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bettybcafe
Big brother in the making
Member since 7/07 8611 total posts
Name:
M
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If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
What do you do about your milk supply when you're working. Im going back to work in a couple of weeks and I cannot pumped while at work..Im afraid my supply will start to decrease 
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Posted 6/12/12 3:12 PM  |
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MrsPenthouse
LIF Adult
Member since 11/10 924 total posts
Name:
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Re: If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
what are y our hours like? You have to pump at some point to avoid engorgement
To keep up your supply you can nurse in the morning and as soon as you get home. Healthy diet, lots of liquids, mothers milk tea. Why can't you pump?
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| Posted 6/12/12 3:14 PM |
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maybeamommy
Blessed beyond belief
Member since 10/07 17048 total posts
Name:
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Re: If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
Why can't you pump at work?
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| Posted 6/12/12 3:15 PM |
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blustar214
So in love with my little girl
Member since 1/10 2471 total posts
Name:
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Re: If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
You do need to pump every few hours to keep up your supply, it is supply and demand.
Why can't you pump at work?
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| Posted 6/12/12 3:33 PM |
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drwifettc
LIF Adult
Member since 6/10 2348 total posts
Name:
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Re: If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
It's probably going to be hard if not impossible to keep up your supply without pumping or nursing when you are at work . You can keep nursing when you get home, but you'll likely have to supplement the other feedings. Are you sure you can't pump?
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| Posted 6/12/12 3:38 PM |
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Michelle1123
Baby #5 on the way!
Member since 9/05 7919 total posts
Name:
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Re: If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
I went back to work when DS was 6 weeks old. I pumped 2-3 times per 8 hour work day to maintain my supply.
If you dont mind me asking - why cant you pump at work?
It is the law and they are also supposed to supply you with a room (NOT a bathroom to pump in)
I actually chose to pump in the bathroom because my job had a nice, large one with a bench that was out of the way.
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| Posted 6/12/12 4:19 PM |
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nrthshgrl
It goes fast. Pay attention.
Member since 7/05 57538 total posts
Name:
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Re: If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
What state are you in? Department of Labor has some protection in place for you regarding breastfeeding:
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“Affordable Care Act”) amended section 7 of the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) to require employers to provide reasonable break time for an employee to express breast milk for her nursing child for one year after the child’s birth each time such employee has need to express the milk. Employers are also required to provide a place, other than a bathroom, that is shielded from view and free from intrusion from coworkers and the public, which may be used by an employee to express breast milk. The break time requirement became effective when the Affordable Care Act was signed into law on March 23, 2010.
http://www.ncsl.org/issues-research/health/breastfeeding-state-laws.aspx
http://www.dol.gov/whd/nursingmothers/
But to answer your question, I drank fennel tea which helped increase my supply. But even that would require me to pump to keep my supply up.
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| Posted 6/12/12 4:23 PM |
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maybesoon
LIF Adult
Member since 9/09 5981 total posts
Name:
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Re: If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
I couldn't pump at work so I stopped pumping 2 weeks before returning
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| Posted 6/12/12 5:45 PM |
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bettybcafe
Big brother in the making
Member since 7/07 8611 total posts
Name:
M
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Re: If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
Well, Im going back to work part time. I will only be working about 5hrs a day..so, I figure if I feed DS in the morning and by the time I get home it will be about 6.5hrs before I feed him again...do you think thats too long to go? I really dont want my supply to decrease Also, since Im only working part time I am not entitled to a lunch break...
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| Posted 6/12/12 5:53 PM |
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Re: If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
Posted by bettybcafe
Well, Im going back to work part time. I will only be working about 5hrs a day..so, I figure if I feed DS in the morning and by the time I get home it will be about 6.5hrs before I feed him again...do you think thats too long to go? I really dont want my supply to decrease Also, since Im only working part time I am not entitled to a lunch break...
But you are entitled to an unpaid break to pump.
Going almost 7 hours will definitely hurt your supply, but you still should be able to bf some of the time.
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| Posted 6/12/12 6:06 PM |
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bettybcafe
Big brother in the making
Member since 7/07 8611 total posts
Name:
M
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Re: If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
Posted by LiveForMoments
Posted by bettybcafe
Well, Im going back to work part time. I will only be working about 5hrs a day..so, I figure if I feed DS in the morning and by the time I get home it will be about 6.5hrs before I feed him again...do you think thats too long to go? I really dont want my supply to decrease Also, since Im only working part time I am not entitled to a lunch break...
But you are entitled to an unpaid break to pump.
Going almost 7 hours will definitely hurt your supply, but you still should be able to bf some of the time.
I would be happy to BF in the morning and once I get home from work. Do you think my supply would continue to stay the same for breastfeeding once I get home? My plan is to BF before I leave for work and then once I return home I will BF from then on to the next morning.
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| Posted 6/12/12 6:08 PM |
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maybeamommy
Blessed beyond belief
Member since 10/07 17048 total posts
Name:
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Re: If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
Yes, 6.5 hours is too long!
I feed the babies at 6 and then pump at 9, 12 and 3.
They eat at 10 and 2 while I'm gone and I'm home for the next feeding at 6.
You can just pump as often as baby eats while you're gone. I added an extra session because I wasn't making enough milk and did not want to supplement wit formula.
You don't have to pump for a long time. I would aim for 15 minutes to keep your supply up and to have enough milk for baby. I don't think taking a 15 minute break at work is too much to ask!
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| Posted 6/12/12 6:08 PM |
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drwifettc
LIF Adult
Member since 6/10 2348 total posts
Name:
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Re: If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
You'll have to pump at least once during your workday if you want to keep bf-ing exclusively (I'd probably aim for twice). You'll likely miss two sessions when you are at work, if you pump at work you can use that milk for one of the next day's session and then either pump after his evening feeding or before he wakes up for the other mid day feeding. Unfortunately you can't keep your supply for ebf without ebf or pumping the missed sessions.
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| Posted 6/12/12 6:30 PM |
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bettybcafe
Big brother in the making
Member since 7/07 8611 total posts
Name:
M
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Re: If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
Ok, now if this makes any difference...I am not EBF..I do supplement with formula. So, my plan is that when I go to work DH will feed DS formula (since he'll be with him during the day) then I will BF once I get home. I just want to make sure that I will have breast milk once I get home from work.
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| Posted 6/12/12 6:54 PM |
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drwifettc
LIF Adult
Member since 6/10 2348 total posts
Name:
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Re: If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
Yes! I think that makes a huge difference. If you aren't normally bf-ing him during those mid day sessions you can keep your current supply by just nursing in the am and when you get home from work.
It's total supply and demand, your body is only going to make what the baby "needs" so if you are nursing in the morning and after work it will keep making that much milk (as long as you keep drinking water and eating well).
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| Posted 6/12/12 7:09 PM |
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bettybcafe
Big brother in the making
Member since 7/07 8611 total posts
Name:
M
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Re: If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
Posted by drwifettc
Yes! I think that makes a huge difference. If you aren't normally bf-ing him during those mid day sessions you can keep your current supply by just nursing in the am and when you get home from work.
It's total supply and demand, your body is only going to make what the baby "needs" so if you are nursing in the morning and after work it will keep making that much milk (as long as you keep drinking water and eating well).
Ok, thank you so much..I guess I just didnt make myself clear 
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| Posted 6/12/12 7:15 PM |
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thiadora
Happy Little Girl
Member since 5/05 3830 total posts
Name:
Thia (Cynthia)
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Re: If you are breastfeeding but going to work..
Posted by bettybcafe
Posted by drwifettc
Yes! I think that makes a huge difference. If you aren't normally bf-ing him during those mid day sessions you can keep your current supply by just nursing in the am and when you get home from work.
It's total supply and demand, your body is only going to make what the baby "needs" so if you are nursing in the morning and after work it will keep making that much milk (as long as you keep drinking water and eating well).
Ok, thank you so much..I guess I just didnt make myself clear
The only problem you may have is if your DS doesn't BF much before you leave for work. You could end up engorged because of that.
I BF and DD gets EBM at daycare. )She is in daycare from 8-3.) I always try to BF her before we leave the house, however, sometimes she's just not hungry yet and doesn't really BF much. (I can usually tell because I pump more in my first pump session when this happens.)
If you're not going to pump at work, then alot enough time to pump if DS doesn't want to BF right when you leave. Your DH can always give that one in a bottle, and it's good at room temperature for about 7 hours so you can just put it right in the bottle.
You may also run into supply issues if DS starts to STTN.
DH should also time the last bottle so that DS is a bit hungry when you get home so that he'll want to BF. Otherwise, you could be going for more that the 6.5 hours you're planning.
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| Posted 6/12/12 7:44 PM |
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