xp: ? if you pump at work
Ok so Monday is the day I am to return to work=( I am a HS teacher and while I "know" that my job has to provide me w/ a place to pump I am not too confident in the possibilities. Our building is VERY crowded in that almost every room is used every period. My dept. has an office but I know that there are others off on my off periods as well. When I had dd they gave me a conference room but it was used to house testing materials and do small group testing and there were days I could not use it. So I would go to my car, drive off property and pump in the back of a supermarket parking lot near by (wow that sounds bad now that I type it out, lol) That worked b/c I had 2 periods off back to back and had the time to do so. This year I only have 1 pd off and I doubt I could manage that in less than 40 min.
Anyway my question is this, do you think I could get by w/ pumping on the way to work (6:30 am) and then again when I am through teaching for the day (1:30 pm), so 7 hrs? I am able to go that long at nights when dd sleeps well and then pump about 10 oz in the morning. I know supply is higher in the am so I prob wouldn't get that much at 1:30 but as long as I was able to get 6 oz or so I think I'd do ok to cover her daily bottles.
Any thoughts or experiences (good or bad) are appreciated! TIA
Re: xp: ? if you pump at work
Also, having multiple pumping set-ups is a life saver! I have two sets and I use each twice during the day--If milk can set out for 8-10 hours, my pumping horns can be used 3 hours apart without needing to be washed in between. That way I don't have to wash them at all during the day (I pump at 6:30, 9:30, 12:30, and 2:45).
Thanks for the replies! I appreciate you all telling me how nuts I am for even considering it, lol! That isn't to say that it won't happen on monday just b/c I am sure the day is going to be crazy, I was out an extra week due to gallbladder surgery and my long term sub couldn't stay on so I am going back to a week of random subs the week before spring break! Yikes!
I am in a similar situation as far as time during the day to pump. I have gotten to the point where I walk upstairs to the pump room, set up, pump, clean up, and walk back downstairs in 15 minutes. Like PP, I have multiple sets of flanges, connectors, membranes, etc. and before I leave in the morning, I put them together. That way I don't have to clean the parts during the day. I pump twice a day and it works out to be every 3-4 hours while I am at school/work. I do think waiting 7 hours (on a daily basis) will eventually hurt your supply.
I'm a high school teacher in a huge school as well. I pump in a large closet in the nurses clinic during my planning block and during my 25 minute lunch. I emailed the principal to work out a location he suggested the nurse. Lunch is tough, but even if you get can get some milk out it would be better than not pumping at all.
Going 7 hours will most likely hurt your supply. I got a hands free pumping bra to use so I can eat while I pump during lunch. It's a life saver.
Because of my work situation (I travel from facility to facility) I sometimes have to pump in my car. I turn the music on & pump & then put the milk in a special freezer bag made for bottles. The bottles stay cold until I get home. It would be more comfortable to have an office or something to pump in but if you have no other options you can do the car thing.