My Frenemy
I read a lot when I was pregnant. I read parenting books, parenting blogs, signed up for parenting email blasts. I read really good and really important things - like how to get my baby to sleep through the night (and this book works wonders - she was sleeping through the night at 9 weeks) and how to calm my baby - that have significantly improved my parenting experience. One thing that I didn’t read much about (though I think it is out there and perhaps it just didn’t quite resonate with me until I was actually doing it) was pumping.
Before I begin my thoughts on this: a little background. I was unsure about the whole breastfeeding thing and adopted an attitude of “we’ll see how it goes.” It actually probably ranked at the top of my parenting fears. I kind of wanted it to work; but frankly, I also kind of thought the whole thing was gross. However, I gave it a go, and have actually had a pretty great experience with it, helped by the fact that IBM has a great maternity leave policy, meaning that I was able to do it for 20 weeks with limited need to pump. Aside from the many, many benefits to mom and baby (which the more I read about, the more amazed I am at the human body), it’s been easy and practical - I can always feed her, low prep and low dishes.
Likewise, with respect to how long I’ll breastfeed, I’ve kind of adopted the same approach in coming back to work as I did to breastfeeding at the beginning: we’ll see how it goes. So far, it’s mostly been going fine - to point that I don't have a set end date in mind for when I'll wrap this thing up.
With that, a little bit on my newest frenemy - my pump.
Obviously, being able to pump has some major pros -- being able to feed my baby while working being the top candidate. However, while I have been pleasantly surprised by how much I have enjoyed breastfeeding; pumping is about what I expected it to be: quite mechanical and makes me feel like a milk cow in a gross, industrial way. I am tremendously lucky that I have been mainly working from home as the biggest challenge in this new adventure is pumping at the office and (major ugh) while traveling... more on that in a minute.
At home, pumping is a minor inconvenience. It makes my usual, back-to-back call schedule a little tricky, as it is a pretty definitive sound on the other end of a conference call. I have my pump set up in my office and, while at home, obviously have easy access to my pumping equipment, refrigeration, and cleaning equipment. I generally am able to work while I pump -- clearing out some emails / listening to calls while pumping, and have, on occasion, gotten so absorbed in what I was doing, that I've lost track and pumped for almost 2x what I meant to. And, let's just put it out there that whoever invented the pumping bra is a godsend.
Going to an office or traveling is a bit of a different story.
I've mentioned how it is easy to feel like a sherpa when trying to get out the door to daycare - and, frankly, most of that is because of pumping. You have your pump & pump equipment, bottles and/or freezer bags, pumping accessories (a pumping bra, a tea towel, and pump cleaning wipes), and a cooler with ice packs for the milk. My bag weighs over 30 lbs with all of this piled in(!).
Then, you need to find a place to pump. Again, this is an area where I am generally pretty lucky, as IBM is known for being breastfeeding friendly (see: here, here, or here), and we have pretty nice pumping rooms in the office with a chair, refrigerator, sink, counter, and outlets. I have also been lucky as my clients have also had mothers rooms, that are equally nice to the IBM offices.
Pumping in the office has led to some hilarious situations. The first time that I did it, I brought my computer with me to work while I pumped. The next thing I knew, I realized my leg was wet, and I looked down and my pumping bag had overflowed. The worst part (other than losing the milk, which as any breastfeeding mom knows is like like losing gold), was that the milk got into my shoes and as I walked around for the next hour, my feet squished in my shoes. The next time I came into the office, the logical time for me to pump was on a video call, and I panicked the entire call that my video was going to surprise me and come on, so I stood off to the side of my computer and could not see the presentation because I was so paranoid (despite assurances from colleagues on the call that I was on mute from an audio AND video perspective).
Traveling while breastfeeding is probably another post (have any moms out there used IBM's shipping breast milk service?) - but suffice it to say - that it is the next level in logistics and sherpa-ness.
With all of this, I have deemed my pump my newest frenemy - it is a necessary evil of continuing breastfeeding - but definitely the time I spend with it, lugging it around, and cleaning it is definitely my most dreaded time of the day. That being said, it is what allows me to keep breastfeeding, which is generally something I've enjoyed, and something that I'm happy to do for Charlie.
I'm curious - any good tips and tricks from other moms who have (or are currently) breastfeeding and pumping? What makes it easier for you?
Before I begin my thoughts on this: a little background. I was unsure about the whole breastfeeding thing and adopted an attitude of “we’ll see how it goes.” It actually probably ranked at the top of my parenting fears. I kind of wanted it to work; but frankly, I also kind of thought the whole thing was gross. However, I gave it a go, and have actually had a pretty great experience with it, helped by the fact that IBM has a great maternity leave policy, meaning that I was able to do it for 20 weeks with limited need to pump. Aside from the many, many benefits to mom and baby (which the more I read about, the more amazed I am at the human body), it’s been easy and practical - I can always feed her, low prep and low dishes.
Likewise, with respect to how long I’ll breastfeed, I’ve kind of adopted the same approach in coming back to work as I did to breastfeeding at the beginning: we’ll see how it goes. So far, it’s mostly been going fine - to point that I don't have a set end date in mind for when I'll wrap this thing up.
With that, a little bit on my newest frenemy - my pump.
Obviously, being able to pump has some major pros -- being able to feed my baby while working being the top candidate. However, while I have been pleasantly surprised by how much I have enjoyed breastfeeding; pumping is about what I expected it to be: quite mechanical and makes me feel like a milk cow in a gross, industrial way. I am tremendously lucky that I have been mainly working from home as the biggest challenge in this new adventure is pumping at the office and (major ugh) while traveling... more on that in a minute.
At home, pumping is a minor inconvenience. It makes my usual, back-to-back call schedule a little tricky, as it is a pretty definitive sound on the other end of a conference call. I have my pump set up in my office and, while at home, obviously have easy access to my pumping equipment, refrigeration, and cleaning equipment. I generally am able to work while I pump -- clearing out some emails / listening to calls while pumping, and have, on occasion, gotten so absorbed in what I was doing, that I've lost track and pumped for almost 2x what I meant to. And, let's just put it out there that whoever invented the pumping bra is a godsend.
Going to an office or traveling is a bit of a different story.
I've mentioned how it is easy to feel like a sherpa when trying to get out the door to daycare - and, frankly, most of that is because of pumping. You have your pump & pump equipment, bottles and/or freezer bags, pumping accessories (a pumping bra, a tea towel, and pump cleaning wipes), and a cooler with ice packs for the milk. My bag weighs over 30 lbs with all of this piled in(!).
Then, you need to find a place to pump. Again, this is an area where I am generally pretty lucky, as IBM is known for being breastfeeding friendly (see: here, here, or here), and we have pretty nice pumping rooms in the office with a chair, refrigerator, sink, counter, and outlets. I have also been lucky as my clients have also had mothers rooms, that are equally nice to the IBM offices.
Pumping in the office has led to some hilarious situations. The first time that I did it, I brought my computer with me to work while I pumped. The next thing I knew, I realized my leg was wet, and I looked down and my pumping bag had overflowed. The worst part (other than losing the milk, which as any breastfeeding mom knows is like like losing gold), was that the milk got into my shoes and as I walked around for the next hour, my feet squished in my shoes. The next time I came into the office, the logical time for me to pump was on a video call, and I panicked the entire call that my video was going to surprise me and come on, so I stood off to the side of my computer and could not see the presentation because I was so paranoid (despite assurances from colleagues on the call that I was on mute from an audio AND video perspective).
Traveling while breastfeeding is probably another post (have any moms out there used IBM's shipping breast milk service?) - but suffice it to say - that it is the next level in logistics and sherpa-ness.
With all of this, I have deemed my pump my newest frenemy - it is a necessary evil of continuing breastfeeding - but definitely the time I spend with it, lugging it around, and cleaning it is definitely my most dreaded time of the day. That being said, it is what allows me to keep breastfeeding, which is generally something I've enjoyed, and something that I'm happy to do for Charlie.
I'm curious - any good tips and tricks from other moms who have (or are currently) breastfeeding and pumping? What makes it easier for you?
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