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December 2014 Moms
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Feeling guilty

sunbunny8sunbunny8 member
in December 2014 Moms
My LO is 2 1/2 months and I go back to work at the end of this month. I
feel so guilty! This is our first baby and I want to give him the best
of everything, but we need my income too. I  work at a hospital as a
CNA so I'm terrified of bringing home all those contagious germs. I
feel terrible because I have to begin the process of drying up my milk
because there is no way I will be able to pump at work- a)there is no
place to do it besides unused patient rooms which I would want to
disinfect first, b) after disinfecting pumping cleaning parts and
storing it would take about 45 min and I cant be off the floor for that
long multiple times a day c) GERMS, GERMS, GERMS!. Anyway the pediatrician said I did good making it this long, but I still feel bad. Anyone else feeling this way? Thanks :)
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Re: Feeling guilty

  • abcmom12abcmom12 member

    @sunbunn8, I'm sorry to read this!  IS there no break room or Doc office you can use that's cleaner to pump?  Medela makes to-go wipes that disinfect all pump parts when you can't wash.

    If not, any breast is great and baby will thrive on formula as well.  Big Hugs!

    Lilypie Fourth Birthday tickers

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  • EdenAuroraEdenAurora member
    Breastfeeding/pumping is federally protected. If you wanted to continue to nurse and pump your employer is required by federal law to facilitate it. https://www.dol.gov/whd/nursingmothers/faqBTNM.htm The law states that your employer needs to provide you with a private area to pump and reasonable time to do so. Failure to comply is a violation of federal law.

    Breast milk is safe for up to 8 hours at room temperature. You don't have to clean and disinfect the pump parts after each session. They can be stored at room temperature in a gallon ziplock bag. If you prefer you can store that bag in a fridge instead. Even the pumped milk is OK in bottles at room temperature for that long. My LO was in the NICU for 21 days and I pumped exclusively for the first 1.5 months. I learned a lot about breast milk safety and handling.

    If you really want to protect your little one from all of the germs you are exposed to at work breastfeeding/pumping is the best thing. You will pass on all antibodies to LO.
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  • racheld924racheld924 member
    Oh yeah! I felt guilty leaving my girl with my parents when I went back to work. She's three months now and I work as a Preschool Aide. She's already caught a cold from my kiddos. That's a shame that there is no way you can pump at work. I'd talk to someone. As a hospital they should know how important breast milk is. Although, that's my other guilt trip. My girl has reflux and she wouldn't take breast or formula in the hospital and it was so frustrating that when the nurses were able to get her to keep her formula down, I nearly cried because I had decided to give up on breast feeding. I felt horrible about that. Even so, she's a happy, healthy baby. So if you can't breastfeed, that's ok (although your work probably has something in place for that) and supplementing is not a bad thing either. Parents figure it out. Its hard in the process but it works out somehow.
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