Current protocols and products regarding lactation serve only as guidelines for the care of breastfeeding mothers and exclude a large portion of the population. Transgender men and gender-nonconforming people are able to conceive and deliver babies, and therefore, are candidates for postpartum breastfeeding. On the other hand, breastfeeding helps parents and babies form a secure attachment which may be of special concern for non-gestational parents as well, who did not carry their children due to unique family structures, adoption, or surrogacy. I’m attempting to develop a prototype for a Wearable Chest Pump that could support and improve milk extraction while providing inducing lactation stimulation as well. The device acts as a wearable vest or bra that uses a vacuum forming system to adapt its surface to multiple and diverse topographies. The stimulation is possible due to multiple air chambers that inflate and deflate using specific patterns that simulate hand stimulation. Nonetheless, the design aims to address social aspirations in terms of normalizing breastfeeding and the current association of it only for cis women.
