Give Pumping a Whirl and Baby Still Gets the Goods

Many women return to work after a short period of time recovering from giving birth. Not surprisingly, the average duration of breastfeeding in the U.S. correlates to that first doctor’s visit after birth and the amount of paid maternity leave offered by most employers – six weeks. If you are able to pump when you return to work, it is an excellent way of continuing the bond with your baby that you established while at home, not to mention the continuation of the benefits of breastmilk. In addition, keeping those mothering hormones cranking while you deal with the separation from your baby and the return to the pressures of working life can help immensely.

There is an amazing array of newfangled pumps these days. While none of them will negate that sense of belonging to the Bovine family while you are hooked up and whirring away, they are vastly quieter and more efficient, as well as smaller and more comfortable. Most of them feature silicon inserts or petals in the cone that fit over the breast. These are softer and mimic the baby’s mouth which can help in stimulating let-down. Achieving let-down while pumping is a challenge, but it makes it much easier as you will get a lot more milk for your pump, so to speak. Often women find that smelling or looking at their baby’s blanket or a favorite pair of bitty socks can help them get where they need to be mentally to have let-down occur.

Maintaining supply is often a challenge for pumping mothers. Supplements to increase milk can help. The most common is Fenugreek. It is easily found in the herbal section of your grocery store or pharmacy. In addition, when the milk is waning during a pumping session, continue to pump for two minutes past that point. This mimics baby’s non-nutritive sucking which can help with supply. Lastly, while sleep is that never-ending challenge when you are a new parent, and doubly so when you are working, nighttime nursing is a wonderful way to not only maintain supply but also to stay connected with your little one.

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