.

Hey Shela! I actually think theres a big difference in volume and the curvature of your breasts in the before and after braless pics keep going! Also its always a shock when you dont think youve made much progress but then put your bra on and are like oh wow what the hell!? Lol

[jaykay]

Here are my 12 week update photos. The 2 new photos are first, and then there’s some before and after collages to make it easier to compare. There’s an obvious difference in the bra pics, but the nude pics barely look any different. I think I’ve grown roughly half a cup size.

Yes definitely more definition on your underboob/cleavage area!

[Karren H]

Shela,

I also pump while sleeping but can only get 2 to 3 hours in before it becomes too uncomfortable to wear. How do you do it and sleep soundly? I'm using a standard set of cups with air valves that make it leak free.

I think you progress is very good and very noticeable!!

[ShelaVenna]

I planned to take 2 weeks off my program for the holidays and a vacation to Florida. The break ended up stretching out to a whole month for no good reason. I’ve been lazy about restarting my pumping regimen because sleep pumping is so annoying, but it’s doable, and I know I should restart tonight. I could have taken my supplements during that time, but I didn’t. I didn’t even take my birth control. I feel a little dissapointed in myself, but I think I may have psychology needed the break. A hormonal reset might also be good for growth, because it’s possible cycling pm and pc would have been more effective for me than using it continuously. I chose not to cycle because some of the people who had the most growth on PM did not cycle, but those people were using strong progesteronic birth control, not pc. I think I’m only going to take my galactagogues and antiandrogens until my next period. Then I’ll try cycling while also taking birth control.

[SweetO]

I planned to take 2 weeks off my program for the holidays and a vacation to Florida. The break ended up stretching out to a whole month for no good reason. I’ve been lazy about restarting my pumping regimen because sleep pumping is so annoying, but it’s doable, and I know I should restart tonight. I could have taken my supplements during that time, but I didn’t. I didn’t even take my birth control. I feel a little dissapointed in myself, but I think I may have psychology needed the break. A hormonal reset might also be good for growth, because it’s possible cycling pm and pc would have been more effective for me than using it continuously. I chose not to cycle because some of the people who had the most growth on PM did not cycle, but those people were using strong progesteronic birth control, not pc. I think I’m only going to take my galactagogues and antiandrogens until my next period. Then I’ll try cycling while also taking birth control.

Taking breaks it's essential, I agree. I took six months in 2017 and to be honest, it was the best decision ever. Pumping (well, NBE in general) it's very time-consuming.

PS: I do see a difference between the before/after pictures. Keep up the good work!

[ShelaVenna]

Wow. It’s been a long time. I thought I should come back and say I’m not dead and I haven’t stopped doing NBE. I’ve been very inconsistent with pumping. Been pumping an hour or two or three times a week. I took the supplements like once every other day instead of twice a day like I planned. I didn’t bother to log any of my pumping hours either. In my experience, a few hours a week of pumping does absolutely nothing for me. It may work for others, but for me it’s just a waste of several hours a week that makes me feel like I should just give up to avoid wasting so much time. I’m posting this to keep myself accountable while I start pumping all night again.

I have mixed feelings about starting taking the supplements consistently again. I’ve made 4 or 5 failed attempts at nbe before, spread out over more than a decade. They were mainly focused around phytoestrogens, but I did pump now and then. I don’t know if I will ever respond to any sort of hormonal program, but I still have supplements left, so I think I’ll finish them. Maybe I’ll buy more and continue, depending on what happens, but I don’t have the highest hopes about supplements.