Any mommas who work and breastfeed?

[smatheson]

Well I was just curious as to who works and also breastfeeds? We are going to be TTC in march and with this kiddo I will be also working full time. With my son I was able to stay home with him for 8 months, but this time I will be going back to work when LO is 3 months. There is no other option for me, but to breastfeed, but obviously I will have to pump while I am at work.

How do you manage work and BF?

 

[calliebaby]

I pump three times at work and three times at home. My little guy is now 4.5 months and I'm almost exclusively pumping. It's hard work, but it works for us. He was never a big nurser to begin with though.

 

[fatandlumpy]

I nurse at home, 8ish, 11-12am, 2-3am and 5-6am. (yup... 6 months old and not sleeping through the night...)

and I pump at work 9-10am, 12-1pm and 3-4pm

So far - it's OK. My work and my colleagues are very understanding although one of my techs says I should switch over to formula now, but she's can be a nasty witch at times. She also advised me to put my wee one in his own room as soon as possible and let him cry himself to sleep... She did that with her own two. Apparently they've turned out OK. Not drug taking, alcoholic attention seekers at all!

 

[calliebaby]

I guess I should mention, i only pump 15-20 minutes a session.

 

[Skittleblue]

I went back at 8 weeks, and we managed to not use formula from that time until 6 months, but I had a chance to pump 3 times while at work. At about 6 months, I started a new job and could only pump once, so we ended up needing to supplement with a couple of ounces of formula a day. I didn't like it, but she nursed morning, evening, bedtime, and overnight so I didn't feel like I could take on adding another pumping session in the evening.

It's been tough, but I never did great with the pump to start with.

 

[korndogger123]

I pumped on the way to work, on my break, and on the way home. (Usually 8 or 9 hours away from home a day) She always nursed from me if I was home, and I always had enough milk to send with her to daycare.

I have cut out the pumping in the way home, and just pump (Or nurse) before work and pump on my lunch break. Ever since she turned 1 I don't have to send her with nearly as much milk as I did and 10oz while she is at daycare is enough.

 

[kung_pao mama]

I only work part time. Usually my shifts are only 4-6 hours. I pump on the way to work and once while i am there. Every now and then, if i need to i pump on the way home as well. 10-15 minutes each time. I am able to pump more than enough for my son and freeze the extra milk just in case i need it.

 

[smatheson]

Good to know that there are other mommies who juggle work and breastfeeding!
I will be working three twelve hour shifts per week as I am a nurse. It is going to be hard but it is so worth it

 

[MommyJogger]

Another mama who worked and bf here. I highly recommend a hands-free pumping bustier (sp??) if you have any kind of commute or plan on doing paperwork during pump breaks. The ability to pump in the car to and from work or to get something work-related done while pumping can make a huge difference in your day.
It's also important to make sure whoever is caring for lo while you're away knows about "paced bottle feeding", as that can make a big difference in their milk intake during the day (and therefore how much milk you'll have to pump while at work).
Kellymom.com was a great resource for me.
I also tell everyone I talk to about this how important it is to go in on your first day back knowing 1) where you're going to pump, wash your parts, and store your milk and 2) the level of privacy afforded by your pump and storage location (ie. do you need to print out a "Privacy Please" sign before going in for your first day or does the door lock? If you're shy about people seeing your milk in the fridge, do you have a cooler you can keep in the fridge to keep your milk in?). The worst thing ever is to get to work and realize you need to do a million things before you're actually ready to pump, then to use up all your break time doing everything but pumping.
I recently graduated and finished my last day of out-of-home work for a long time, but we spent 16 months working full time while bf after going back to work at 6 weeks. Making the commitment to bf even though I worked full time was something I'll never, ever regret.

 

[Jaymelynn]

How did you all know how much breast milk lo will need at daycare? I have not given lo that many bottles so I am clueless to how much he drinks!

 

[MommyJogger]

The general rule of thumb for an ebf baby (or one who takes only token amounts of solids) is 1oz per hour plus a couple extra that first day "just in case". It's usually a good rule for any under 1yo, but there are exceptions where you have a baby that loves solids more than the average child or prefers to take solids while mom is away and then stock up on their milk in the evening/morning/night when they're with mom. I think Kellymom has a calculator for a vague estimate.

 

[misspriss]

I work and pump, went back at 3 months. I pump 3x per day, run the pump for 20 minutes each time. I store the parts in the fridge between pumpings and only wash at the end of the day.

I used to use a hands free pumping bra, but now I just use two hairbands looped together and hooked to my nursing bra and that is easier.

I have pumped in the car, but it isn't preferred! I am lucky, I am on salary and my supervisor lets me take breaks and pump during my work day so I don't have to take up my lunch or drive time. I used to pump at my desk before I got an office mate and it was quite productive, but now I have to ship off to the kitchen, which was fitted with a lock just for me.

Take a magazine, book, tablet, or your phone. It gets boring to sit around with a pump strapped to your boobs for 10-20 minutes at a time just waiting for the time to go by. I make phone calls, text, surf BnB....

 

[Jaymelynn]

It is encouraging to read how everyone manages. I have no idea where I will pump. I know legally in the US you are supposed to have a room and time to pump, but there is no room. I work in a school where there people have to share offices because we are so tight on space. I have a large office that I share with 5 people. We are all on different schedules and bring children into the room. I take the bus to work, so no pumping while commuting haha. I think I may use my coworkers cars at lunch and my break. I will probably only be able to pump two times. I hope that is enough. Lo's daycare is only a few blocks away from my job, so I can probably BF him at drop off and pick up. I also worry about the days that I have meetings in other buildings- it is not very often, but it still happens. Right now we are trying to figure out if lo has a soy allergy, so I cannot even stock build my frozen stock up until it is figured out. Going back to work is stressing me out. The anticipation is probably worse then when I actually get there.

 

[Noo]

It is encouraging to read how everyone manages. I have no idea where I will pump. I know legally in the US you are supposed to have a room and time to pump, but there is no room. I work in a school where there people have to share offices because we are so tight on space. I have a large office that I share with 5 people. We are all on different schedules and bring children into the room. I take the bus to work, so no pumping while commuting haha. I think I may use my coworkers cars at lunch and my break. I will probably only be able to pump two times. I hope that is enough. Lo's daycare is only a few blocks away from my job, so I can probably BF him at drop off and pick up. I also worry about the days that I have meetings in other buildings- it is not very often, but it still happens. Right now we are trying to figure out if lo has a soy allergy, so I cannot even stock build my frozen stock up until it is figured out. Going back to work is stressing me out. The anticipation is probably worse then when I actually get there.

I had to throw out over 120oz of non dairy-free milk. I cried!

 

[Jaymelynn]

It is encouraging to read how everyone manages. I have no idea where I will pump. I know legally in the US you are supposed to have a room and time to pump, but there is no room. I work in a school where there people have to share offices because we are so tight on space. I have a large office that I share with 5 people. We are all on different schedules and bring children into the room. I take the bus to work, so no pumping while commuting haha. I think I may use my coworkers cars at lunch and my break. I will probably only be able to pump two times. I hope that is enough. Lo's daycare is only a few blocks away from my job, so I can probably BF him at drop off and pick up. I also worry about the days that I have meetings in other buildings- it is not very often, but it still happens. Right now we are trying to figure out if lo has a soy allergy, so I cannot even stock build my frozen stock up until it is figured out. Going back to work is stressing me out. The anticipation is probably worse then when I actually get there.

I had to throw out over 120oz of non dairy-free milk. I cried!

Aww! I would have cried too!

 

[misspriss]

It is encouraging to read how everyone manages. I have no idea where I will pump. I know legally in the US you are supposed to have a room and time to pump, but there is no room. I work in a school where there people have to share offices because we are so tight on space. I have a large office that I share with 5 people. We are all on different schedules and bring children into the room. I take the bus to work, so no pumping while commuting haha. I think I may use my coworkers cars at lunch and my break. I will probably only be able to pump two times. I hope that is enough. Lo's daycare is only a few blocks away from my job, so I can probably BF him at drop off and pick up. I also worry about the days that I have meetings in other buildings- it is not very often, but it still happens. Right now we are trying to figure out if lo has a soy allergy, so I cannot even stock build my frozen stock up until it is figured out. Going back to work is stressing me out. The anticipation is probably worse then when I actually get there.

I know you think there is no room, but your employer is legally required to make room. You have a legal right to have a place to pump, don't give that up. Being comfortable and relaxed is important to effective pumping. Don't resign yourself to a foreign car. It is one thing to pump in your own car where you can control the cleanliness, its another to use someone else's.

 

[Kiss08]

I went back to work part time when DD was six weeks old. I pumped from the day she was born and built up a frozen supply early. Pumping after morning feeds worked best for me while on mat leave (plus when engorged and needed to pump).

Now, DD is 4.5 months old. I pump in the morning before work (7 am; wash parts in sink; either refrigerate or freeze milk) and on my lunch break. I use a hands free bustier and do paperwork while I pump. I use the microwave sanitizing bag to clean my parts afterwards and freeze everything I pump at work. I can get by with just one pump session at work (plus one at home) which is nice. I get home just after 5 pm and nurse when I get home. I have two sets of pump parts and leave one at home and one at work.

My DD loves nursing and tolerates the bottle (which, btw we introduced at 2 weeks, once a week, until I went back so that we knew she'd accept it). She tends to reverse cycle when I'm at work so she'll eat enough to get by during the day and has an all you can eat buffet at the boob after I get home. I don't mind though. I miss her, too!!

 

[luz]

i'm a full time teacher and i EBF. I went back to work at 8 weeks. Before i went back i'd pump once a day to start building up my supply. i just picked a feed (i chose the afternoon one) and after i fed her i'd pump on one side for 10 minutes. That way by the time i went back i had plenty of milk for her.

i pump once during the day at lunch. That's really the only time i have. once or twice i have pumped extra after school when i didn't get enough at lunch. I'm gone from 7 am -4:30 pm , and my LO is taking about 6 oz a day. It took a long time to find a bottle she would actually take, but now that we have one I'm sure she will start eating more.

Pumping once is enough, i usually actually am able to pump anywhere from 8-10 oz in 30 minutes. so it is do-able. good luck! I just lock my classroom and tell the kids they can't come in, so don't even try.

 

[curlygurl]

I went back to work part time when my son was 4 months old. I did not build up a supply before going, I nurse him before I go to work, I pump 2 times during the day, and nurse as soon as I get home. It was helpful that he started cereal around that time because that holds him a little better during the day. My son also was horrible at taking a bottle but the first day I was at work my mother in law (who watches him) said he "sucked down" his bottles. Pumping I find very challenging at work, I pump at my desk, and have been walked in on twice...lol. The meetings can make things tricky but I also bring my hand pump so I can do a quick pump without taking all the pump parts out, etc. I got a second set of pump parts so I just wash everything when I get home. As difficult as it is I know for me and my son it is the best thing, it is so nice to come home from work and nurse him- he snuggles right up and it is so sweet. Good luck!!!

 

[wristwatch24]

I pump twice at work, and nurse at home. It has been working out very well for these 6 months! I recommend a double pump...a good quality one like Medela, and a bra you can wear while pumping to keep everything in place hands-free. It only takes me about 10-15 minutes to pump.