Back to work and expressing

[tellnoone]

I go back to work fulltime in 2 weeks. DD will be 9mo, Bfing and BLWing. She still has plenty of BF in the day, 2 or 3 times (in what will be my working hours). She eats a reasonable amount of food but it's a bit hit and miss because it depends how she feels e.g. if she's tired etc.

I was planning to express at lunchtimes at work (and bf on demand at home). My worries are that I have one pump and I find it difficult expressing, especially if my boobs are not engorged which they aren't these days. I think I might struggle.

Has anyone got any suggestions? Will I need 2 pumps? Should I rent a double electric pump so I can do both at the same time? Does attempting to pump regularly make it easier or if you're not good at it will you never be good at it? Will I need to pump in the evenings as well?

Tbh I've tried not to worry about the whole thing until now as I wanted to enjoy my baby stress-free, which is why it's all a bit last minute.

Why do you want to express then if you wouldn't be leaking? Is it to leave BM rather than formula for your DD?

Yes, to leave BM fo her

OK, I understand now. You may find you are able to express even if you're not engorged.

I'm not expressing at work anymore as I don't leak (unless I'm much later than 5-6 pm). DD2 is 8 months old. We make up for it in the evening/night/mornings and on the days I work from home or not at all. I leave formula for her during the day.

Hi - I expressed for nearly a year at work from when DS was 4.5 months to 14 months, 5 days a week.

A double electric pump does make life soo much easier, and is much more efficient. If I were you, I'd buy one off ebay rather than renting as it works out a lot cheaper.

Pumping to replace the two feeds that you won't be giving is an awful lot easier than trying to pump in addition to feeds iyswim. Its also a lot easier when you are into a routine of doing it every day.

Expressing was a great way to have a little me time in the day - esp if you get the hang of having a hand free to read/eat your lunch.

I think I remember some info on how your boobs don't stay engorged for ever but there's still milk "on tap" if needed. E.g. women who BF for 2-3 years.

Have you tried a pump yet? I used a cheapo manual Mothercare one (the last one left in the shop the Sunday evening before I was starting work again on Monday). It did the job v well.

I think you're entitled to 20 minutes a day time off at work as a BF mum. Not sure if this is paid time or not.

It's often a lot easier to pump at work than it is at home, because your body is expecting to feed so is all full and ready to let down even though dd isn't there, rather than squeezing expressing sessions in between feeds iyswim.

A single pump might be fine, but I found I wanted to give dd (10m) more than I could get with a single pump in a single session.
She has three bottles (10am, 2pm, 4.30) of 3-4oz each - tbh she could probably do without the morning ones but, like your dd, until she's eating reliably I feel happier being able to offer them.
I now pump twice a day (lunchtime and afternoon, 20min each) with an electric double pump and get a total of 10-12oz a day.
I've really tried to avoid pumping in the evenings as I'd rather spend the time with dd and/or dh.
The electric pump made it a lot easier because a) I can eat lunch at the same time and b) I'm not stressed about how much I can get / how long it takes, so am more relaxed about the whole thing. However it does mean you need to pump near a socket...

Some info from kellymom on pumping.

Thanks for all the replies and advice.

I have a manual pump but I think the shield is the wrong size so that needs sorting. Also I just find it hard, I don't seem to let-down very easily. I hadn't thought about it that I will be full already at work and it may be easier than pumping at home in addition to feeds. So that's given me a bit of hope that it will be ok

I think I will have a look at electric double pumps, the medela website for renting did seem quite expensive so maybe buying off ebay will be the way to go.

Thanks again

If you're buying, I can really recommend the Ameda Lactaline

Consider also how to get the milk around - I bought some Axifeed bottles which have saved me a fortune in those disposable freezer bags and never ever leak.
You'll also need two coolbags (one for you, one for taking the milk to nursery) and a pair of freezy blocks.

The Lactaline is def the way to go - and you can run it on batteries too for times that you aren't near a socket

I'm only going to work for a couple of months (then SAHM), is it worth buying the Lactaline or a cheaper one?

perhaps wait and see how you get on with the hand pump and if it doesn't cut it then you can reconsider?

Thing is, you'll be able to sell the Lactaline on again for much what you paid for it afterwards - a few months is a lot of pumping with a manual pump.

tellnoone - I have an Avent Isis IQ - 'Tis very expensive (£85) but on the rare occasion that I have had to express without access to electricity, I have found that the dand expressing is just as easy as the elctric - powered pumping. I agree that you could try a good quality pump and hand punp for a couple of months.

It's all so confusing. I think the manual pump is going to take too long to do both boobs in one lunchbreak - so maybe that's going to be the crux of the matter. Cmotdibbler you have a good point, the lactalines sell for quite a bit on ebay so would get some money back. Maybe I can sell my sling (that cost £50 ) on ebay to help finance the lactaline purchase... Oh, and the bumbo, I'm sure I can find some other useless stuff to sell as well

Do have a look at the KellyMom link that Cristina posted. I've been worrying about how little milk I get when I express etc and it is so reassuring. Apparently, getting 0.5 to 2 oz when expressing is normal. And my 4 month old probably only takes about 3oz at a feed (an older baby on solids might take less). I'd been panicking about the little dribble at the bottom of a 10 oz bottle...

Also reverse cycling sounds like it is worth a shot (baby takes most of its solids when it is not with you and most of its milk when it is). Anyway, it's all on there so check it out. I feel much better for having looked at it.

I just noticed that someone in the for sale area has a Lactaline for 45 plus postage here - maybe its still available

The pump unfortunately is sold..I would definitely recommend the Ameda Lactaline. It's a fantastic pump & is so much quicker than a manual one. After a year of exclusively expressing for dd1, I became a bit of an expert at expressing.

Hi again, thanks for more replies Yes I found the kellymom page reassuring too - kellymom is really good, as is mumsnet! I am keeping an eye on ebay for a cheap lactaline. If I don't get one in time I will use the hand pump, it may take a couple of sittings rather than just at lunchtime though.