Every new nursing mom has to pump at some point. Whether it is because your baby has a bad latch or you want to be away for more than a few hours, you need to plan ahead and express your milk. I began to pump very early on (at the hospital) because little miss was not a nursing pro and the nurses wanted to make sure my milk came in. I was successful, and Jessa eventually became much more skilled at eating. I still pumped a few times a day, and I began to build up quite the stash of frozen milk.
Fast forward to about 2.5 months into being a mommy. The time had come to head back to work. At this point I knew that I wouldn’t have a problem using my pump, and I also knew that Jessa would easily take bottles at daycare/with the babysitter. So, it would be a pretty easy transition, right? Not necessarily…
One must first realize how much you need to remember to take with you when you leave for work in the morning! I always have my lunch, purse, pump, Jessa’s daycare bottles, and Jessa. A couple of mornings each week I also have a giant bag of materials that I use to treat kiddos at their homes/daycares. In addition, inside the pump bag I have to make sure that I not only have all the pump parts but also the ice pack for the cooler and pump wipes since I can’t easily wash the parts with soap and water. Getting out of the house is a chore in itself. (Remembering to get everything back home is also difficult, and I have unfortunately left my pump at work! Ugh…)
Once I am at work, I have to make sure that I have time to pump. I work as a speech-language pathologist at an outpatient clinic, and my schedule can vary at times. I generally try to squeeze paperwork in between clients, but this has to be put on the backburner when I have to pump (or I do daily notes in the bathroom while I pump, which I do often). All this while dealing with frequent knocks on the door when someone needs to use the restroom, or finding out the hard way that the lock on the bathroom doesn’t always work. I definitely try to hurry, but we all know that you can’t really rush too much!
I plan to continue to breast feed until Jessa is one, although I definitely have learned to take it just a day at a time. I’m very lucky that I have been successful in breastfeeding, but I would be lying if I said I didn’t look forward to the day when I can use my “free” time at work to do paperwork in place of rushing off to the bathroom. It is also exciting to think about having one less (large) item to lug with me to work each day. Making my schedule would be SO much easier if I didn’t have to factor in time to pump. Oh, the things we do for our kids!
Feel free to vent a bit about the “joys” of pumping at work! What time savers have you found, if any? Was it an easy transition for you, or do/did you find it harder to pump at work than you thought? Share your thoughts and experiences!
Oh how I can relate. This is really something I hadn’t thought of prior to commiting to breastfeeding my boys. I went back to work at 6 weeks with both and had to come up with a way to pump effectively. I had my first in July and so I bought a converter for my lighter outlet in my vehicle and would make a little fort with my sunshade in the front window and blankets in the side window with the vehicle running for air conditioning. With my second I had him in December so I brought a lawn chair to set up in the bathroom that does not have an outlet so I had to run an extension cord under the door and across the break table to plug in. Needless to say my intial plan to breastfeed for a year ended at 6 months and 9 months instead. It really disappointed me but i really feel like the lack of a good place to pump was the number one contributor. Best of luck on your journey!
Oh how I can relate! I work as a NICU nurse in a hospital and we had one pump room for our patient moms when I had my first child. Awkward business pumping away in the semi-dark with a strange woman, only to come out and find that same woman standing at the bedside next to yours 20 minutes later and looking surprised that I’m in charge, lol. Sometimes we’d get sick patients in that require a LOT of intensive care right away and I’d have to get colleagues to cover my kids while I pumped for 10 minutes (not having gone in the last 6 hours) just to relieve the pressure. I definitely don’t miss those days!!
I pumped for a year and breastfed for 14 months. Pumping sucked! It was such a chore but I pushed through. Thank goodness about halfway through my pumping adventure of a year, I was able to work from home so it was a lot easier to relax and work while I pumped. When I was in the office, they had a nice pumping room for me but it still took me away from my work. Although it did give me time to slow down and relax.
Tips I would offer? I loved my Medela Freestyle. It didn’t require any plugging in. And I also made a makeshift handsfree bra so I could read or do something while I was pumping to pass the time. It is also very nice to get a stockpile going so you don’t get to stressed out about producing enough.
Good luck Mama! You can do it!
I, too, am a SLP – pumping RIGHT NOW actually 🙂 I can relate for sure. I am 6 months into nursing my 3rd daughter and I’ve nursed/pumped while working full time for a year with each baby. SO MUCH FUN 🙂 Or not, as it’s a logistical nightmare, I could very much use the “extra time” for IEPs, EERs, and paperwork in general, but it’s hard for me to get much of any milk if I work and pump. I do pump hands free in a locked room (thank goodness), but it’s always a battle of “did I get enough to eat/drink today?” “is the janitor going to miss my sign and unlock my door?” “did I remember the little tiny white things for the end of the pump that are NOT optional??” I feel your pain. I blogged about some nursing/pumping tips and tricks earlier this year before my return to work. Here’s the link to the Quad City Moms Blog for some more tips: http://www.quadcitymomsblog2.wpengine.com/2013/01/04/nursingpumping-tips-tricks/
Keep up the good work – way to balance it all!
I call myself the bag lady because i have so many bags to take to and from work!!
I work 12 hour shifts at the hospital too and sometimes when my patients were too sick to get away from, I wouldn’t get to pump and feeding my girl when I got home was like a 4th of July fireworks show. Milk everywhere. I’m still breastfeeding but I stopped pumping when she turned 1 (a month ago) and it has been the best month of my life!
I don’t mind breastfeeding, but pumping is the worst! Too bad you can’t have one without the other, if you’re a working mom…
After one of my babies, I was so lucky to have a private office and could pump there whenever I needed. But after my first- I used our office lacation room, located on the top of the building with a barely covered window- and once there were maintenance workers right outside while I was attempting to pump. We were all quite surprised to see each other!
I dread pumping every Monday, and by Friday I have force myself to that pumping room. I am pushing through for a year hopefully. I would be lying if I said I didn’t get excited at the thought of shoving that thing in the closet!
Great article, I pumped at work for a year with my first and am getting ready to head back to work after having my son. Some things to consider – there are federal and state protections to support breastfeeding and pumping at work that some of you may benefit from. If an employer has more than 50’employees they are required to provide you a place to pump that is NOT a bathroom. Your state may have even more protections. Also, under Obama’s new health plan, you may be reimbursed for your breast pump, check with your health care provider for details. Best of luck!