Breasfeeding supplies and going back to work

[wingate702]

What supplies will I need to breastfeed? I plan to go back to work. Any advice on working and breasfeeding is appreciated. From prior postings it seems the gerber bags are best to freeze formula in-what bottles should be used with the gerber bags?

Thanks!!

Cheryl

[kgdolan]

The gerber box says that it's compatable with all of the disposable bottle systems so you (or better yet your baby) can pick which nipples they like best.

I've just started working part time, but will be returning to work full-time next week. I have been pumping and freezing since Jack was 3 weeks old. I bought the Medela pump in style and really like it. It is nice to pump into the Medela bottles since they attach to the pump and then transfer the milk when I get home at night either into regular bottles for the next day or freezer bags.

Other than that I can't think of anything else you would need. The Medela pump came with the bottles and a small cooler to keep them in.

Have you had your Baby yet? If not, you may want to ask at the hospital for the Medela pumping kit. It comes with all the attachments that you would need to hook up to a hospital grade pump or your pump in style. It also comes with a manual pump and two extra Medela bottles. It was included in the cost of my delivery so I was happy I requested it.

Hope that is somewhat helpful!

[myllam]

Hi,

I also used the medela pump in style and it worked really well. I also got the hands free kit (you have to buy the medela nursing bras for this to work.) It is really convenient to be able to have
your hands free when you are pumping. I usually brought a book with me when I was pumping at work to pass the time more quickly. I did a search through yahoo shopping for the best price on medela bras and I ended up purchasing them from www.conceptionstore.com. They had pretty good service. I'm not sure if they still have the best price since it was a few months ago.

I also made sure I threw in a few of the Gerber freezer bags into the pump in style bag. One time I had forgotten to bring the tops to the bottles (it is amazing what you forget to pack when you are rushing in the a.m. :-) I had to throw the milk away since there was no way to seal it. After that if I did that again, I would just pour it into the freezer bags and zip it up.

A small bottle of dishwashing liquid and brush is handy to wash out the shields.

Good luck and hope this helps.

[egoldber]

Make sure to keep a box of nursing pads in your desk. In the early days I leaked a lot, especially when I was thinking about my baby or if I had to go longer than usual without feeding or pumping.

I also pumped into the bottles that came with the Medela PIS. I found those to be the most convenient. The only problem you may have (and hopefully you're this lucky) is that if you pump more than a bottle's worth at a time (they only hold 5 oz.) and pump more than twice a day. You CAN fit 4 of the bottles into the cooler section of the bag, but it's a little tricky. At the height of my supply I was pumping 8 oz at a time. I had a friend who could pump 12 OUNCES at a time, and she had to use a separate cooler for the milk she pumped because it didn't all fit in the bag!!! :-)

HTH,

[kk]

I would add a supply of cloth diapers to put on your lap while you pump. I was always dripping/spilling milk while trying to do other things while pumping (phone, computer, dictaphone, etc). Good luck. KK

[cara1]

Buy extra collection bottles and an extra set of cone-shaped things. That way 1)you don't have to wash all the stuff when you get home from work and unpack all your milk and put it into bags and stuff and 2)if you pump in the AM before you leave for work, you still have a ready-to-go set to take with you.

[laura_winckler]

www.breastisbest.com also carries Medela bras in a wide range of sizes. They mention on their website that you can use the hands free kit with any bra if you attach a button to it. I haven't tried it, but check the site under accessories and see what it says.