Pumping and working...oh my...Questions Answered Sticky

[Breeder]

Hey ladies, I am preggers (4mos woo!) and I did not have to work when DS was an itty bitty. Unfortunately that just isn't going to be the case with the new LO, so I will be working and pumping. I am going to have to return to work after 6 wks of leave (it's all we can afford to do, I wish it weren't). Anyway, I've never had to pump, so of course I have questions.

I will be getting a Medela PIS (secondhand from a friend, I will of course replace the tubes and what not).

Q's

1) What are the best bottles to get to avoid nipple confusion?

2) Is it possible to get a good freezer stash going before returning to work (since it's so early) when should I start pumping?

3) How much milk can I expect to pump in a day at work (I will be pumping at least three times during my shift, possibly four)?

4) How much milk does an infant of 6wks need to sustain them for an entire day?

Ack! I'm sure I have more questions, but that's enough for now! Any suggestions for helping to insure my success would be wildly appreciated.

[crwilson]

I can't answer the second two questions, but we liked the Breastflow bottles better than other bottles (not that dd has been wild about any of them), and there weren't and aren't any problems with nipple confusion.

I built up a huge freezer stash in the first 6 weeks, so I definitely think it's possible and probably the best time to do so.

I'm not sure how much you can expect to be able to pump at work though because my schedule is such that I'm not at work all day and can nurse during the day.

[m0dernist]

Here's a shot at what I know based on lessons learned:

1) we used Avent bottles - there really didn't seem to be any issues with nipple confusion, but then again she completely reverse cycled and refuses bm from anything but the source.

2) I think that you should be able to get a good freezer stash going. I believe that I started to pump at 4 weeks (back to work at 8wks) based on something I heard about pumping earlier can cause problems. FWIW - I have heard of many moms who have pumped earlier and had no problems. I had slight oversupply and overactive letdown. Kellymom is a great source to peruse, I will put some links below.

3&4) I wouldn't worry about amount, though this is easier said than done because I worried ALOT. What I would tell you is this: Since you are building a freezer stash be sure that it is just that, your stash. What you pump at work should be the next days milk for baby. As fresh as possible. I did not get that advise and wish I would have. Send more than what you think she will need at first, and talk with your care provider. They should be able to give you a fair idea of how much she is eating and if her needs are increasing.

Your pumping schedule - Assuming that you are on an 8hr day w/ lunch I would aim for the 4 breaks if possible to start. It takes a while physically and emotionally to adjust. Always give yourself all the time that you need. It is very easy to feel rushed and as far as I'm concerned there is no way to put a time on pumping. Somedays just take olnger than others depending on how hydrated you are or how stressed out you are.

The only other thing I would add in regards to keeping supply up. You will be the better judge of what works best for you, but try to work in an extra session at home. At night before I went to bed did not work for me because I always fell asleep with her. In the morning when you get up is also a preferred time because your supply is naturally highest in the morning.

All that said, good luck! Below are a couple of links that I think will help and be sure to ask questions or vent along the way.

http://www.kellymom.com/newman/27expressing_milk.html
http://www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/b...s-pumping.html

oh yeah and one last thought - never use the amount you are pumping as a gauge for your supply. Your baby is much more efficient than the machine!

[Ellien C]

The thing I wish I had understood was the concept of reverse cycling. Sometimes the baby will nurse a LOT at night to make up for any deficit during the day. So when the SAHM's baby's were all sleeping through the night and night-weaned, and mine was showing NO signs of that, it was really stressful.

So, don't worry too much about the amount you pump. My best advice is to NOT look at how much flows into those little bottles. It can make you crazy, like stepping onto the scale each day. Just trust that over 24 hours, you baby will get enough to eat. If you are a little short during the day, know that your body and your baby are in perfect balance and you will get more at night.

It also helps to have a provider that understands sometimes babies need extra snuggles, so they may finish the bottle, but still need to suck in general and be held and cuddled, it doesn't necessarily mean that they are still hungry. Bottles, even infant nipples, go down much quicker than BM.

You'll be OK. My pumping experience was fine. I generally made enough milk, had no problems pumping 3x a day at work - just put it on my schedule. I did some light reading and had a nice little break several times a day.

A lot of people who haven't pumped make it out to be all this WORK. It does take some scheduling and planning, it can be a pain, but it's not like actual work, say dealing with a crying baby, getting up at night to warm up a bottle, moving furniture. Once you get a rhythm, it's kind of a nice little break during the day.

[acp]

Congratulations on your pregnancy! And you can definitely do this.

We used Dr Brown's bottles at first, which seemed to work really well, but I switched a couple months later to the Born Free ones because I'd read so much about the Bisphenol-A in most other bottles. She likes the Born Free ones great (though honestly, she's never been a picky baby about anything that has to do with eating), and I'm sure they would have worked well from the beginning.

I would try and start getting a freezer stash going as soon as you can - in some ways it'll be even easier if you pump from the beginning, since you'll have so much milk at first as your body tries to figure out how much you need. When I was trying to get a stash built up, i found that it worked well to pump about an hour after DD had last nursed - if i did it right after she nursed there wasn't as much there and I got frustrated, and much more than an hour, and I started to get worried that I'd pump so much that there wouldn't be enough for DD when she nursed (though honestly, I don't think I needed to worry about this - babies are much more efficient than the pump).
You typically have your most milk in the morning, so this can be a really good time to get in the stash-building pumping sessions.

Also, don't be frustrated if you don't get as much as you want when you first start to pump. I found that pumping, like everything else, has a bit of an art to it that took getting used to. I now get MUCH more than I did when I was first pumping, in part because I didn't really understand then about how the let-down thing works. Depending on your PIS, there are either controls for speed/power or it has an automatic 2-minute warm up when it's trying to stimulate you to let down before it switches to the slower, more efficient speed. If it's the latter, it's helpful to let it go the whole two minutes, and even to turn it off and keep it on that speed if let down hasn't happened by the end of it.
If the former, then you want to use high power, high speed for a couple minutes to stimulate letdown, and then switch to low speed for the real pumping part. It should be coming out relatively fast by the time you've let down (some women can feel it, some can't), not coming in slow drops.

I can't answer the amounts questions as well, since I didn't go back to work until DD was 4 1/2 months old, and I have no clue how much milk she was drinking at 6 weeks old. I do know that if we gave her the occasional bottle around then she'd drink 3-4 oz, but I think that was unusually high for the age (she's always been a big drinker, and not much of a snacker).

Your body should adjust, though, so that you're always producing (and pumping) as much milk as your LO needs. Some people need an extra pumping session at home, some don't - you'll know since you'll be seeing if you're replacing all the milk your baby is eating during the day.

[Dov'sMom]

Originally Posted by Ellien C

A lot of people who haven't pumped make it out to be all this WORK. It does take some scheduling and planning, it can be a pain, but it's not like actual work, say dealing with a crying baby, getting up at night to warm up a bottle, moving furniture. Once you get a rhythm, it's kind of a nice little break during the day.

I pumped for DS until my supply dropped because of pregnancy and he turned mostly to formula. (Still nurses at night and in the morning, but most of his nutrition is from formula.)

My experience must have been different than yours, but I found pumping to be MUCH harder work than getting up and preparing bottles. And I had a pumping room at work with a table, outlets, and a sink, which is more than many work places provide. So be realistic about your expectations: you might find it easy, but you might not. I did not. Of course, I intend to pump for the new baby when the time comes, and I relish the idea of being able to drop formula from DS1's diet (he's 13 months and still takes a lot) when my milk comes in, but I wouldn't say it's just "a nice little break."

[Caneel]

We tried Advent and ds did not do well at all. My aunt brought over the old fashion-ish playtex (not the nursers) and he did just fine with those. You may have to try more than one (I bought way too many Advent bottles and nipples that I gave away) so resist the urge to buy too much in the beginning.

I went back to work at 12 weeks and pumped 3x during an 8 hour day.

Around week 6, I started adding a pumping session between morning feedings. Little by little, my supply increased and I was able to stash some away. Around 10 weeks, I added a first-thing-in-the-morning session and was able to build up a decent enough stash that took some of my own mental pressure off.

[Ellien C]

Originally Posted by Dov'sMom

My experience must have been different than yours, but I found pumping to be MUCH harder work than getting up and preparing bottles. And I had a pumping room at work with a table, outlets, and a sink, which is more than many work places provide. So be realistic about your expectations: you might find it easy, but you might not. I did not.

sorry, I didn't mean to dis your experience. I just remember being terrified of the whole pumping thing from reading online. And I had one IRL friend who was like - oh, I pumped, it was no big deal. You just go in the little room, kick your feet up, read a magazine and 20 minutes later your done. It helped my mental state to have one woman telling me it was fine. Kind of like birthing without an epidural.

But of course, everyone has a different experience with things.

[Breeder]

I feel really lucky that I have this forum as a reference. It's so nice to hear from others who have went through it already.

I'm not really scared of it being too hard, nor do I think it will be really easy. I am simply going to try my very best to do what I feel is right.

I am going to be the only woman who has pumped at work so far (new company, only 6 years old but still) and I am going to speak to HR about a room in which to do the pumping on Friday (I'm off in the middle of the week).

How long can BM last in the freezer?

[Caneel]

Another thing that may make things a bit easier is to get multiple sets of the parts that need to be washed. I used the Pump In Style. I would store the used flanges, membranes, etc. in a ziploc bag and give everything a good washing once I got home. I could have washed the stuff at work but chose not too.

I also was the only women who pumped (I was also the only women in the department) at work and I encountered two very different reactions.

The first was incredible support from the partners of other breastfeeding moms. They thought is was great.

The other reaction was visible discomfort (from my boss). He didn't like it one bit (he was a jerk) but it didn't occur to me a the time to care.

I was quiet about the whole process, which helped my comfort level (I was less nervous at first) a lot. I just went about my business and treated it no differently than using the restroom.

I can't remember how long breast milk is "good for" in the freezer but I do remember rotating my stock.

I found a Nursing Mothers Companion to be a good resource.

[Dame]

I'm glad to see this thread! I'll be going back to work when my daughter is around 8 weeks, although at about 6 weeks, all of us are going to a conference that I need to speak at and my husband will be taking care of her during the day.

[kltroy]

Originally Posted by Breeder

1) What are the best bottles to get to avoid nipple confusion?

2) Is it possible to get a good freezer stash going before returning to work (since it's so early) when should I start pumping?

3) How much milk can I expect to pump in a day at work (I will be pumping at least three times during my shift, possibly four)?

4) How much milk does an infant of 6wks need to sustain them for an entire day?

1. I used the Avent bottles. Never had a problem with nipple confusion. *shrug*. Never thought much about it, honestly. Just make sure you're not around when the baby is being bottle fed. Any kid worth his/her salt will know a bottle from the real goods anyway

2. Yes. Easiest way is to pump one breast while nursing your babe on the other. You can start doing this just once per day (you'll get the most in the morning). Think about it - if you get just 3 oz per day every day for 3 weeks, you'll have over 60 oz in the freezer and ready to go! I would start working on the stash after about 2-3 weeks postpartum. Let-down with the pump is the only real issue you'll run into, and having your baby nurse on one side avoids this problem. When you're at work here are some tips:
* bring a sweater - you'll get more milk when you're warm
* bring "baby porn" - a picture, a blanket, something to see/smell your baby
* relax and visualize the milk coming out of your breasts with each exhale

3. 3 pumps per day - it will vary depending on how much your baby is eating. I usually was able to get 8-12 oz per day, depending on how old my son was.

4. Start by assuming 1 oz/hour you're gone. I always nursed my son immediately before leaving him, so that took care of him for 2 hours or so, which helped. Put only 2 oz or so in each bottle - that way you won't end up wasting any. If your baby always finishes that much, start putting 3 oz in each bottle. I usually left my son with 3 bottles plus one frozen backup for a day - he ate about 12 oz/day when he was 6 months old and less earlier on. Honestly, at the end of each work week (I was working 4 days/week) I usually had about 6-7 oz surplus, which I stashed in the freezer. I never had any supply problems - lots of moms don't.

FYI, here's the shelf life of breastmilk:
8 hours for fresh at room temp
8 days for fresh in the refrigerator
1 hour for frozen/thawed at room temp
24 hours for frozen/thawed in the refrigerator
3 months in the freezer
6 months in the deep freezer

Another great place to ask and deal with pumping questions is the yahoo group "pumpmoms" - this helped me tremendously when I was working/bfing my son full time. He's now 19 months old and we still breastfeed when I'm at home

[Breeder]

Thanks, Kltroy, that's getting printed out and put in my purse!

[jbirdbrain]

Great thread! I'm currently immeshed in my first week back at work and so far pumping is going well. I began pumping when DS was 4 weeks old or so. I'd pump after he'd had his first feeding of the morning. At first I didn't get much but after a few days, I was getting about 4-6oz. every day I pumped. So now that I'm back at work (DS is 12 weeks), I'm not too stressed because I know I have a big old stash built up in the freezer.

As far as a schedule goes, I'm feeding him right before I leave in the morning, pumping mid-morning, nursing him over my lunch break, and then pumping again mid afternoon. Once I get home, its nothing but boob until I leave again the next morning. We are using the Avent bottles and he seems to like them fine. We started "practicing" about the same time I began pumping- around 4 weeks pp. We are giving him the fresh milk but its nice to know that I have all that frozen 'back-up' in case of emergency!

It was a challenge to find a place to pump at work that was not the restroom, but I just asked around and finally one department offered me their seldom used copy room...better than nothing! (I work for a university.) I did have to cast a wide net, though!

So anyway, congrats on your pregnancy and YOU CAN DO IT!!! I was super nervous about pumping and whatnot, but its working out fine. The greater problem for me has actually been lack of sleep, but that's a whole other thread!!

[p.s]

First of all, I love to give advice so please take what I say with a grain of salt....

the most important thing is to NOT stress. And then always repeat to yourself: It doesn't matter.
I'm gonna get banned for saying this one day, b/c of course it does matter humongously, which is why we pore over each others' comments trying to figure out what's best for our LO.

But in the big picture, it doesn't matter. You only pump 2 oz all day? It doesn't matter. Tomorrow is another day and your baby will have you at night.
Your babe has been reverse cycling for 2 months and you are dead beat tired 4 months post partum and cry in the middle of the night you are so exhausted? It's ok, it won't last forever and you are forming important bonds with your little one.
Your co-workers and colleagues resent your pumping, even though you produce (not just milk) but as many beans as they do? Doesn't matter. 50 years from now you won't even remember what they looked like. Meanwhile, your babe got all those good fats for brain development.

1) What are the best bottles to get to avoid nipple confusion? I heard Avent over and over, but my kid liked playtex, once he resolved himself to the fake nipples. And yes! they will hold out, even when they are miserably hungry. And as far as reverse cycling? I think when ds was around 20 mo he was reliably getting up 2x/night. First 9 mo? every 1-2 h. SO, since I was WOH FT, I was hanging onto my sanity by a very thin thread. Actually, I think the snippiness in my MDC posts from that time reflect this.

2) Is it possible to get a good freezer stash going before returning to work (since it's so early) when should I start pumping? Yes. I have very small breasts, so small that I estimate I had cleavage for about 7 days during pregnancy and post partum. Yet even I was able to pump a very large stash. Relaxation and willpower will help.

3) How much milk can I expect to pump in a day at work (I will be pumping at least three times during my shift, possibly four)? Depends on you. I was in the position to insist on every 2 h. In the beggining, I pumped more. By the end (I stopped at 20 mo), maybe 1 oz per session, but ds kept drinking, so I kept pumping.

4) How much milk does an infant of 6wks need to sustain them for an entire day? depends on your child

GL! Think positively! Think HAPPY. Relax. Drink lots of water. And you'll be fine. And don't forget to take your multivit.

[LeslieintheKeys]

working mom

I didn't start pumping until DS was 7 1/2 weeks. He had trouble "latching on" and so I didn't want to introduce anything to confuse him. We used Dr. Brown's bottles at first, but after more reading, I switched to Born Free. He had no trouble with either of the bottles.

I work one day per week in the office while DH watches our son. My co-workers in my department are very supportive, but my boss has no kids and I think is a bit freaked out about infants and breast feeding. I nurse my son in the morning before leaving, pump during mid-morning, pump in mid-afternoon, and then race home to nurse him for his late afternoon. At work, we have a couple of offices I try to use when they're not being used. However, one of those offices belongs to my boss so I try to use it only when I know he's out of the office for a long time. Using the bathroom is NOT a pleasant thought. Yuck.

DS gets 2-3 bottles of my breast milk while I'm gone. The milk I pump at work is what I put into bottles for the next day. I keep 4 bottles of milk in the refrigerator, but I think we could downsize to 3 bottles. Anything above that gets frozen. Three days in the refrigerator and ~4 hours at room temperature are our limits. DS is now 3 months old and I probably have ~40 ounces frozen in the freezer. Probably will do 3-4 months in the freezer, but we haven't reached that step yet.

From day 1, DS has been on a ~4 hour schedule for feeding. I usually get a total of 5-7 ounces when I pump (both breasts at once). I wait for 2 hours after he finishes nursing. I don't pump in the evenings when he has a slight tendency to nurse more frequently. Pumping the mornings is very productive (I once got 8 ounces). I keep his bottles to 4-5 ounces.

[mishka77]

I am so glad I found this thread. I have a nine week old, and will be returning to work in about a month. Fortunately, she will be staying at home with her papa, and I think I will be able to come home for a lunch time feeding. You've already answered most of the questions I had, but I was also wondering, can you freeze the milk that wasn't used for the day?

Also, I have a very negative "friend" from work who isn't so successful with breastfeeding. She has told me that since I don't have a big freezer stash (I just started freezing milk last week) that I will HAVE to supplement with formula, and that by pumping my milk will dry up soon anyway. Is that true? My babe is a really good eater, and seems to like to cluster feed a night anyway.

thanks!

[Caneel]

Originally Posted by mishka77

Also, I have a very negative "friend" from work who isn't so successful with breastfeeding. She has told me that since I don't have a big freezer stash (I just started freezing milk last week) that I will HAVE to supplement with formula, and that by pumping my milk will dry up soon anyway. Is that true? thanks!

ABSOLUTELY NOT TRUE! Don't stress, it will be fine.

Not to rant but the type of negatively you mentioned (IMO) is horrible - sounds like she is pushing her bad experience/feelings of failure on to you.

I went many, many months until introducing formula (can't remember - but I am sure it was past 10 months) and even than was only once a day. My supply definately dipped after my period returned.

[prairiesprite]

DD is now 9 mo and no formula yet! At first, she refused all bottles, so I went to feed her at lunch and she would feed 2-4 times at night.

Now, I am pumping twice a day, and am getting about 4 oz total per day now. Before, I was getting around 6-8 oz, but DD has really taken to "real" food (completely her idea - she started grabbing food off of my plate at 4 mo), so demand has gone down lately. With my first babe, I did not have any place to pump at work (AARGh! - trying to squeeze a pumping in at night after a full day at work was a real drag), so I pumped until DD was big enough to give him goats milk during the day (sometime between 9 and 12 mo).

Don't even think about formula - no reason to give your baby junk food while you are still completely in charge!

[TForce]

I think alot of your experience is determined by your supply. I went back to work when DS was 4 weeks. Granted, I was working across the street from our apartment, so often I was able to run home during lunch etc. to feed him. However, there were always a couple days a week when we'd be apart for the whole day. I had a huge supply, and during the first weeks at home I was more concerned with taming my supply than building a stash. But, once I started working, I started pumping for real. I always tried to pump at home though because there was only the bathroom at work (which I did use several times as opposed to bursting/leaking through my shirt).
We used the Avent bottles because I had the Isis pump. DS didn't really have a problem with nipple confusion. He was still nursing at his second birthday when I found out I was pregnant with DD1 (I stopped pumping at 11M when he was drinking a little cow's milk), but he never really has had eating issues. He loves to eat! With the next baby (DD1) due in April, I will be home longer (until 4M) but not able to run home as often, so I'll definately have to pump more at work. I'm also planning to try the Medela bottles and pump after reading more about plastics.
As far as how much a newborn eats, I found that the small (4oz, I think) were a blessing. DS would (I'm totally guessing here) probably drink about 2oz an hour, but he was nursing at night and anytime I was around .
So, for me pumping wasn't fun, but definately not a nightmere, and DS has never needed formula. However, I had a co-worker who really wanted to nurse her DS for one year but ended up having serious supply issues at around 6M -- everyone's different.
Good Luck!