**Men, avert your eyes. Boys, go find another article to read. As a matter of fact, women who aren’t currently or in the very near future in need of a breast pump, you should skip this one too. No one should have to know all these gruesome details unless absolutely necessary. If you’re looking to give a breast pump as a gift, all you need to know is this one is awesome. Now go away.

Still here? First, let me say, I’m sorry. Being a mother is fantastic. Nursing is a beautiful special bonding experience, yada yada yada. But it’s also kind of the worst, and when you take the actual baby away from the equation, there is nothing good about it. But we do what we’ve got to do, right ladies? So at the very least, lets talk about why Spectra is the least horrible of these torture devices.

“We don’t suck, we suckle!”

If you’ve heard of Spectra, then you’ve probably heard this slogan. And for the most part it is true. They have managed to make the most natural feeling breast pump on the market. Does it feel like your baby nursing? Of course not. Does it feel better than other machines that tug at your nipples? Absolutely.

Backflow Protector

As if it isn’t bad enough being hooked up like a cow in a dairy, you then have to clean all of the little parts that make up this milk extractor. Several times a day. And hope that it dries in time for your next pumping session. The Spectra back flow protectors are the reason to buy this pump, honestly. Cleaning out tubing is not an easy task, and you don’t want to take any risk of mold, mildew and bacteria when it comes to your baby.

Speed and Suction

The spectra is incredibly versatile in this regard. There is a separate “letdown mode” with faster speed but lower suction to get you started, and a large range of power within the suction mode. Fastest and most forceful isn’t always the most efficient, so it is nice to be able to really fine tune each time you pump until you get the best settings for you.

Portability

If this is important to you, get the S1. It has a rechargeable battery that will make your life much easier. It isn’t quite as light and compact as some pumps on the market, but all of the other features make that minor inconvenience very worth it. If you don’t mind being plugged in while you pump, every other feature is exactly the same on the S2.

Nightlight

The spectra doesn’t have a glowing screen, instead it has a small light under the handle with two brightness levels, so you can also have some light for the attachments and whatever else you might need. I personally don’t use it much, but if you ever pump in the dark, this feature will make your life much easier.

Silicon Massager Insert

Okay, here’s where that disclaimer really takes effect. I have generous oversupply, but I have small nipples, so pumping with enough suction to sufficiently drain my milk left me with sore cracked nipples. But even with my son eating more than the average baby, if I skipped pumping I would end up engorged which wasn’t much better. Spectra sells these inserts separately for about $12 each and they were a lifesaver. They make pumping much more effective, so I can get more milk in less time and with lower suction. It isn’t necessarily more comfortable, I’ve found for me that I feel some slight pinching around the areola, but it doesn’t do the permanent damage to the nipple like before. Plus, I find I pump almost twice as much without having to massage by hand. Definitely worth it!

Using Medela Attachments

A lot of people love the Spectra pump but like the Medela or other flanges. There are so many tutorials out there on cutting up the tubing and MacGyvering it together to supposedly get the best of both. Please please stop. This is ridiculous. It doesn’t actually work that well, plus, you lose the back flow system which is one of the best parts of the spectra. If you absolutely must use the Medela flanges, Maymom makes adapters so you can connect them.

A Note on Nipple Size

The only downside I have found with the Spectra is that they only make one size of flange. It comes with a 28 mm flange, and if you use the silicon massager, it will decrease this to about 25 mm. You can use larger or smaller flanges from Medela or directly from Maymom with the adapters, but this means you won’t be able to use the massager insert. If you don’t know why flange size is important, I encourage you to look up how to check your nipple size (not breast or areola), and what size you need. This will make a world of difference when using any pump.

Conclusion

This pump is the way to go. Any other hospital grade pump will cost you ten times as much to buy outright, and as much to rent for a few months as it does to buy the Spectra. If your insurance covers it, even better!