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Pumping & returning to work

  1. #1
    merrymum is offline Registered User
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    Pumping & returning to work

    I have a 2 week old baby and am BF exclusively.
    I will return to work after Chinese New Year and would like to continue feeding him breastmilk (expressed while I'm at work) - any advice on when I should start pumping a breastmilk supply? Thanks!


  2. #2
    Aava.Wong is offline Registered User
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    you can start pumping whenever you need to. when i was on my maternity leave, i started to pump when i was "over"leaking and also pumped when i had to leave my bubba for couple of hours. i restarted work last month and expressed milk in the night and in the morning (the more you pump, the more is the flow of breastmilk). coz he drinks a lot, my helper had to feed him formula after he finished the stored milk. i think that you should introduce bottle-feeding to your baby asap so he gets used to the bottle as well as your breasts.


  3. #3
    LLL_Sarah is offline Registered User
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    LLL in Hong Kong has an email list for mothers who are working and breastfeeding. You are very welcome to join, lalecheleaguehongkong-working : LLL-HK Working Mothers Support

    The usual recommendation is to directly breastfeed for as long as possible and definitely for the first four to six weeks. Start to pump about two weeks before returning to work in order to build up a supply of expressed milk for your return.

    Remember that it is harder to build up a supply when up are breastfeeding and pumping (before you return to work) than pumping instead of breastfeeding (once you are back at work).

    Best wishes,
    SARAH

    La Leche League Leader
    www.lllhk.org

  4. #4
    starbucks2 is offline Registered User
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    Hi

    In my experience, it is possible to keep feeding once you go back to work but it takes a bit of planning. I followed parts of the Gina Ford book which recommends pumping after every feed to increase supply and to build stocks in the fridge or freezer for any growth spurt periods.

    I managed to BF my son until he was 11 months old and I returned to work when he was 12 weeks old. I used to feed him myself at 7am before work then pump at work at 11am and 3pm and then feed him when I got home at 6.30pm. He would have a formula feed at 10pm and I would express at 10pm and that milk would be used to cover some of the next day's feeds while I was at work.

    If you are able to sterilise the pump and bottles at work (and have somewhere appropriate to pump) then you could keep the milk you expressed but there was nowhere for me to pump except in the bathroom which did not feel hygenic to me - so I pumped and threw the milk away (just pumping to keep up supply). It was a pain but I wanted to keep feeding for as long as possible so I stuck with it. I was also fortunate that I only worked 3 days a week so for 4 days a week I feed my baby almost exclusively myself (except for the 10pm formula feed).

    Good on you for seeking ways to try and keep it up when you return to work.

    SB2


  5. #5
    yonge is offline Registered User
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    I returned to work when my first was 4 months old. By then, he absolutely refused to take the breastmilk in a bottle, cup, spoon, etc. I worked out this crazy arrangement with my employer to work from 7 to 3:30pm, would nurse in the morning, go back home for lunch at 11:30 (I lived about a 20' taxi ride from work) and again when I got home. He would get another feed before going to bed and one or two more in the middle of the night. I did this for about 6 months until he was doing well with his solids, but managed to nurse him until he was weaned at 17 months.


  6. #6
    starbucks2 is offline Registered User
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    Wow yonge - you deserve a BF medal for that!! Good for you.


  7. #7
    yonge is offline Registered User
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    Many thanks to Sarah, who showed me how to get the baby to latch on properly, three weeks after he was born. Am still nursing the second, who's now 19 months, but that's much more doable now that I'm no longer working outside of the home. :)


  8. #8
    LeahH is offline Registered User
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    I'm currently BF morning and night, but decided not to pump at work during the day (it was trade off in order to leave bang on time to get home for the evening BF).

    My son is 9 months old and gets 1 formula feed and 1 of EBM while I'm away - however the frozen EBM is soon to run out. I did the same as SBs2, pumped after every feed in the first months to build up my freezer supply.


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