Tell me your BFing success story after returning to work very soon

christie.h

I will probably have to return to work within 2-3 weeks of being home from the hospital. I'm very nervous about being able to build my supply, get a stash going, keep baby latching, and pump enough at work to exclusively BF long term.

I returned to work after DS #1 was 4 months old, and I BF'd until he was over a year. That was great, and I want to do that again. My supply was always pretty good, and I just don't know if I could handle the stress of it all if it was a huge struggle to keep up this time.

I think I just need to hear some success stories, and maybe tips on how to make it work. TIA!

hillek5

I can't totally relate, but I can tell you that I started back to work (12-14 hour shifts) with no more than about 8 oz. in my freezer stash (we had weeks of thrush that kept me from freezing anything I was pumping).  I was able to get back to work, pump, and slowly build a supply that would keep us going (10 months next week!).  If you're dedicated to doing it, you'll make it work one way or another!

AllSmiles1210

I'm sorry you have to go back to work that soon :-(  My tips would be to not stress too much about it (I know it's hard not to), this is your 2nd go-round so I think you know what to expect better than a first time mom so that should help... for building your stash I would suggest adding a pumping session once a day as early as you can and in the morning if possible.. for your supply, I'm a big believer in supply/demand, if you EBF then the demand will be there and your body should produce enough to meet the demand.. try to introduce a bottle early, don't wait until a couple days before you go back to work, we did this and my LO had a hard time adjusting at first. My LO is going on 5 months and we're still going strong!

Relax and enjoy the time with your LO!