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Working Moms
XP: Pumping at work
Hello, I have never posted on this board before but am going back to work tomorrow so I'll probablly be joining you all. Since I am returning to work I am all of a sudden pumping stupid. Hopefully I can get some help here:)
I am hopefully going to be able to pump 3 times a day (9, 12, 3). I plan to bring one set of flanges, 6 bottles, my pump, cooler, etc. My dilema is that I share a fridge with a women with no kids and I am pretty sure she is going to be grossed out by having my milk in the fridge (yes, I know weird but true). I am over that, I will just put the pumped milk in the cooler. But, what can I do with my flanges? I can't put them in our mini fridge next to her sandwich but I also have strict break times and won't have time to clean them out and pump for a good 15 minutes. Can I just keep them at room temp in a ziploc? This would make sense to me because pumped milk can be out that long. I don't want to buy more flanges because I already have a ton to carry to work and walk 10 minutes from my car.
Any other advice for pumping at work. I swear I thought I could do it now all of a sudden I am freaking out about it. TIA
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Re: XP: Pumping at work
can you just put them in some sort of frosted/colored tupperware type container and put them in the fridge? That's what I do...no one knows they are my flanges in there.
Or get a second cooler and just put them in there.
Yes, you can leave them in a bag at room temp. I always leave my parts in my pump bag. If you're worried about it, you can buy wipes for them, but I only used the wipes for a while before deciding it just didn't matter.
Pumping is a PITA at the beginning, but now it's just second nature. You'll get the hang of it very soon. My biggest advice for just starting is relax! You are going to have good days and bad days with pumping, and it will almost always work out. You are going to have supply issues from time to time, but there's a ton of stuff you can do to build your supply up.
There's a lot of us on this board, so if you ever have any questions, just shout. Good luck!
~Benjamin Franklin
DS dx with celiac disease 5/28/10
I just stopped pumping, but I pumped at work for 8 months and I always left my parts at room temp between pumps. I didn't even rinse or wipe them out. BM is good for like 8 hours at room temp, so I didn't worry about it at all. Never had any problems.
Also, if you keep your bottles in a cooler bag or even a brown paper bag in the fridge, there shouldn't be any issues. If your coworker is still uncomfortable, she needs to find other arrangements.
Edited to add: get a handsfree set-up if you don't have one already (a sports bra with holes cut in it works great). And I really liked having a couple sets of parts. I ended up leaving one at work for emergencies after I forgot parts a few times, and it was nice not to have to wash every night. I found it was easier and most productive to pump immediately after I got into the office. Then you've got one session out of the way before you get too busy and you'll still get a lot of milk, even if you nursed not too long before.
Good luck! Pumping seemed like a huge hassle at times, but once you get into a rhythm, it becomes second nature.
Yes, you can keep the flanges in a bag at room temp in between pumping sessions. I did rinse mine out in between sessions, but you don't have to ... the pumped milk in the cooler is a great idea to get around the fridge issue (those medela ice packs are good for 12+ hours).
Don't freak out. You sound organized and prepared. Pumping takes dedication, but it's so worth it ... you'll do great!