Breastpumping Tips For Working Moms

Going back to work after having a baby can be challenging! You may be feeling a lot of emotions, including worrying about how your baby will do without you by their side. This article offers tips for breastfeeding mothers who will be returning to work and expressing milk for their babies to have with their caregivers.

The first thing you should do in preparation for returning to work is to talk with your supervisor or human resources department. Tell them that you are breastfeeding and that you are planning to pump at work. If you don’t have your own office, ask them if they can provide a room for you to pump. Ideally this room should contain an internet connection and telephone so that you can work and be productive while pumping (your boss will really like it if you lead with this request!), a refrigerator to store your breastmilk and pump parts in and a lock on the door for privacy. Don’t worry if your job can’t accommodate all of these requests – you can always pump in your cubicle while wearing a nursing cover – no one will ever guess what you are doing!

Now that the job is squared away, you’ll want to start building up your frozen supply of milk so that your baby has plenty to drink while you are away. Below are some tips to help you build up your milk supply and your frozen stock of breast milk before you go back to work:

• · Get a GOOD PUMP. Make sure that you have a good quality double-electric breast pump. You are going to be pumping every day, so you want to make sure your pump can keep up with you!
• · Add in an extra pumping. You have the most milk in the morning, so if you can pump then, you will probably get the most output, but anytime is fine. The important thing is to try to be consistent. You won’t get very much milk the first few times you pump, because the pump isn’t as efficient as your baby and because your body isn’t used to having this extra feeding time. Do it consistently and your body will adjust.
• · Try pumping on one side while your baby nurses on the other. Having your baby nursing on one breast will actually stimulate the other breast to make more milk.

• · Make sure that you have the correct size breast flange. Greater than 70% of women need a different size flange than the ones that come with most breast pumps. Having the correct size flange will increase your milk output, as your breast will be getting the proper stimulation for milk expression.

Once you have started pumping and building up your milk supply, you will need to make sure you store the milk properly so that it can be used down the road when your baby is ready for it. For a complete list of tips on storing your milk, please visit http://www.pumpingtips.com.

Once you are back at work, the following tips will help you to make the most out of your pump and your pumping time.

• · Get a hands-free pumping device. This will allow you to type e-mail or do other things while pumping and you won’t feel like you are “wasting work time” while you are pumping.
• · Bring in a photo of your child and maybe even one of their outfits or a recording of their voice. These will help your milk to let-down and will give you more milk per pumping session.
• · Pump both breasts at the same time; they help each other to let-down.

• · Make sure you pump for a FULL 15 minutes, even if you have stopped getting anything. The added stimulation will be good for your milk production and it may even stimulate another let-down. One thing that always helped me was to pump for ten minutes, then turn the pump off for 2-3 minutes and pump again for another 5-10 minutes. For me, this ALWAYS gave me a second let-down.
• · Buy extra breast flanges so that you don’t have to wash them after each pumping. You can also put the bottles and the flanges in the refrigerator, so you don’t have to wash them between each pumping and can just continue to pump with the same bottle and base each time. I recommend several breast flanges because you don’t want to put the cold flange from the refrigerator against your breast.
• · Drink a LOT of water. I kept a case in my office at all times. My husband and I would refresh it every weekend.
• · Nurse your baby at home before you leave for work (even if you have to wake them up!) and as soon as you return home in the evening. This will be a great way for you to bond with your baby after a long day at work and it will also insure that your milk supply stays strong.

When you first go back to work, don’t worry if your baby drinks a lot more than you pump. You will both be going through a stressful time. The milk may remind your baby of you and so they may drink more than usual. It is also easier to get milk from a bottle than from a breast, so the baby may just gulp down more because it comes out so easily. You are also going to be a little stressed with the new job and being away from your child; stress tends to decrease milk supply. THIS IS NORMAL! As you both settle into your new routines, this supply and demand will even itself out. It is a good thing to know that this might happen so that your lower-than-expected output or your baby’s higher-than-expected consumption doesn’t add to your stress level. When I first went back to work my baby drank 17 ounces and I pumped 10 for the same time period! But over time, I ended up with a whole lot of left over milk in the freezer, so it all worked out well.

Pumping and working can be stressful, so try to find some things that help you relax: play some music; kick off your shoes; use your hands-free device so that you feel “productive” while pumping; close your eyes and think about your baby’s smiling face. And don’t forget to take pride in what you are doing: you are taking good care of your baby! Both you and your baby will benefit from your efforts to pump at work!

Dr. Masucci is a mom to one beautiful boy and a business owner. She lives in Pennsylvania just north of Pittsburgh where she operates a maternity and breastfeeding boutique (A Mother’s Boutique) and writes about parenting and breastfeeding on her blog Mommy News and Views.