Deciding when, or if, to return to work is one
of the most thoughtfully considered decisions many new mothers
make. But weaning doesn’t have to be part of the equation.
You can be confident the breastfeeding relationship you’ve
established with your baby can be continued successfully if
you’re back at work. In fact, many “working”
mothers have told us that breastfeeding helped them stay in
harmony with their babies despite the daily separations that
work outside the home entails. A great book on the subject,
written by a mother who knows, is Nursing Mother, Working
Mother: The Essential Guide for Breastfeeding and Staying
Close to Your Baby After You Return to Work, by Gale
Pryor.
Having already established a full milk supply
(the amount it takes to keep your baby contented and growing)
is central to making your transition work. You’ll also
want to have the right equipment and a good support network
in place ahead of time. A Woman’s Workshop
offers Return to Work classes and support groups, and we include
our favorite practical tips below:
FOUR
WEEKS BEFORE RETURNING TO WORK
Buy or rent a breastpump and learn how to use it.
Ask your doctor for a prescription for a breastpump. Insurance
companies will sometimes cover the cost of a prescribed pump,
and A Woman’s Work does not charge sales tax
on purchase or rental of pumps with a doctor’s prescription.
Start expressing milk one week before introducing
your baby’s first bottle, and four weeks before returning
to work. There are several reasons for starting so far ahead:
1) Pumping will increase your
milk supply to over and above what your baby needs. As you
return to work, you may find your supply high at the beginning
of the week and lower by the weekend (to be expected after
depending on the pump for several feedings.) On your days
off breastfeed your baby normally, don’t try to duplicate
your work schedule.
2) Four weeks of pumping will
give you a reserve “bank” of breastmilk in case
pumped milk gets spilled or left at work, or for some reason
you’re unable to breastfeed on schedule. The goal is
to store 2-4 ounces of milk daily for 4 weeks. Decide on two
feedings (most moms have surplus milk in the mornings) immediately
after which you’ll pump both breasts for 5-7 minutes
or until you have 2 ounces, whichever comes first. Pumping
time and the amount pumped should be adjusted to fit your
particular situation (for example, twins; oversupply; undersupply;
etc.)
Don’t be discouraged if you
only get a small amount at first. If you express milk consistently
every day, you’ll see your supply increase steadily.
If you miss a feeding pump each breast for a minimum of 15
minutes. If you don’t empty your breasts at each nursing
time, it will signal your body to decrease the milk supply.
Conversely, each day’s milk output serves as your body’s
“order” for the next day. More frequent pumping
will boost your milk production capacity.
3) If you express consistently,
your breasts will grow more responsive to the pump.
THREE WEEKS BEFORE RETURNING TO WORK
Introduce your baby to the bottle.
When your baby is three or four weeks old, begin offering
a bottle every 2-3 days. Your goal is to help her get comfortable
with this new way of eating, then return easily to the breast.
A good time to start is when she’s rested and calm;
avoid the bewitching hour that happens for many babies for
a few hours each evening.
Your baby may be more likely to accept
a bottle from someone other than you, especially at first.
If the first answer is “no” don’t lose heart.
Ask your helper to keep trying, very gently and patiently—but
without forcing the nipple into his mouth. Warming the bottle
nipple under running water before offering it may encourage
your little one to give it a try. Try to stop before you sense
your baby becoming frustrated.
What about nipple confusion? There’s
ongoing debate about whether it really exists. We’ve
observed that some babies have the coordination and easily
alternate between breast and bottle, while for others it’s
more difficult (one reason it’s helpful for baby to
learn the ins-and-outs of breastfeeding before adding a new
skill.) We’ve also noticed that babies can have preferences
about nipple style and texture, so a little experimentation
can also be helpful. There are lots of styles available; unfortunately
none are very much like your breast. Start with a long nipple
with a wide base, such Avent or Dr. Brown’s.
Tickle baby’s lip with the nipple, similar to the way
you approach with the breast. Encourage him to open his mouth
wide with his tongue forward, just as he latches on when nursing.
TWO WEEKS BEFORE RETURNING TO WORK
Decide on a place to express your milk.
In general you should plan on pumping once for every three
hours of separation, although this schedule will vary depending
on your baby’s age and other factors. You’ll spend
15 - 30 minutes each time you pump, so having a clean, private
place to do it is important. You’ll need a small table,
an electrical outlet if you’re using an electric pump,
and someplace to store your milk. (
A Woman’s Work offers coolers made just for storing
and transporting breastmilk).
To express breastmilk successfully,
it helps enormously to have a relaxed, positive frame of mind.
The place you select should be safe from interruptions and
be as pleasant as possible. A private office, a women’s
lounge, or even an isolated storeroom can all be converted
into pumping stations. Expressing breastmilk may be one reason
nature gave us imaginations: mentally summoning the image
of your baby nursing is often the best way to help your body
initiate the milk let-down response. If your special place
offers a spot to stash photos of your baby, so much the better.
ONE WEEK BEFORE RETURNING TO WORK
Organize your closet.
Plan your wardrobe with expressing milk in mind. Two-piece
outfits with button-front blouses are the pump-friendliest;
light colors and prints are best at camouflaging the occasional
leak. Don’t count on your old wardrobe to fit perfectly
again for awhile—some carefully chosen new pieces will
help you feel confident and attractive while you’re
doing “double duty”. A box of breast pads discreetly
tucked into a purse or drawer may come in handy more than
once.
THE DAY YOU RETURN TO WORK
In this too, trust yourself.
You may be feeling completely confident about returning to
work or, like lots of women, you may have doubts and apprehensions.
Maybe you’re highly committed to your job, maybe you
simply believe you have to work for any number of reasons.
Whatever has motivated your return to the workplace, chances
are that you’re feeling your way through how to successfully
combine working with new parenthood.
Our best advice to you is this: remember what you
already know. Over the past weeks or months you’ve
learned to breastfeed, which required that you develop some
trust in your own emerging mothering skills. By now successful
nursing has forged a deep attachment between you and your
baby, and has likely inspired an growing sense of confidence
in you both. As you know, it is profoundly good work. Being
engaged in it, you can trust yourself to continue to thoughtfully
evolve a life that’s right for you and your family.
Be a little selfish in your new priorities. As you look at
work through the lens of a new mother, you may need to rethink
parts of how your do your job. Don’t be afraid to set
your mothering standards high, coworkers and associates are
more forgiving the first few weeks after your return to work.
Your workplace will benefit in the long-term from your commitment
to breastfeeding.
Some of the best advice about preparing for that first
day back at the office comes from the book Nursing Mother,
Working Mother:
“In a quiet moment, visualize yourself back at work,
and feeling good about it. Remember the moments that you’ve
most enjoyed in your job and the people with whom you work
well...Draw on the lessons you’ve learned in these first
months of motherhood, and trust yourself to be flexible
and capable enough to handle problems as they come up.”
