Can I Sell My Breast Pump to Fund My Vocal+ Membership?

“Every day on my writing journey, I hit those moments where I lose hope and start questioning if it’s all worth it. But somehow, every time, I manage to find that spark again. As long as I keep getting it back, I know I’ll be okay."

#WritingJourney #KeepGoing #NeverGiveUp

This was the update I posted on Facebook today, and this is exactly how I feel. I have my ups and downs all the time. At this point, I’m in an up moment, and I think I can do it!

Some of you may know my son has just started daycare. I have my first few days to myself in over 15 months. I’m trying to relax and do some much-needed TV show catch-up. Instead, I’m constantly finding myself scrolling through Facebook, Instagram and Threads, trying to promote my articles, and when I’m not doing that, I’m jotting down notes for my next article. I think I caught the writing bug! It’s so random; a month ago, I would have never thought about writing an article, and now, here I am. I need to try and use some of my spare time to get a steady income, but I really want to give this writing thing a chance. I decided if I want to go all out, I need to upgrade my Vocal membership to a Vocal+ membership so I can reap all the possible benefits. The only catch? I’m a stay-at-home mum and the pocket money I get from our household budget is already reserved for my essential coffees which get me through the day. Without sacrificing about a week’s worth of coffees, I just can’t afford it.

I was wracking my brain thinking about things I could sell to make a little extra cash, when I remembered I have a manual breast pump in the cupboard that I only used once. I bought it in the early days of breastfeeding when we finally had some grandparents visiting who could babysit for us. My husband and I went on a winery tour. It was going to be a long day, so I knew there would need to be a pumping stop or two along the way or things could get messy…and not just from the wine consumption.

I’m proud to say I’m still breastfeeding my son at 15 months. He’s eating solids really well, so the breastmilk is really just for those extra health benefits now. My milk supply is much lower than before, so I can go out for a day without needing to pump. I really don’t need this pump anymore.

I’ve just mentioned this idea to my husband and he thinks it’s weird to sell a second-hand breast pump. But I know people do, and his doubt has made me even more determined to reach my end goal. I can be pretty stubborn!

I’ll start with my usual go-to place for selling items, Facebook Marketplace. I just love having multiple people message me saying, “Is this still available?” to which I reply, “Yes, would you like to arrange pickup?” only to never hear from them again. I’m in various Facebook groups for selling baby items, so I can also list the pump on all of those pages. The other popular place for selling items in Australia is Gumtree. My favourite part about selling on Gumtree is when you get an email from someone named “Seller Help” or “sales assistant” (yes, their name was in lowercase, it hurts me to look at too) saying:

“We've received payment for "Baby Mobile"! To proceed, we need email address. Share it below - it's our primary channel to reach уоu via our service.”

Hmm, that’s weird, I said cash only, so how have you paid me?

Now I’ve never done this before, but I’m wondering if I have the courage to make a YouTube video advertising my breast pump for sale? Keep following to find out if I had the guts for that one!

I’m not sure what the going rate for a used breast pump is, but you can buy a brand new one for $99 on the Philips Australia website, so I’ll start the listing at $50 and see how I go. I might have to lower the price by $5 increments until I’m successful. It still won’t cover the Vocal+ membership, but it will get me closer and then I won’t have to sacrifice as many coffees!

And just like that, it’s time to get my son from daycare. Instead of feeling all relaxed after a quiet day to myself, I’m buzzing on coffee and the thought of my next writing adventure. Stay tuned to find out how the journey of selling my breast pump went and if I was able to achieve Vocal+ status.

Update

It’s taken me a week to finish editing this article for publishing. Since I started writing, we've all been sick with both colds and stomach bugs. Now I'm having a down day, not feeling as positive as I did when I first started this adventure. I’m exhausted, and I just want to lie down, but I’m remembering my words from a week ago: #NeverGiveUp. Screw it! I'm publishing this now, so we'll see what happens!