Any pumping teachers out there?

[sssheri]

I go back to work next week after having my first child. I am sooooo nervous about it. I am a special ed teacher and teach some really challenging students. I really hope I have the energy to do it all. What I am most nervous about it pumping at work. My school is very small and the only private place I can pump in it the principal's office, but she hasn't gotten back to me about getting a set of keys and I am not sure the door locks from the inside. Would it be terrible to pump in a bathroom stall? It would have to be the girls locker room, because the teachers bathroom has only 1 toilet and I don't want to hog it. I also have a terrible schedule with a really late lunch and preps in the mornings, I don' t think I will be able to pump as often as I need to (hopefully at least 2 times a day every 3-4 hours) and there is no one to cover my class. 

Fellow pumping teachers, how do you make it work? Any tips?

[camprunner]

I did it in a closet in my classroom that had an outlet and locked. I had a good schedule of planning first period (pumped near the end) and a duty free lunch (almost unheard of ) and in that time that they make you stay after the kids left.  It worked out pretty good.  I eventually convinced them to let me go feed my daughter instead of the last pumping session. 

It sounds like your situation is a bit more difficult though. Do you have times when you plan to pump? Will your assistant be watching the class during these times?

[staceychev]

I'm a high school teacher with 2 prep periods (my lunch isn't long enough to pump), and an office that only 2 other colleagues have access to. I'm pretty laid back--I've actually done planning while pumping with my male colleague in there (his back was turned). He laughed because his wife pumped for 18 months and he remembers the sound very well! 

DD was five months when I went back. At first I was pumping during both preps, and then during just the later one. Now that she's almost 9 months and eating a lot of other food (she's a foodie like the rest of her family) and I only send one bottle of breast milk every day, I can actually get away with pumping whenever I can fit it in during the day, usually when watching a TV show at night after the kids go to bed. 

[ekh]

With my first, I pumped in a bathroom. (An adult bathroom, but still gross.) I didn't have planning during the day every day, so I had someone (grudgingly) cover my class for 30 minutes every other day during a study hall kind of thing. My students (all boys) were really freaked out that I was leaving, and questioned me constantly until I finally told them why I was going. Even though I was good about pumping, my milk dwindled until I stopped pumping after 3 months.

With my 2nd, the next year, I insisted upon having a better place to pump and planning at the same time every day. (This was a trade off for agreeing to continue to be department chair.) Unfortunately, my Mirena IUD made my milk dry up almost immediately after placement, so I wasn't able to find out if the better environment would have helped me to continue pumping longer.

It's very hard to pump and teach, I think. There are always a million things that need to be done and it's hard to find time, and peace. Good luck! I hope it works out better for you than it did for me!

[petey44]

I think I had the best experience of everyone who has posted so far!!!  Every classroom in my school locked, and because it was in a sketchy neighborhood, teachers were required to lock their doors even if they were just going to drop their kids off at lunch or something.  The timing wasn't ideal, I think I pumped at around 10 and 12:30, so it was a little too long to wait for the first pump, and then not quite enough time before the second.  But I just asked around for help from those teachers/staff who had rooms that didn't overlook the parking lot or playground.  Everyone helped out- teachers, school police, administrators, etc.  I had an awesome friend (intervention teacher, so flexible schedule) at that school who had pumped the year before, and when something would come up with my schedule that would have prevented me from getting away at my scheduled time, she would come, unasked, and cover my class!  I pumped from when DD was 3 months-9 months (summer break) and then only a few times after the summer (she turned 1 and I stopped sending bottles to daycare, although she is still nursing now at over 2 years).

My recommendation?  Be upfront and ask for help from anyone with a locking door!  Good luck! 

[ar2974]

I am also a special education teacher and had a totally wacky schedule when I went back to work after having my first baby (I'm currently home with my second).  My schedule varied day to day so what I did on those days was get a manual hand pump and whenever I could squeeze in a few minutes break.  I also got a trifold board (the ones that students use for presentations) and put it up around my desk so that if someone barged into my room while I was pumping, I'd still have a little privacy.

[sssheri]

That trifold idea is great! So far it looks like I will be able to get in 2 pumps a day. 1 at 8am and one at my lunch at 12:15. Today I am practicing my work schedule with dh giving her bottles and me pumping at those times. It seems to be going ok, but we can't figure out how to know if she has eaten enough from the bottle. My principal said I can use her office, and I think if I use a trifold then I can pump when the students are at work in my classroom. Wow, I can't wait till summer vacation!

[Super~Single~Mama]

Originally Posted by sssheri 

That trifold idea is great! So far it looks like I will be able to get in 2 pumps a day. 1 at 8am and one at my lunch at 12:15. Today I am practicing my work schedule with dh giving her bottles and me pumping at those times. It seems to be going ok, but we can't figure out how to know if she has eaten enough from the bottle. My principal said I can use her office, and I think if I use a trifold then I can pump when the students are at work in my classroom. Wow, I can't wait till summer vacation!

I would really not do that.  I think its a great idea for just in case someone barges in on you, but while your students are in the class room you should not be pumping.  It seems unprofessional at best, and parents could REALLY freak out about that kind of thing if a child saw you.

[sssheri]

No no no! I meant to say I will use the trifold when the students are AT LUNCH, in the cafeteria, while I am in the classroom with the door locked! lol

There is no way I could do that with students in the room, I have a hard enough time pumping in front of my husband!

[lunarlady]

Another pumping teacher here. It is really hard, so prepare yourself. With my first, I pumped in a supply closet. It eas barely big enough for the chair, and didn't lock, but the door swung inward so I just sat right against the door so people couldn't barge in. No outlet either, so I had to use a battery pack. It sort of sucked, but it was that or the nurses office behind a curtain while people tromped around and there was no way I felt comfy there! So I pumped in the car on the way to work (6am)' once at my morning plan (10 am) and once on the way home in the car (4 pm). Not ideal, and I would leak all afternoon, but it worked.

With this baby things are a little better. I now have access to a seldom used mobile classroom to pump in, so I pump during lunch (11 am) and my afternoon plan (12:30 pm). Second session always sucks, and I leak all morning, but at least I'm not in a closet!

Good luck. If the principal's office stresses you out, ask about a storage closet, conference room, coach or janitor office, book storage room, or unused classroom. I'd be amazed if the door doesn't lock..what about lockdowns? My guess is you have to use the key to lock it, then shut the door behind you as you go in. All doors in my school are like that.

[Super~Single~Mama]

Originally Posted by sssheri 

No no no! I meant to say I will use the trifold when the students are AT LUNCH, in the cafeteria, while I am in the classroom with the door locked! lol

There is no way I could do that with students in the room, I have a hard enough time pumping in front of my husband!

LOL!  Ok, I'm glad there was a miscommunication there!  I'm not modest though, and my friends and I at school (we're law students, so not the same schedule as you), and we would pump together sometimes!  We had a great pumping room, and it has a keypad on it so we would share the room and chat about our babies while we pumped!

[mamatowill]

I pumped also. My preps were right after lunch so I would pump before school, during my prep, and at the end of the day. I pumped in the bathroom at first and with my second DS I pumped in my classroom. It worked but I would suggest that you warn collegues though since I had one let a student in to grab something while I was pumping.

[theodocia3]

I'm currently a pumping HS teacher.  I pump 2-3 times a day. We have a block schedule, so the schedule depends on the day.  So, I usually pump during Nutrition (no bathroom break) or during my conference period (9:30), during lunch (11:30), and after school 2:45.  I always stay in my classroom, which is locked from the outside.  I have been walked in on when the campus security has come in to drop things off, but not since I let the principal know to not have them do that.  It definitely takes up time.  I feel like I don't have any breaks as I'm always teaching or pumping.  When am I supposed to get any grading/planning/etc done!?! Aargh.  But, with baby almost 9 months, the end is in sight!

[spedteacher30]

I work for the teacher's union. I urge you to call on your union if you are in a public school--I see you are in NY, and NYSUT should be helpful.

We are all aware of the issue, but until enough members demand better working conditions surrounding pumping, we can't do much to change things.

The new health care reform package requires that all workplaces provide a private, lockable place to pump that is NOT a bathroom. Employees covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act (NOT teachers, unfortunately) are guaranteed a break in which to pump.

When I was looking for guidance from the national office, I was very disappointed that collective bargaining agreements seem to ignore this issue. Our database of agreements didn't include any model pumping language when I last looked in 2008.

[vegrunr]

I am a sped teacher and pump at work. I pump in a staff single bathroom.  I nurse before I leave around 6 or 6:30 and pump between 9:30 and 10:30 and again around 2p. I am lucky that i work in a school for kids with high needs so they all have one on ones and i just have to coordinate pumping with meetings, literacy group, etc.  The am pump takes a bit longer and i get a lot more milk than the 2nd time.

[sssheri]

Today was the first day I went back to work. The pumping worked and I produced more milk than she drank. I pumped on the other breast went I fed her in the morning before work. I pumped at 8, but was so empty I only got 2 ounces, and then on my lunch at 12. I didn't leak at all! I was able to pump in the principal's office (she is never there) and it was comfortable. Tomorrow I am going to try to cut out the 8am pump and see if I can get away with only doing it once  a day. 

[JudiAU]

sssheri, I would suggest continuing the 8 am pump until your body gets used to the new schedule. What you can pump now is not what you will pump in 2 months. You may really need those extra 2 ounces down the line and if you stop pumping now you won't get them back. Pumping isn't just about having milk for your baby, you need to send the right signals to your body. Your supply will probably drop when you get into a new routine. You really needs to be pump every 3 hours if you can.

[sssheri]

I see what you mean about pumping every 3 hours, but after working a few days, it just isn't feasible to pump 2xs at work. I am pumping and bfing before I leave for work and producing 2xs what she is consuming. She usually eats on only 1 breast, so I am used to going 6 hours between nursing for each breast. We have been cluster feeding in the evenings, so we are still getting in our 8-10 feedings a day. 
 

Originally Posted by JudiAU 

sssheri, I would suggest continuing the 8 am pump until your body gets used to the new schedule. What you can pump now is not what you will pump in 2 months. You may really need those extra 2 ounces down the line and if you stop pumping now you won't get them back. Pumping isn't just about having milk for your baby, you need to send the right signals to your body. Your supply will probably drop when you get into a new routine. You really needs to be pump every 3 hours if you can.