Going back to work and pumping

[Lupe]

I am re-posting this in this thread
I was looking for tips/advice regarding keeping breastfeeding while going back to work
Did you do a schedule ? For how long were you able to keep your supply?
I want to be able to give DS my milk until he starts solid foods at least, hopefully more
But I heard the pump is not as good as the baby and supply tends to go down
He is 3 months now
Any tips will be greatly appreciated!

[lec]

DD is just a few days shy of 9 months and I am still breastfeeding.

I would recommend a schedule. I find it easiest to block off the time in my calendar so that I avoid having other meetings scheduled. When I first went back to work DD was 15 weeks old, I would pump 3x a day. I would nurse her before leaving in the morning and then just pump every couple hours. I think my schedule was something like... I would get to work by 8 and pump around 10, 12:30, 3. Then I would be able to nurse DD when we got home. Now that she is older - I am pumping twice a day and I am still able to keep up with what she needs at daycare.

I have a decent freezer stash built (by pumping once a day during the weekend). Having the freezer stash prevents me from stressing if one day I am not able to produce exactly what she needs the next day for daycare. This has only happened a handful of times. When she goes through growth spurts I find a way to fit in an extra pumping time (either in the morning after first feeding her or after she had gone to bed).

To keep my freezer stash rotated (I have a deep freezer - so nothing over 6 months) I freeze everything I pump on Friday and the weekend. On Sunday night I pull out the oldest freezer stash and thaw in the refrigerator for daycare on Monday. Then the rest of the week I send what I pumped the previous day.

Sometimes the lacation room isn't very inviting and it can be hard to relax and pump. If I'm having a hard time relaxing - pulling out my cell phone and looking at the pics of DD or watching the video clips I have of her on my phone help.

Good Luck! You can do it.

[hillview]

I set up regular pumping sessions and scheduled them in outlook. I was able to breastfeed DSs til 6-8 months before I started to travel a lot for work.

GOOD LUCK it can be done and you will be great!
/hillary

[HonoluluMom]

I went back to work when DD was a little over 2 months old. I pumped until she was about 1.5 years old!

To keep up my supply/meet DD's needs, in the beginning I was pumping about every 3 hours at work. I set the alarm on my cell phone to go off every 3 hours. In the beginning, I also pumped right before I went to bed and once in the middle of the night (not fun).

As DD got older, I dropped the middle of the night pumping, and eventually dropped the right before bed pumping and eventually switched to pumping about once every 4 hours at work.

A few months after I returned to work, my supply dipped dramatically. I called LLL and my local breastfeeding support group. I was going through a lot of personal stress and they said this is what affected my supply. It wasn't the pumping.

As far as logistics, I brought enough bottles, horns, membranes, valves, etc. so that I didn't have to wash anything at work. I put the filled bottles in a Medela cooler bag and put the cooler bag in the office refrigerator. I wiped all the used parts with a wet cloth and dumped it in a ziploc bag and put it in my purse. I washed and sterilized everything when I got home. I had A LOT bottles, horns, membranes, etc.

I closed my office door and it took about 20-30 minutes from set-up to clean-up. I ate lunch at my desk to make up for this time. To make my milk flow faster, I massaged my breast as I pumped. While I was able to read while I pumped, I couldn't type.

Good luck!

[Lupe]

I have the medela freestyle, anyone else used that pump?
What do people recommend in terms of cleaning and such
are the medela wipes OK? or is it better to have 3 sets of spare parts?
I can imagine the flanges being easy to clean with the wipes, but maybe I should get more than one set of membranes?

I do not have an office, still have to find where to pump
maybe the bathroom, not too inviting as you imagine

[trcy]

I went back to work when DD was 10 weeks...She is now 5 mo. I work 2 10 hour days durring the week and 6 hours on Saturdays. The plan was to pump twice during the 10 hr shifts and nurse her on my lunch break (daycare is very close) and pump once on Saturdays. Reality....most 10 hour days I am only able to get in 1 pumping along with the lunch time feeding. And I am usually able to get in the Saturday pumping. Some days we are so busy I can't pump at all, but I have not missed a lunch time feeding yet. I worry this could eventually effect my supply. I EBF on my days off and get in extra pumping as well. So far no issues with supply. I have the Medela Pump In Style Advanced. I clean the parts with the wipes and then use the microwave steam bags when I get home. Good luck...it is tough, but IMO worth it.

[ncat]

I had 2 sets of pump parts, and used the cleaning wipes if I knew I needed to pump a third time. I used 2 gallon size zip lock bags - one for the dirty parts and one for the clean parts. Generally I only pumped twice a day, except if I had to stay late or needed to add supply following a day DS was extra hungry at day care.

I was able to keep up with DS, but my supply did dip at certain times of the month. He went to daycare at 12 weeks. I started introducing cows milk at about 11.5 months, stopped pumping at the same time, but continued to nurse him until he was 17 months old.

I pumped in a storage supply closet that had an outlet and was set up with a chair and table. This was my suggestion after the person in charge of such things at my work suggested that I (1) use the bathroom (fortunately there were no plugs in the stalls) or (2) schedule a conference room and close all the blinds (meetings, including client calls frequently run over and this would have been incredibly awkward for me!)

Good luck!

[petesgirl]

Have any of you dealt with hostility in your co-workers regarding pumping? I haven't had my baby yet, and my company claims to be open-minded about this (they have provided a room for this purpose), but I can see some of my co-workers complaining if I take more than the two 15-min breaks that I am alloted in my 10 hour day.

[Dr C]

Have any of you dealt with hostility in your co-workers regarding pumping? I haven't had my baby yet, and my company claims to be open-minded about this (they have provided a room for this purpose), but I can see some of my co-workers complaining if I take more than the two 15-min breaks that I am alloted in my 10 hour day.

There may have been rolled eyeballs behind my back, but I don't think anybody in my workplace is brave enough to actually say something hostile to my face--it's kind of similar to calling somebody fat to their face--you might think it but you just don't do it, LOL! You're likely to get sympathy from the women, and the guys just don't want to talk about it and will run in the other direction as fast as they can.

I was actually pleasantly surprised about how supportive my workplaces were (different places with DS and DD). I was able to be pretty much done in 20 minutes once I got good at it. My biggest tip is to pump in the AM after that first morning feeding--that helped my supply a lot and meant I could make it till lunch if I had to (I did schedule a mid- morning pumping break but sometimes an appointment ran long and I opted to sacrifice my pumping to catch up)

My supply did dip once DD started sleeping through the night but I wasn't willing to do late night/midnight pumping sessions so I settled for mostly breastmilk with some formula here and there. It worked. She's fine. ;-) Some breast milk is better than none!

Good luck with the pumping thing--you can do it!

[Uno-Mom]

Have any of you dealt with hostility in your co-workers regarding pumping? I haven't had my baby yet, and my company claims to be open-minded about this (they have provided a room for this purpose), but I can see some of my co-workers complaining if I take more than the two 15-min breaks that I am alloted in my 10 hour day.

Funny story about this ... (please, nobody flame me, I don't wish to offend anybody!). Many, many people at my agency smoke. I do not. I'm a specialist within the agency, so I work with multiple managers, directors, etc. I should say that I have very good relationships with all my colleagues and we are quite informal and personal (we're in social services, so everday conversations often touch on personal topics and health topics). We also share a kind of sick sense of humor.

Anyway, for over 5 years I've been giving my co-workers a gentle hard time about their MULTIPLE smoke breaks and all the many, many times I've had to stand upwind from them while "meetings" continue to discuss important topics outside. Grrrr.

I finally got my point across once my daughter was born. During yet another meeting, a whole group headed outside for their 2nd smoke break in as many hours, so I followed them with my Medela in hand. I stood upwind (as usual) and started unzipping the bag to take out the pieces like I was going to start pumping then and there. I got some shell-shocked looks and then explained that I was so happy to FINALLY have a reason to take as many breaks as they did ... and something to do with my hands while I waited for them to finish their cigs.

Yes, they all laughed hysterically. No, I did not pump in the parking lot. No, smoke break patterns haven't changed appreciably but I feel good for making my point. (Again - let me emphasize that we are close, informal and I was 100% sure that none of these colleagues would be offended by this! I do not suggest anybody else try this tactic. :) )

In all seriousness - I hope it goes smoothly for you, petesgirl. I was blessed to have an accepting environment and also lots of privacy. I hope it goes as well for you.

[Uno-Mom]

My supply did dip once DD started sleeping through the night but I wasn't willing to do late night/midnight pumping sessions so I settled for mostly breastmilk with some formula here and there. It worked. She's fine. ;-) Some breast milk is better than none!



That's what I did near the end, too. It was the perfect solution because work was heating up with extra stressors and I finally decided I needed to cut back on my sessions. I felt good about that choice.

[petesgirl]

It's actually the women I am worried about--the guys waste enough time on the internet that they know they can't criticize anyone else taking breaks!--but one girl at work is very anti-children and very vocal about it so I know she will make a stink if I get "extras". Some of the women who do have kids are anti-breastfeeding (the "breasts are for my husband only" type), and the one that has done breastfeeding before is now my supervisor and has made it clear that just because I am pregnant doesn't mean I get any sympathy from her! In fact, when another co-worker quite, she assigned me the extra hours even though a) I had already told her I wanted to keep my same schedule b) Others had volunteered for some of the hours.

[Lupe]

I am not worried about getting looks at work, my coworkers are very openminded (I know some of my coworkers wife's have breastfed in some of the rooms while closing the doors) The main problem is that there is no dedicated room to pump
I've seen a couple of women pump in a chair in the handicapped bathroom, but I find pumping in the bathroom unsanitary
Maybe it is nor as big of a deal, It just makes me uncomfortable
Thoughts?

[Uno-Mom]

I am not worried about getting looks at work, my coworkers are very openminded (I know some of my coworkers wife's have breastfed in some of the rooms while closing the doors) The main problem is that there is no dedicated room to pump
I've seen a couple of women pump in a chair in the handicapped bathroom, but I find pumping in the bathroom unsanitary
Maybe it is nor as big of a deal, It just makes me uncomfortable
Thoughts?

I would have felt very uncomfortable in a restroom stall. Not knowing your work situation, it's tricky to make suggestions. I did have an office that I could lock. There was a 2nd desk in there and sometimes, when a co-worker needed to use that computer, I fore-warned them that I needed to pump and just did it with them there (the desks face away from each other.) That was ok b/cause it was MY office and they were borrowing a free desk.

But my favorite spot was in my car. I had enough flexibity to do that, though. I just parked in the shade. That was one reason why I went to one-sided pumping - I felt more secure with one hand free and a dishcloth covered my open shirt side. If someone really stared into my car, they could figure out what I was doing. But if they're that nosy - I didn't really care if they got embarrassed! The casual passer-by wouldn't have even noticed anything.

[Uno-Mom]

Hey - one more thing. Besides doing the one-sided thing, I also picked my work clothes a certain way. I was most secure when wearing a regular shirt (usually knit T) with some kind of sweater/hoodie/jacket over it. That way I could lift the shirt and be fully covered still above the breast ... and bring the sweater over the front. The few days I had to totally unbutton a shirt from the top, I felt really exposed.

Does that make sense?

[babyonway]

I have had to do that and I have success putting a nursing cover over my breasts to hide what I am doing.

I actually pump in my car a lot :bouncy:

[lizzywednesday]

If you have a hands-free bra and a car power adaptor for your pump, plus a nursing cover, you can totally pump in your car.

I have even pumped while driving on several occasions. It's tricky to get the hang of, but if you can do it, it'll surely save you some grief!

The Medela wipes are fine for cleaning between sessions, but I always recommend having multiple sets of parts (horns, valves, connectors, membranes) so that washing parts doesn't become your entire life.

I have the PISA which does not have a timer function like the Freestyle does, so I usually recommend that someone who's got a PISA also get a kitchen timer so you can truly relax during your pump session ... I used to nap during my first few back from maternity leave! (I have a really nice meditation chime clock with multiple settings so I can store different length sessions at the touch of a button; it's great.)

You can use the storage baggies to pump directly (not with the Freestyle, though, its connectors are too flat to provide an anchor for the baggie's strap) or you can pump into bottles and transfer to storage baggies when you get home.

Indispensable as well is a good cooler bag. The one that comes with the Medela pumps is, IMO, too small for a full day's worth of pumps I needed for my morning pump session - I could get up to 7 oz while the Medela bottles & baggies are 5 oz, for example - and so I ended up using the cooler bag they gave me at the hospital. (This is not a standard hospital freebie; I was an EP-er who delivered at a specialized hospital due to a medical issue in my DD.)

Also, unless you work for a tiny-tiny office where pump breaks would be a hardship for regular operations, your pump breaks are protected by FEDERAL LAW. They also have to allow you access to a place where you can pump in private that is NOT a bathroom.

I don't know what kind of work the OP or petesgirl do, but please know that you are protected by Federal law if your State's laws regarding breastfeeding mothers in the office are not exactly the greatest. I understand the attitude problem with coworkers; I haven't gotten that from my teammates, but my boss doesn't quite "get" it - she doesn't have children herself, though she does like them. (From a distance.)

In order to ensure I wouldn't get meetings scheduled for my pump times, I blocked out the time in my Outlook calendar. When I first returned to work from maternity leave, I would pump immediately upon arrival (7:30a) and again later in the morning (say, 11:30a) and then once in the afternoon about an hour or so before leaving (2:30p) and would be able to nurse my daughter when I got home (4:30-5p)

The hardest part about pumping at work was ensuring my DCP did not feed my DD later than 2pm so she'd be hungry when I got home. If my DD was not hungry when I got home, I would either leak or get painfully engorged, neither of which made for a pleasant situation.

[stillplayswithbarbies]

I am not worried about getting looks at work, my coworkers are very openminded (I know some of my coworkers wife's have breastfed in some of the rooms while closing the doors) The main problem is that there is no dedicated room to pump
I've seen a couple of women pump in a chair in the handicapped bathroom, but I find pumping in the bathroom unsanitary
Maybe it is nor as big of a deal, It just makes me uncomfortable
Thoughts?

depending on the laws in your state, this may be illegal. Some states require that a private room that is not a bathroom be made available for pumping.

I thought that was now part of the federal health care bill and applied to all states?

[lizzywednesday]

...

I thought that was now part of the federal health care bill and applied to all states?

It's part of the Federal Labor Code and went into effect last March.

[BabbyO]

I went back to work when DS was 3 mo and had a regular pumping schedule. It was fairly close to when he normally ate so I'd pump around 8:30 am, noon, and 3:45 pm. (I also came into work an hour early to make up time for the three 20 min pump sessions).

Anyway, I pumped until DS was 1 yr old and didn't really see a decrease in my supply until he was close to 10 mo old and eating solids on a regular basis. At that point his intake of BM was decreasing...and that is really why my supply went down.

I actually had to toss BM because I had so much...and until 9 mo, I supplemented my cousin's DS with BM because her supply tanked (but she couldn't keep up a regular pumping schedule). I weaned at around 12-13 mo and had enough milk to go till DS was 15 mo. Then he just wasn't interested in it at all and I tossed about 300 oz.

I pumped on a regular schedule and I think this was key. I also started pumping when DS was about 6-8 wks old so that my body could get used to the pump. I'd always do this at the first nursing of the day when I was fullest. I'd nurse DS on one side and pump the other side simultaneously. I think this helped my body respond to the pump because it was also responding to DS.

[new_mom_mry]

A quick, semi-related question for working mamas who pump -- how many oz did your LO take per feeding while you were away and how frequently did they eat?

Lupe--good luck, it's totally doable. My DS is now 7 months old and I went back to work when he was 12 weeks old. For me, the key to keeping up my supply has been pumping 3 x a day when I am at work. As soon as I go to pumping twice a day, my supply drops, but fortunately comes back after a few days of pumping 3 times a day...as confusing as it seems, it will all click and come into place once you return to work!

P.S. A good, trustworthy, childcare provider (whether a nanny or daycare or another option) has been key for me in maintaining a healthy work-baby balance.

[lizzywednesday]

A quick, semi-related question for working mamas who pump -- how many oz did your LO take per feeding while you were away and how frequently did they eat? ...

I went back to work when my DD was 8 weeks.

She started out taking 2-3oz per feed and appx 3 feeds per day.

The general rule of thumb is 1oz per hour you're apart; I was gone from 6:30a to 4:30p and would send 8oz to the DCP. (My SIL did better with it than my MIL, as my MIL was accustomed to formula feeding. MIL asked to send more milk than I'd been sending, but SIL did fine with what I sent. DD still takes about the same amounts, so the only difference was the formula-experienced mom vs. the breastfeeding-experienced mom watching her during the day.)

Look at the "childcare and breastfed babies" section on KellyMom for help:

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/bf-links-pumping.html#childcare

[Lupe]

yesterday was my first day
DH watched DS, and of course he thought he needed more milk
I pumped before I left and could only fit two pumpings during the day
But I guess is was enough because I was able to put one bag in the freezer stash to replace the one I took.
The problem is that DH is not good at putting him to sleep, he concludes DS doesn't want to after only trying for 5 minutes and then he thinks he just must be hungry.
I do not want to criticize him too much, because he was trying, and if I do it will just make him more resistant to staying a full day with DS.
But it made for a bad night, since I think all moms know that bad naps do not make the baby sleep longer at night, quite the contrary. But I cannot convince my husband that an overtired baby will not sleep longer, any tips?

I am now in the search for the best nanny, which we can only afford 3-4 days a week. We will have a "trial" day with my top choice and see how it goes....

[Schmitty21]

Congratulations on surviving your first day back. It can be very emotional! You're apart from your LO, and on top of that have all the stress/logistics about pumping and fitting that into your workday.

Like other ladies have said, it's worth it. My son is 9 mos, and I had just a 6-week maternity leave. I've been successful thus far; I'd like to make it to 1 year without formula. We shall see.

Blocking out time on your calendar is key. It will force you to stick to a schedule, and also will prevent other people from scheduling meetings! I pumped at 9:30, 12:30, and 3:30, or sometimes would nurse DS at lunch (daycare is close). I noticed supply dips here or there, particularly at 6 mos when we started solids. If it happens to you, keep up the 3x/day and it will come back. Now that he's 9 mos, I am switching to 2x/day.

Oh - another good tip (I read this in Medela's manual), is after it seems you are done and no more milk is coming out, you can switch back to the quicker-phase pump setting and often times will create a 2nd let-down, you can get another couple of ounces that way.

Good luck - there are plenty of us working/pumping Moms out there, and I always find it comforting to come here for ideas and support. :)

[Schmitty21]

NewMomMry - my LO takes between 4-5 oz per feeding. In the early months I sent 4 bottles. Then around 6-7 months I switched to 3 bottles. He's 9 months now and I just recently switched to 2 bottles of 4 oz/each.

Daycare does breakfast, AM snack, lunch, and PM snack. He only recently started eating around the table with the other "eaters." I am weaving the bottles into the table food schedule. He eats the 2 bottles at 10am and 3 or 3:30pm. I am trying to pump at those same times.

I had a hard time figuring this stuff out, trying to decide how much milk to send, interlacing it into the table food. Eventually I just have to stop stressing, try something, and see what happens. I am my own worst enemy sometimes! :)


A quick, semi-related question for working mamas who pump -- how many oz did your LO take per feeding while you were away and how frequently did they eat?

Lupe--good luck, it's totally doable. My DS is now 7 months old and I went back to work when he was 12 weeks old. For me, the key to keeping up my supply has been pumping 3 x a day when I am at work. As soon as I go to pumping twice a day, my supply drops, but fortunately comes back after a few days of pumping 3 times a day...as confusing as it seems, it will all click and come into place once you return to work!

P.S. A good, trustworthy, childcare provider (whether a nanny or daycare or another option) has been key for me in maintaining a healthy work-baby balance.

[trcy]

and then he thinks he just must be hungry.
DH is the same way. If DD makes a little fuss he asks "Is she hungry?" Even after he has seen I have just fed her. Glad to hear he is not the only one. Congrats on making it through your first day:applause:

[new_mom_mry]

Lupe--your DH sounds just like my DH! I've grown to conclude than men are poor at recognizing sleepiness cues in babies! There have been so many times where DH would be watching our son who would get overly tired and start rubbing his eyes and making fussy noises, and DH would just keep asking him "what's wrong?? what's going on?? without terminating play time and trying to put him down for a nap. One suggestion is to explain to your DH that DS needs to nap after e.g., every 1.5-2 hours of awake time, else he will get fussy and sleep poorly at night. In men's defense, they can't nurse the baby to sleep, so they are less equipped at putting them down for naps.