Talk to me about pumping....

jlaOK · April 2013

I'm due with DD in 8 weeks and I plan on pumping when I go back to work. I only BF'd for 4 weeks with DS and so I never pumped during work. What kind of pump schedule should I expect to be on? Any tips or words of advice?

FWIW, I WFH and have a flexible schedule so I'm not worried about the work aspects of pumping.

Thanks!

jasminelorraine20 · April 2013

Starting out I pumped every two hours for anywhere from 15-20 minutes. My tip would be to put a small snack in your pump bag and maybe a magazine or something to look at. I'd also pack a wipe or wash cloth of some sort to wipe off your nipples when you're done and clean your pump parts. If the room you plan to pump in has a lock, don't forget to lock it! Good luck!

grrl79 · April 2013

I pumped 3 times a day - I was lucky enough to have an office. I had a hands-free bra and continued to work while pumping.

Since you work from home, I'd maybe try to pump every two hours like PP said or at least pump when your DD would be eating - you'll know her schedule by that point.

mexicolombiana · April 2013

Thankfully I always had a good pumping experience at work. I have my own office so I would just announce to my boss i was going to pump and shut my door (we never close our doors). He would then just leave me alone! I had a great hands free pumping bra (necessity) and even did some work while pumping.

My schedule when my babies were really small was:

7:30 a.m. or so feed them at home, then pump at home to "empty" my breasts so to speak.

10:30 a.m. pump at the office.

1:30 p.m. pump at the office

4:00 p.m. pump at the office.

6:00 p.m. nurse at home and for the rest of the night.

I quickly decided I hated the 4:00 p.m. pumping session so I started doing pumping at 11 and 2 and that worked fine, but for a little while I was nervous about only pumping 2 times a day so I stuck to the 3 pumping sessions. This didn't last too long though.

2 pumping sessions worked for me for a long time. Then at about 10/11 months I started pumping once a day because DD#2 stopped taking bottles during the day anyway. I continue nursing her plenty.

At about 13 months I just stopped pumping at work and it has been a great 2 months! My body has adjusted and I still BF her plenty when we're together.

Good luck! My only tips are to make sure you don't skip pumping sessions!

jasminelorraine20 · April 2013

mexicolombiana:

Thankfully I always had a good pumping experience at work. I have my own office so I would just announce to my boss i was going to pump and shut my door (we never close our doors). He would then just leave me alone! I had a great hands free pumping bra (necessity) and even did some work while pumping.

My schedule when my babies were really small was:

7:30 a.m. or so feed them at home, then pump at home to "empty" my breasts so to speak.

10:30 a.m. pump at the office.

1:30 p.m. pump at the office

4:00 p.m. pump at the office.

6:00 p.m. nurse at home and for the rest of the night.

I quickly decided I hated the 4:00 p.m. pumping session so I started doing pumping at 11 and 2 and that worked fine, but for a little while I was nervous about only pumping 2 times a day so I stuck to the 3 pumping sessions. This didn't last too long though.

2 pumping sessions worked for me for a long time. Then at about 10/11 months I started pumping once a day because DD#2 stopped taking bottles during the day anyway. I continue nursing her plenty.

At about 13 months I just stopped pumping at work and it has been a great 2 months! My body has adjusted and I still BF her plenty when we're together.

Good luck! My only tips are to make sure you don't skip pumping sessions!

Your LO's are adorable!!!

*sparky* · April 2013

I tried to keep my pumping schedule at work similar to DS's feeding schedule. You won't really know what that is at this point. For me it was every 3 hours when I first went back, so I was pumping twice a day.

Since you WFH this will most likely be easier for you, but the biggest advice I have is that you have to try to relax while you are pumping. Like the PP's wrote, have a magazine or something else that will help you clear your mind from work and use it as an actual break.

mexicolombiana · April 2013

Why thank you! I have to update my siggy but I always forget. Your son is quite advanced reading on his own

EDIT: womp womp, I forgot to reply specifically to PP. Sorry. I violated a sacred bump rule.

jlaOK · April 2013

Thanks for the tips. Any recommendations for a good hands free pumping bra? Also, would you wear it all day or change into it when it was time to pump?

KimberlyTX · April 2013

jlaOK:
Thanks for the tips. Any recommendations for a good hands free pumping bra? Also, would you wear it all day or change into it when it was time to pump?

I got a Medela one on sale and used it until I was done pumping. I changed into it to pump, then took it off; I don't think it would be very comfortable wearing all day.

I echo PP, try to stick with your baby's feeding schedule when you start pumping. I did 3x a day (11, 1, and 3) for a while, then dropped it to 2x when my DD was about 7 months. Pumping was very hard for me because it would take an hour for me to pump 3-4 oz, but I just stuck with it. I never had a big freezer stash, but I managed enough to keep my DD on BM until we transitioned to WCM. I stopped pumping when she turned 1.

rockychryslerb2010 · April 2013

When I first went back to work, E was only nursing from one breast every 2ish hours, so I tried to pump both sides every four hours. I started by pumping the side E did not nurse from before leaving for work, then I would pump around 10'ish and then again around 2. I was able to drop one of the pumping sessions around 6 or 7 months, then I stopped pumping completely at 12 months.

The schedule may change, but you will feel when you really need to pump. I don't have the same schedule everyday, so it was hard to coordinate my schedule ahead of time. I used a Medela PISA, I recommend extra parts, that way you don't have to hand wash everything each night. I would stick the pump parts in a ziploc container and put the entire container in the fridge between pumping sessions. The hands free bra just zips on over your regular bra, so you just need it to hold up the flanges during pumping. I think I got mine from Amazon.

mrsgaines100 · April 2013

jlaOK:
Thanks for the tips. Any recommendations for a good hands free pumping bra? Also, would you wear it all day or change into it when it was time to pump?

I just pull the shirt up, the flaps of the nursing bra I am wearing down, and pop on the pumping bra- you wont want to wear it all day, its got big ol holes where your nips are.

ras26 · April 2013

jlaOK:
Thanks for the tips. Any recommendations for a good hands free pumping bra? Also, would you wear it all day or change into it when it was time to pump?

I used this Simple Wishes one and only used it when I was pumping. I wore a nursing bra and then put the pumping bra on over the top.

sadie+w · April 2013

Definitely get a hands free bra. Get three or four sets of parts so that you can just run them through the dishwasher and don't have to worry about hand washing them. I think everyone's output varies, so you'll have to see how yours is, to then determine how often you'll have to pump. I pump twice and over the course of an 8 hour work day and LO takes three or four bottles while I am gone. If I pumped every two hours if have way more milk then I needed.

GL!