Frontline Healthcare worker and pumping- any experience?

[milkyway1304]

I'll be going back to work in 10days, DD is 10months. Have had lots of trouble getting her to take solids but she finally seems to be eating small amounts. She has persistently refused bottles/cups of milk- either EBM or formula. In preparation for going back to work I pumped once a day through December and January in the hope she might take some milk when I'm not about, and hopefully have enough frozen to get to 12 months if she does.

My problem is that I've always had an oversupply- baby dealt well with it so it was more of an annoyance than a problem- leaking etc. I've dropped as many daytime feeds as I could. This week she's been settling in at nursery, so I've been dropping the lunchtime feed- putting it back an hour a day as she spends longer there. Today I woke up with what felt like a blocked duct, and by lunchtime I had a fever so pumped. The bottles were overflowing within a few minutes- over 10oz. I had hoped to avoid pumping given the nature of working in a busy hospital service, but I think I'll have to in the beginning at least or risk mastitis. Has anyone any experience of pumping as a nurse/doctor in acute hospital practice? Not especially worried about storing the milk, I'd only want enough to be comfortable and gradually drop the volume pumped.

[Superworm]

I expressed on the ward when I went back to work. I was nervous about how it would be but it was fine, everyone was surprisingly supportive.

I stored my milk and expressing stuff in the fridge and expressed twice a shift in my breaks. Was totally fine.

[MadameJosephine]

I had no problem at all, pumped in a side room and used fridge to store milk, it was never an issue. I do work in maternity though so I suppose if any department is going to be supportive then it should be that one