Nursing your baby is one of those indescribable joys of Motherhood. Unfortunately, a lot of us mommies who want to continue to breastfeed after returning to work have to figure out how to continue to provide that awesome liquid gold!
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First off, returning to work after being at home with this precious little human that you created is HARD. Hard but totally doable. Not only are you trying to emotionally deal with being away from your baby for hours at a time, but you also have to adjust to pumping at work while trying to adapt to this new normal.
Please note that I am not a lactation consultant, nor a medical professional. Just a mommy with experience and a blog to share on 🙂
Things to master before returning to work
Before returning to work, I HIGHLY recommend getting familiar with your pump. I personally use a Specta S1 pump for a few reasons:
1.) It has a rechargeable battery which enables you to be more mobile.
2.) It is a closed system, which means that it is more hygienic and enhances your motor performance.
3.) It also has a massage mode that helps to stimulate your body’s letdown reflex.
Along with getting used to how to use your pump, you need to figure out how long it will take you to pump. Some women can be in and out in 15 minutes, others (like myself) need closer to 30 minutes or longer to fully express. I’m not saying you have to spend your entire maternity leave attached to a pump; just get familiar with it so that there are no surprises on your first day back at the office (or wherever your work base may be).
You are also going to want to build up a small freezer stash. Keyword = SMALL. Do not stress out because your freezer isn’t full to the brim with frozen breast milk. Most women notice a dip in their milk supply for the first week or so after returning to work; so having some frozen milk as a back up will make you feel so much better once you return to work. I nursed on one side and pumped on the other first thing in the morning and built up a nice little freezer stash without much effort.
As if you need ANOTHER task to master while you are on maternity leave, you are going to have to help your sweet baby get used to taking a bottle. Even better if that someone is not you. I would keep a bottle ready and have my husband feed Baby L one bottle each day when he got home from work. We started slowly introducing a bottle when Baby L was around one month old.
Here is a list of some items you will want to have:
1.) You need to have a double electric pump. It will cut your pumping time in half. Some mommies buy two pumps. One for home and one for the office to cut down on how much you have to lug around. I made do with just one 🙂 Again, I love the Spectra S1 and would highly recommend it.
2.) A hands free pumping bra to go with your fancy pump. I like the Simple Wishes bra because it works with any pump and it is adjustable.
4.) A spare set of parts just in case something breaks. Or you forget…
5.) Extra collection bottles and back up collection bottles. You DO NOT want to be scrambling to try to find something to store your milk in, or GASP, have to dump it! These Medela containers are my favorite for measuring and backup ice packs!
6.) Nursing pads.
7.) A small towel or burp cloth for spills and leaks.
8.) A nursing cover if you don’t have a door with a lock on it.
9.) Milk storage bags for freezing any extra milk. I prefer the Lansinoh storage bags because I’ve never had issues with leaking and I like that they have a double zipper seal for added protection.
10.) Labels for bottles if your baby will be at daycare. I would write Baby L’s name in sharpie directly on the bottle and use Post-it flags like these to label the date and amount that was in each bottle.
11.) Keep some photos or video of your baby on your phone (like I really need to suggest that!) to stimulate letdown while pumping.
12.) A stylish bag to keep all your gear in.
13.) Optional: Nursing clothing. I never bought any nursing/pumping specific clothing. If I could lift it up or unbutton it, then I deeming it pumping appropriate!
So now that we have your gear, here are some tips to help you after you have clocked in:
1.) Nurse your baby in the morning before you leave for work so your breasts will be empty and produce milk faster. Also, nurse your baby as soon as you get home from work. These habits will help regulate your supply. Remember that your baby drains your breasts better than a pump can, so anytime you can have him latch, DO IT!
2.) In between pumping sessions, rinse and place your pump flanges and collection bottles in a ziplock bag in the fridge. This keeps them “fresh” and saves time. I put mine in the dishwasher at the end of the day because the steam helps to sanitize them and, you guessed it, saves time!
3.) If you ever need to squeeze in an extra pumping session or had to skip one during the day, you can pump in your car if your commute is long enough. I can tell you from experience that I would only recommend this as a last resort. It is a big hassle and more uncomfortable than you would think.
4.) Maintain a regular pumping schedule. Pumping every 3-4 hours will keep your supply consistent. It is best to coordinate with the times that your baby feeds or at least the number of feeds he will have while you are away. Currently Baby L drinks three bottles while he is at daycare, so I pump at work three times. Please remember that skipping a pumping session occasionally is NOT going to plummet your supply, but if it happens regularly, you will absolutely see a dip.
5.) Avoid stress. HAHA, I know, I know. But seriously, you would be amazed at the effect that stress has on your supply. Of course everyone has stress, that’s life, but if you are dealing with high stress, high anxiety all the time, you will notice a dip in your supply compared to non stressful times.
6.) Drink plenty of fluids and eat right. You should be doing this anyway…but lots of water, fruits and vegetables will help to keep your supply up.
7.) Try to focus on something else while pumping. Sure, there is a vacuum sitting on my nipples, let me just not pay attention to it! It takes some getting used to, but if you keep paying attention to the drip, drip for your entire session, you will notice: #1 that the time will go by much slower and #2 you may not have a good output. Play on your phone, work if you are able, or read a book. Just ignore the strange contraption whirring next to you and before you know it, you will look down and see that your bottles have filled up!
Here’s my typical pump/work day:
6 am to 6:30 am: Nurse Baby L
8:30 am to 9:00 am: Pump
12:00 pm: Pump
3:30 pm to 4:00 pm: Pump
6:00 pm: Nurse Baby L
7:00 pm: Nurse Baby L one last time before he goes to bed for the night
A great book that talks all about pumping and working is Work. Pump. Repeat. by Jessica Shortall. I read this right when I started back at work and it’s a great resource!
Pumping at work is a HUGE commitment and I applaud you for all of your efforts, however long you decide to pump for. I sincerely hope that this post took some of the guesswork out of pumping at work and will help you on this next phase of your nursing/pumping journey!
What helped you in those first few weeks of returning to work and pumping? I would love to hear from you!
