Back to work in a community based role - but I don’t want to stop breastfeeding? How to pump/store?!

[StillNotAsleep]

I’m going back to work in a community based, public sector role. I need to drive to various locations for different meetings and will usually be out of the house for 6 hours + at a time.

I’d be so interested to hear any ideas or experiences for how I can pump and store milk. If I’m working out of my car or being a visitor in buildings, practically speaking I can’t see how I will be able to pump, let alone keep the expressed milk chilled.

I don’t want this to be the end of my BF journey but I don’t see a way round things?

Daft question if your out all day where do you have lunch? And what access do you have for toilets and other facilities, kettle etc

I breast fed for over 3 years, went back to work FT at 9 months and didn't need to express. At 1 yr old, they probably won't take much milk during the day ( if anything like mine, fed lots when they were with you) and just ate food, drank water and some cow's milk.

Have you actually tried to feed your baby expressed breast milk yet?

At that age I just fed in the mornings and evenings and didn't need to pump during the day - baby had milk or water at nursery and my supply adjusted so I wasn't uncomfortable.

Yes, no problem with it, he glugs away happily!

OK that's great. Because sometimes they just won't. My son was perfectly happy to drink expressed milk, my daughter just refused.

I went back to work when DD was 9 months doing 12+ hours shifts plus 30min commute and wouldn't have fed DD since she last woke in the early hours, she wasn't a good sleeper so never that long ago!! Fortunately I was only doing one shift a week to start.

I only pumped once in that period, I used an electric pump and just sat on the floor in a changing room with an electric socket. If I was stuck outside hospital with a Patient (Paramedic) the nurse in charge would find me an empty clinic room to pump in. If i pumped at my own ambulance station I'd stash it in the fridge in a cool bag, if i was off station I'd pump and dump.

Once DD was a year old I stopped pumping at work, and my supply stayed fine and i was comfortable for that length of time, but my periods did come back within a few weeks of this.

Just wear breast pads for backup incase you have to deal with a baby or a colleauge asks to see pictures of your baby and you get tingly boobies!!

Your baby is having normal food now, alongside milk. Your body will adjust just fine to feeding him evenings, night time, mornings and leaving it off during the time you’re away. I carried on BF for ages after going back to work, not via pumping which I didn’t find very easy, but just by my body quickly becoming accustomed to when it was needed to produce milk.
There’s nothing wrong with your baby having eg a bit of cows milk or whatever with breakfast in the morning, alongside breastfeeding when you are around. It’s just another food. And absolutely no need for it to be the “end of a breastfeeding journey”

Not just because it’s an unnecessary faff but 1YOs aren’t supposed to have bottles because they’re not good for mouth development or teeth health- they’re really not like breastfeeding at all even if they contain breastmilk. I wouldn’t pump unless it’s for comfort reasons. Just breastfeed morning and night. He can have water and meals at nursery and will be fine.

At nearly 12 months you don’t need to pump surely

just pump when you get home or before you go

You can express with wearables whilst driving! There’s a brand called ceres chilly which are for keeping BM cold for a long period - when I looked into it there’s some British alternatives

I leak after about four hours of not feeding...

Thank you, this looks really good!

At that age you’ve a very good chance of just feeding when you’re with the baby and being fine when you’re not. I returned to work when DD was 8 months. I only fed her when I was around her and didn’t pump or anything when we were apart (unless overnight). My boobs coped fine with the supply / demand even accounting for the fact she would feed a bit in the day at weekends but never in the week.

That’s because you’re feeding all the time. Your body gets used to the new schedule really quickly and becomes much better at the on demand feeding. Honestly it does. Takes a little bit of time and probably a little bit of pumping or hand expressing to ease into it. But it’s totally fine.

You can do whatever you want to do obviously but at this age you can not feed for literally days at a time, like if you went away or something, and still not lose your supply. You won’t lose your supply or end breastfeeding until you actively want to (or if he does). Especially as it sounds like you have a high supply anyway if you’re still leaking. If you want to pump and store it, go for it but it will mostly be a waste of time, energy and money, and it will make it harder for your body to get used to the new schedule. If you just hand pump or express for comfort for the first couple of days you’ll adjust and stop leaking.