Pumping at work

jillconor

Hi mamas! Any nurses out there that are exclusively breast feeding? I'm an OR nurse which can get pretty hectic but I'm determined to keep up with pumping. I'm having some pushback from management when it comes to pump breaks. How long do you usually take to pump? How often are you pumping? Any tips on making a break more efficient? Thanks!

kyrenora

I usually pump for about ten minutes at a time. Massaging the breast during pumping will help the session go faster, and even increase your output.

On a side note, they should not be giving you a hard time for pumping at work. Legally, it's something they are required to accommodate.

massey25

Have any pieces assembled ahead of time! I've heard of a lot of women that stick the pump parts in a refrigerator between pumps rather than washing or using the wipes you can buy. I'm not sure if it's legit or not, but I've done it once and didn't notice any difference.

I pump on my lunch break and if I have time to take another break I sometimes pump then too. As of now I typically pump in the AM, on lunch, and then once or twice when I get home.

At home I pump for 20+ minutes, same with lunchtime, but my break is only 10 minutes, so if I get the second pump in at work it's only that.

n3na94

Yes that's true! Legally they can't tell you anything about your breaks. You are entitled to your pumping breaks in a clean room that's not a bathroom. . I'm currently taking business classes in college and we learned about this and how if they do you could take legal actions. And I agree with putting your pump parts in the fridge or they sell sterilizing bags in BRU that you put in the microwave. Hope this helps!

nemRN

I'm a day surgery nurse , yes pumping and doing surgeries is rough - I try to pump every three hours but it usually gets stretched to 4 bcc I can't leave a surgery. I pump on way to work at 7, again at 10 is my goal and again at 1 or 2 , I pump 15 min at a time at work, on way to work I kinda pump the whole 40 min drive . I recently bought freemies for my pump in car but another RN suggested them for in between surgeries be they are easy to disconnect and you can keep them in your shirt if you have to run out. Good luck !

lilyan1522

I'm a CRNA so I feel your pain about getting breaks in the OR. I feed LO before I leave for work in the am (around 0530), and pump on my am break for about 10-15 mins around 0930 or 10. I usually have a ton of milk then so I try to pump as long as possible. Pump again on lunch break around 12:30-1 for at least 15 mins. I eat while I pump. Then if I'm working til 7 I pump again around 4. It's tough. I miss socializing during breaks. I'm hoping my supply stays up but can only do what I can. I just throw everything in the fridge and wash and steam clean when I get home. I know they have to legally provide for your pump breaks, but I also know how it can be realistically. Good luck!

kristyn831

I'm an ICU nurse, so I'm also afraid of eventually not having time to pump (I can't exactly leave a patient that's coding in someone else's hands). I pump on the way to work (I leave it hooked up the whole time, so about 30 minutes). Then my goal is 10am, 2pm, 6pm. LO nurses every 2 hours, but usually just one side, so hopefully my supply stays up.

Total time between setup, pump, and clean up is 20 minutes. I rinse the parts in warm water, put them in a plastic bag, and keep them in the fridge with my milk. My hospital provides the more efficient Medela Symphony pumps so once I get the tubing for that, I should be able to pump faster.

Legally, you have to be allowed to pump but it doesn't have to be paid. No one would ever say anything to me if I took a break on top of pumping breaks (in fact, last week a coworker demanded I go to lunch lol) but I usually forgo my break to pump 3 times and eat while pumping.

The fact that we only get 12 weeks of leave in the U.S. really burns my ass. It's so hard to keep up with EBF if you have a demanding job.

randa923

I'm an ER nurse. I work 10a-10p. If LO is awake I feed him between 8-8:20. I have to leave by about 8:50. If he didn't eat I pump on my drive. It's about 45 minutes. If he did eat I don't worry about pumping on my drive. Then at work I pump around 12:30-1. Then 4 and 7. Then I power pump on the drive home. I push that morning pump off a bit too long but I feel horrible clocking in then going to pump an hour later. This has been working so far and I'm three weeks in.

Also I keep my parts in a separate cooler in the fridge without washing them. I just rinse them quick. I pump for 20 minutes. With the walk over to OB the whole thing takes about 30 minutes. I eat while I'm pumping too.

On a side note, I have the freemies. They sounded like a great idea for pumping in the car, but they have been terrible for me. I produce exactly what my little guy needs while I'm at work. Every single time I've used the freemies my output tanks. I've tried them in the car and at home. I get less than half of my normal pump amount when I use them. I'm emailing the company back and forth right now to make sure I'm using them correctly (which I'm 99% sure I am) just to make sure I've tried everything before I give up. Some people have good luck with them, just be aware before you spend the $60. I really wanted them to work. @nemRN @jillconor

jillconor

Thanks so much for the information everyone! @kristyn831 you're right on with 12 weeks not being enough! Being a nurse is hard enough! Being a nursing nurse is no joke!

jessieR358

I'm a nurse practitioner and work 10-11 hour shifts. Yesterday was my first day back and it was rough. I had an hour commute for this shift so pumped before I left at 6:45, then 10:30, 1:30, and 4:30. I then got stuck at work and didn't get home until 8:30 and pumped then. I work alone most days in a retail setting so it's hard but I'm legally entitled to it and I'm taking my breaks. My goal is every 3 hours. I put all my pump parts in the fridge between pumping. I kept getting asked "are you taking a lunch break" since I had it in my lunch box. That's going to get old. I may just start telling random people I'm pumping.
I'm worried about pumping on super busy days and having patients complain when they're waiting and I'm taking a 15-20 minute break. It's already stressing me out.

jillconor

@jesshrou thanks for sharing with me! It's hard when you have a job that puts other people's needs in front of your own! I'm shocked that there isn't a set standard for Healthcare worker moms. People don't get that we really don't have the luxury of stepping away when we need to

kristyn831

Honestly, if I had a desk job, I would pump right there with my nursing cover on. At least my hospital provides us with hospital grade pumps. I'm barely making it to pump every 4 hours and that without a very critical patient. I don't know what I'll do when I have one of those patients I can't take my eyes off. Regardless, I'm determined to EBF for a year.

lilyan1522

@kristyn831
Have you found a big difference with the medela symphony vs medela pump n style? I also have access to the symphony but used it once and didn't really see much difference so I've just been using my own.

Ashelee13

I'm not a nurse but a dog groomer. I work at a corporate salon. Technically yes I'm supposed to be allowed breaks to pump. But when it gets busy or I have 3 dogs waiting to be groomed and their owners expect them done by a certain time a 20 minute break isn't always possible. I could always take less dogs but then that's less money every week in my pay check. So it's been pretty stressful for me. I'm an exclusive pumper and my supply has gone down since going back to work. It sucks. I also get sick of hearing formula is ok for your baby. I know this. Doesn't make me feel any better using it (stuff stinks ssssooooo bad! Lol)

lilyan1522

I agree it does stink! If I end up needing to supplement I will not beat myself up about it, but I will try to find an organic formula that smells better!

thocon84

I used Medela Symphony the first two month and yes it is better than Medela PISA. It took me about 15 to 18 mins using Symphony as opposed to about 25 min on PISA each time. I got slightly more milk with Symphony as well.
When I first got back to work I pumped 3 times a day and then found it too hard to manage so now I am down to twice a day. The last two days I went down to once a day, of course supply also went down these two days but I still managed to pump enough milk thank goodness. I exclusively pump and some days I just want to quit. Trying hard to hit that 6 month goal.

kaitbrock

I took a back to work pumping class from a lactation consultant and she told us about the freemie. She mentioned this is great for when you're charting. Good luck!

https://www.freemie.com