Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

Please or to access all these features

Postnatal health

As with all health-related issues, please seek advice from a RL health professional if you're worried about anything.

Help with return to work

4 replies

novamama · 02/10/2024 09:33

Dear fellow parents,

I'm back to work after maternity leave with my first child. I have a lot of trouble focusing in work and getting anything done.

Baby is in nursery, but won't take any milk from them. Therefore, I need to go to nursery to feed the baby three times a day but also to pump at work so they can keep trying. I feel like this engulfs most of my day and also the worry about baby not eating.

Even when just pumping and sitting at my desk, I cannot get my head around to focus and dive into the tasks I am meant to be doing. The trouble is that I am trying to finish my PhD and so I really cannot waste time like this. Perhaps if it was a general job, I would cut myself some slack for not being productive. However, any day I don't work I might not be able to recuperate enough to finish what I needed to finish.

To add to my situation, I also don't have a social circle at work anymore, because most of my close people have finished their studies/moved jobs during my maternity leave - so I feel very lonely in this journey.

I was wondering if you have any practical advice that helped you get back into work? Any tips on how to focus after having a baby. Maybe also some positive affirmations? Any guidance would be much appreciated.

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
Button28384738 · 02/10/2024 09:46

That sounds very hard, it's hard enough going back to work after maternity without having to go to feed your baby 3 times a day!
How old is the baby?
Can you drop the pumping at work and have them try and give her formula instead? Combination feeding works well for a lot of people

novamama · 02/10/2024 09:55

Thank you for your reply @Button28384738, baby is 7 months. I haven't thought about combi feeding, but that's something I'll have to consider if baby keeps refusing my milk.

OP posts:
FTMaz · 06/10/2024 19:17

Hi op
I started feeding combi feeding my baby at 6 months because I found the pumping so draining. Honestly it’s been the best thing I did. I know the anxieties around formula if you’ve EBF but my thinking was eventually he will have to eat other things than breast milk and you’ve given your baby the best possible start already x

PolaroidPrincess · 08/10/2024 08:37

Will the baby cup feed instead of bottle feeding? I never had any success getting my EBF DC to talk a bottle but they would take a cup if I wasn't there.

I'm sorry that you're feeling a bit lonely too. How long is it until you finish your PhD?

New posts on this thread. Refresh page