Working and formula supplementation, help me adjust my expectations

Mike_Patti · May 2012

I'm a FTM expecting in July. I am really, really dedicated to my desire to breastfeed and pump. I have done a lot of reading and research, bought a good breastpump, shared my desire to BF with family, friends, and my husband. I am taking a 6w maternity leave after which I will work 40-70 hour work weeks. I will be given time/space to pump at work and we are only considering daycares that are willing to feed EBM.

As part of this I would really like to avoid the use of formula if at all possible. My husband is worried that with me working we may need to supplement.

My question:

How realistic is it to plan to not supplement? If you work full time were you able to pump/nurse enough to totally avoid formula? I know it can be done in theory, but what I'm looking for is personal experience (ie, I know it can be done but could YOU do it).

*As always, I do not cast judgment on anyone with regards to their choices to BF or FF. My decision that I've made is my own and I don't blame anyone if they need to or want to use formula.*

x-posted to Breastfeeding (sorry if you see it twice)

aglenn · May 2012

It totally depends on your situation, but yes, it is definitely possible. I am fortunate to have a good supply, a good pump, and a job where I can usually manage to pump around the same times each day (with some schedule juggling here and there). I pumped for DD until just past her first birthday and am now pumping for DS. DD never had any formula and neither has DS so far (knock on wood) and I have a humongous freezer stash that keeps growing instead of shrinking. Both of my kids prefer nursing to bottles and reverse cycle(d) a bit.

A good, fun book to read is The Milk Memos. Some of the advice is a little outdated but it's a great collection of real stories that are helpful to read.

Mike_Patti · May 2012

aglenn:
It totally depends on your situation, but yes, it is definitely possible. I am fortunate to have a good supply, a good pump, and a job where I can usually manage to pump around the same times each day (with some schedule juggling here and there). I pumped for DD until just past her first birthday and am now pumping for DS. DD never had any formula and neither has DS so far (knock on wood) and I have a humongous freezer stash that keeps growing instead of shrinking. Both of my kids prefer nursing to bottles and reverse cycle(d) a bit.

A good, fun book to read is The Milk Memos. Some of the advice is a little outdated but it's a great collection of real stories that are helpful to read.

Thanks for the rec. I haven't read The Milk Memos yet but I've been wanting to. I'm going to order it off amazon now.

Aubs0009 · May 2012

I was able to pump at work, and had a nice space to do it. But with my schedule and the constant interuptions I faced at work, my supply dwindled quickly. I still pumped and fed him mostly breastmilk, but I ended up needed to suppliment.

Kadyra · May 2012

I had every intention of exclusively BFing when I went back to work after DS. I did fine for about a month. Like you, I worked l

laurakaz13 · May 2012

Aubs0009:
I was able to pump at work, and had a nice space to do it. But with my schedule and the constant interuptions I faced at work, my supply dwindled quickly. I still pumped and fed him mostly breastmilk, but I ended up needed to suppliment.

This was me as well. I could pump in my office and we had a lactation room where I could store my milk.

My supply was good, so it really depends on how well BFing goes for you. After 5 months of BFing, I switched to formula. I didn't have to, but I was no longer happy with BFing.

Good luck and please don't beat yourself up if it doesn't work exactly as you'd like it to. Formula is not bad for your baby and anyone who tells you so is a moron.

Kadyra · May 2012

(for crying out loud stupid iPhone!)

Long hours as a resident. Like 80-90 hours a week. My calls lasted about 26-28 hours. I was assured time and space to pump. This happened until DS was five months old.

At the four month mark, I got put on a med that dropped my supply. We didn't realize it was the mex. I had ppd and was put on Wellbutrin. My supply tanked. Unbeknownst to me, my freezer stash dwindled right before this. Even with my excellent pump, I just couldn't pump the quantity that DS BFed.

And then there was the evil nurse manager who told me I could no longer pump at the nurses station. No one had an issue with it. I was always covered up. Most people didn't know I was pumping. They'd say, what's that noise? They'd laugh or shrug and move on. I was very efficient with my time while pumping. I charted. I answered pages. I answered questions and wrote orders. Well then I had to pump alone in the NICU. Couldn't chart. No phone so couldn't answer pages. Couldn't answer questions or write orders. People suddenly had issues with me leaving to pump. One day it was busy and I spent a horrid thirteen hours without pumping. My boobs killed. Well I figured I'd supplement and nurse before and after work only. Then DS got RSV and just wouldn't BF.

I would have loved to not supplement. It just didn't work out for me due to a variety of unforeseen circumstances. Work, health, etc. You just don't know what will happen and all the best intentions can't change that. I wish you the best of luck, but urge you to keep an open mind.

pitterpatter129 · May 2012

I've been bfing for 17 months now. I pumped and sent milk between 15 weeks old (when I went back to work) to 13 months. I never gave him formula while at daycare. We did have some supplementing issues right at the very beginning of breastfeeding though because my milk took 10 days to "come in", but I never had to supplement at daycare because I couldn't pump enough. I have pretty low supply too compared to most women.

MammaBear81 · May 2012

I was able to pump 3x per day at work, as well as on the way to and from work. Being able to pump often helped me keep my supply as I was able to give LO BM until he was 11 months old. Now we are starting to wean to almond milk, so he gets 2 bottles of BM and one bottle of BM. On the rare occasion that he wakes up at night I am able to let him nurse and put him back to sleep.

I pumped a lot while on maternity leave (after every other nursing) and built up a stash, that helped me get through weeks that I didn't make enough. Fenugreek also helped me get my supply back when it dipped more than 8oz per day.

GL, it is possible, I hope all goes well for you.

Margaret Lemon · May 2012

I have never been able to get much while pumping. I bought a great pump, even rented one from the hospital, but never get more than 3 ounces MAX. That is my best outcome. Sometimes it is only one ounce.

I took a 6 month maternity leave. I worked REALLY hard to build a stash, did all the tips, but my body just could not provide much extra. I was so stressed about returning to work and not being able to send enough BM. I had to just let the stress go.

Now, I usually pump enough to cover most of her next day. She usually has one bottle formula after the BM runs out. I nuse at home. It's not the EBF plan I had, but it's pretty close. So, it really depends on what you can do. Just do the best you can and do what feels right. Good luck.

QueSrah · May 2012

There were long stretches of months at a time where we didn't need to supplement with formula (particularly after the first few months after going back to work - the initial transition was rough for me just to get in a good groove). But I also had weeks right after DD was born where we used formula because I was struggling with the pain of BFing (bad latch at first), and because we were testing whether DD had a dairy issue (so switched to formula for a short period while I continued to pump while I let the dairy get out of MY system). There are plenty of reasons that EBFing might not work for one reason or another besides just your work schedule, but working itself doesn't mean you will definitely need to supplement.

SilliRy · May 2012

It's absolutely possible. I pumped until the day before DD turned 1 and never had to supplement. When I went back to work (when she was 10 weeks) I pumped 3 times a day, but I have a crazy job and just couldn't keep up taking the time to pump 3x. I went down to pumping 2x a day soon after, and did that until she was about 11 months when I went down to 1x a day. I always got a lot my first session--9-10 ounces most of the time (although my supply dwindled a bit around 11 months, when I went down to pumping once) and usually got 6 or so ounces during the second pump. I sent 12 oz a day with her to daycare (3 (4oz) bottles).

I will add that pumping was a PITA for me...I had to scald my milk immediately after pumping because I had excess lipase issues and my milk tasted sour within an hour after pumping. So in addition to pumping, I had to scald the milk in a bottle warmer and then immediately cool it in ice...I had this crazy science experiment looking setup in my office! And there were times that I just couldn't do all that...out at meetings all day, or events...so then I had to pump and dump (sadly!). But it worked out. It helped that I have an office with a door and my office was very understanding.

Also, my daycare never wasted breast milk and didn't try to treat it like formula--ie, encouraging her to eat way more than she needed to (BF babies don't need to increase ounces like FF babies because BM changes in calories as baby grows). That helped a lot. I see stories about moms having to bring 20+ ounces and there's just no way I could have done that.

So...totally possible. Of course, you have to make sure your supply is well established and you let LO feed on demand when you are home so you can produce enough...but you can do it!

semdkm · May 2012

My situation was different in that I was relatively comfortable with supplementing with formula, and so by the time I returned to work at 4 months, I was pumping only once or twice a day (and for better or worse, supply has never been an issue--I weaned over a month ago and I'm still producing milk). But, what I can say is that for me and my job, it was a strain on my time (not a huge strain, but 15 minutes or so each time once I got in the room), the bigger issue was scheduling the pumping room and waiting when someone went over her time and then having to skip pumping at that time or I'd miss an important meeting, etc., then having to go back to the room to see if it was now open, etc. It was a (worthwhile) hassle. I don't think I'd be willing to pump more than I was (I recently stopped, at 17 months) as it would have meant even more time at the office to make up for the time I was pumping, which ultimately would mean me getting home later and so less time with my children. Just something to consider. That said, I do know a number of women here who EBF and they're making it work.

Good luck--and while I applaud your committment to breastfeeding, please don't put too much pressure on yourself so that you drive yourself crazy. I was anti-formula pro-EBF when I was pregnant with my first child. A terrible birth resulting in a lengthy nicu stay, latching issues for months even after consultations with experts, etc., I wound up in a depression when it just wasn't working. I put way too much pressure on myself even before my child was born and it was not healthy at all. After 3 months of me pumping around the clock and getting absolutely no sleep for the sake of giving her only breastmilk, coupled with my guilt of having to go back to work, only made me miserable and landed me in therapy. With my second child, breastfeeding just worked, thankfully, but I began supplementing at an early stage and tried not to put too much pressure on myself. Both kids are incredibly healthy and happy, and I was definitely happier the second time around knowing not to drive myself insane over how much breastmilk vs formula, etc.

Sorry for the long post--wanted to address your specific question but also provide the advice I wish I had gotten while I was pregnant. It's great if you can breastfeed/pump exclusively, but don't drive yourself into such a frenzy that you can't enjoy being a mom. Healthy, happy baby to you!!

itsmevkb · May 2012

For me, I had never had a good enough supply to ebf, even prior to returning to work.

amyc216 · May 2012

You can do it! It is hard and a PITA to pump at work, but once you get into a routine it's NBD. I was able to avoid formula until this week actually (7.5 months). I got sick a few weeks ago and it seemed to affect my pumping output. I probably could have worked harder to bring it back and pumped on weekends and more at home, but I didn't b/c I was thinking of weaning soon anyway. My advice is to pump at least once a day on weekends to help you build a freezer stash. I never had much of a stash so when I had problems pumping enough I blew threw that pretty fast!

Iblamethebeer · May 2012

itsmevkb:
For me, I had never had a good enough supply to ebf, even prior to returning to work.

I felt really strongly about breastfeeding too, and then my daughter came and just did not understand nursing, plus I had a bad supply.

It was a mess.

I limped through 4 months of nursing (needing to supplement) and then my supply *really* tanked and it became pointless.

Don't lock in too strongly on your plans until you live with nursing for 6 weeks. It just so depends on your body and your particular baby... in retrospect I think it would have been much better emotionally for us and facilitated better bonding if I had not been so distracted/obsessed with milk production for the first few months of my daughter's life.

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