$400 on 3 visits to a Lactation Consultant
$90 on prescriptions for Thrush and Mastitis ($30 copay)
$350 on a pump
$60 on bottles and storage bags to work with the pump
$200 on nursing tops and bras
$40 on lanolin creams and gel pads
$30 on a Boppy pillow
$30 on Fenugreek and special teas to help my supply
TOTAL: $1200 in 6 weeks.

I won’t talk about the value of my own time (at one point, I nursed for 13 hours straight to try to get my supply to cooperate), or the $2000 copay for my hospital stay, which my doctors say probably wouldn’t have happened if I’d taken their advice and formula-fed from the start – both of those are definitely a stretch.

Conversely, my son is doing well on Target Up&Up formula at $15 per week, and our Playtex bottles cost $30. Add on 2 doctors visits (breastfed babies get sick less, although at 8 months mine has never been sick), and we’re at $870 annually.

I’d rather be breastfeeding. If I had a choice, I’d be on a pumping break right now; the benefits of breast milk are very clear, no matter the cost.

However, to say that it has no cost isn’t typical of most women’s experiences. My expenses were clearly on the high end, but the cost of breastfeeding is NOT zero – even if you only purchase nursing pads and bras. When you take these breastfeeding-related expenses into account, what was your cost? Probably still less than formula, but not $0.