{"id":3820,"date":"2022-07-18T07:30:06","date_gmt":"2022-07-18T14:30:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kpthrivingfamilies.org\/pediatricsblog\/?p=3820"},"modified":"2024-04-25T03:01:13","modified_gmt":"2024-04-25T10:01:13","slug":"adventures-in-pumping","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kpthrivingfamilies.org\/pediatricsblog\/adventures-in-pumping\/","title":{"rendered":"Adventures in Pumping"},"content":{"rendered":"

Our first child was born during the final year of my training to become a pediatrician. When he was around\u202f2 months of age, we started practicing offering him pumped breast milk from a bottle. The first bottle was an epic failure – he\u202fclearly knew mom was home and still available to him!\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

On the second try, when he was starting to get hungry, I left 3 ounces of\u202ffresh-pumped breast milk with his dad and went for a walk on my own. Dad was so happy that the baby took 2 ounces, but I nearly cried when I poured the unused ounce of \u201cliquid gold\u201d down the drain and learned that you may have to waste an ounce here or there as you\u2019re figuring these things out.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

By the fourth or fifth try, we found our son\u2019s preferences. He wanted to be rocked, with the milk warmed, in one specific type of bottle \u2013 with mom nowhere nearby. While it was hard to watch his bottle refusals initially, over time his needs for bottle-feeding became less particular, and my \u201cmommy guilt\u201d about leaving my infant settled. \u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

My first day back from maternity leave started abruptly, with just an hour\u2019s notice to cover a sick colleague\u2019s overnight shift. I\u2019d spent plenty of time planning how to provide breast milk for my baby but still went into panic mode that day. Leaving my baby at home overnight for the first time and pumping milk through the night felt unfathomable. But I knew many moms had done it before, and I could make it happen too!\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Thankfully, my son slept peacefully and easily took bottles without me that first shift away. Meanwhile, my night was filled with admitting patients to the hospital and pumping whenever possible. Thankfully, a wise working mom friend had given me some tips for pumping and storing breastmilk at work:\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Enjoy looking at photos or videos of your baby while pumping. <\/span><\/b>Your baby is really cute!\u202fSeeing your cooing baby helps with milk letdown, shortens pumping time, and increases pumped volume. Aren\u2019t our bodies amazing?\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Keep it simple. <\/span><\/b>And find a system that works for you.<\/span> You can pour expressed milk throughout the day into a large water bottle and store this in the fridge to portion out later.\u202fOr just store your milk in the bottles you pump into. You may need to buy extra bottles and lids, but this can save you some time!<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Extra pump parts save time<\/span><\/b>. Invest in extra pump parts (flanges and valves) so you don\u2019t have to wash them at each pump session. You may have heard of the \u201cfridge hack\u201d where you put your pump parts in the fridge and re-use them throughout the day without washing them. However, in 2017 the <\/span>Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended<\/span><\/a> that pump parts be washed between every session to avoid dangerous bacteria growth.\u202fIf you can\u2019t wash them after each session, buy enough parts to last you until you can. Place the used ones in a Ziploc in the fridge, then wash them as soon as possible, and sterilize them.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Wash once<\/span><\/b>. After work, soak all empty bottles and pump parts in hot soapy water, in a wash bin that you use only for cleaning pump parts \u2013 not in your sink, where bacteria may grow. You can also use the dishwasher. Air dry all parts completely. Don\u2019t dry with a cloth.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Give yourself grace.<\/span><\/b> It can be hard to set time aside for pump breaks during a workday. Some pump sessions may be rushed and short, and some days they may be less often than you\u2019d hope. Even so, every session counts to care for your baby! It\u2019s important to continue pumping as much as you can to keep your supply up and to prevent getting plugged ducts or mastitis.\u202f\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Freeze small portions.<\/span><\/b> When thawed, frozen milk needs to be used within 24 hours. If freezer bags are 6 oz full and your baby only uses 4 oz of that milk, then 2 oz of liquid gold goes to waste.\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Eventually, I started feeling more confident. I learned to advocate for myself and the time I needed to pump at work. Of course, there were many blunders too \u2013 not realizing I had leaked breast milk onto my blouse, knocking milk onto a laptop, and running to an emergency mid-pump with my nursing bra barely covering what it was supposed to.\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While providing breast milk for your baby is natural and the healthiest choice for your baby, it\u2019s often not easy on you, especially if you return to work. Whether you\u2019re breastfeeding, pumping, or formula feeding, providing love for your baby is the most important thing to support their growth and development into an amazing little human. And regardless of whether breast milk ends up being a part of that love when you\u2019re back at work, know that your fellow moms are cheering you on.\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Resources For Parents:<\/span><\/b>\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

My Doctor Online<\/span><\/b>\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Breastfeeding<\/span><\/b><\/a>\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Pumping and Storing<\/span><\/b><\/a>\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Introducing a Bottle<\/span><\/b><\/a>\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

American Academy of Pediatrics<\/span><\/b>\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Breastfeeding<\/span><\/b><\/a>\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

While providing breast milk for your baby is natural and the healthiest choice for your baby, it\u2019s often not easy on you, especially if you return to work. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":3825,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[667],"tags":[276,275,367,433,602,634],"class_list":["post-3820","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-newborn-care","tag-breast-milk","tag-breastfeeding","tag-breastfeeding-tips","tag-feeding-newborn","tag-newborn","tag-parenting-newborn","ages-baby"],"metadata":{"_edit_lock":["1691509776:8"],"_edit_last":["11"],"bonfire_pageloader_display":[""],"slide_template":[""],"ase_chapter_enable_timeline":["off"],"video_format_choose":["youtube"],"_wpb_vc_js_status":["false"],"_yoast_wpseo_content_score":["60"],"_yoast_wpseo_estimated-reading-time-minutes":["4"],"qode_animate-page-title":["no"],"qode_show-page-title-text":["no"],"qode_show-page-title-image":["no"],"qode_show-sidebar":["default"],"qode_hide-featured-image":["no"],"_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":["58"],"_yoast_wpseo_primary_ages":["288"],"post_featured_author_bio":["Dr. Frost's biography reads: I joined the pediatrics team at Kaiser Permanente South Sacramento in 2018 to help kids thrive. Outpatient pediatrics is a unique and rewarding medical specialty. I enjoy being able to foster long-term relationships with patients and their families, providing care in both health and illness as children grow. I believe that it is important to truly partner in health care with patients and their families; this allows not only for the best possible care but also for me to continue to learn and grow as a pediatrician. A professional interest of mine is to support breastfeeding families as an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC). During my medical training, I also pursued a degree in public health\/health promotion - a field which applies to every patient visit in pediatrics. Yet, some of my most relevant experiences as a pediatrician has come from my two children, who have \u201ctrained\u201d me first-hand on the challenges of parenthood and in finding the balance between evidence-based recommendations and reality to achieve optimal childhood growth and development. Being part of Kaiser Permanente allows physicians and patients access to integrated care and resources that are not readily available with other health systems. Kaiser Permanente\u2019s commitment to preventive care is also an important piece of my personal care philosophy. I am proud to be part of the team at South Sacramento and I look forward to getting to know you and your family.\nDr. Frost's full biography can be found on {{My Doctor Online}}."],"post_featured_author_bio_link":["https:\/\/mydoctor.kaiserpermanente.org\/ncal\/providers\/lindsayfrost"],"post_featured_author_image":["https:\/\/kpthrivingfamilies.org\/pediatricsblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/Lindsay-Frost.png"],"post_featured_author_role":["YES"],"_thumbnail_id":["3825"],"ase_map_component_start_point":["a:2:{s:3:\"lat\";d:29.76;s:3:\"lng\";d:-95.38;}"],"wpfp_favorites":["13"],"_yoast_indexnow_last_ping":["1714039273"],"_wp_old_slug":["adventures-in-pumping__trashed"]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kpthrivingfamilies.org\/pediatricsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3820","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kpthrivingfamilies.org\/pediatricsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kpthrivingfamilies.org\/pediatricsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kpthrivingfamilies.org\/pediatricsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kpthrivingfamilies.org\/pediatricsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3820"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/kpthrivingfamilies.org\/pediatricsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3820\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3855,"href":"https:\/\/kpthrivingfamilies.org\/pediatricsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3820\/revisions\/3855"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kpthrivingfamilies.org\/pediatricsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3825"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kpthrivingfamilies.org\/pediatricsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3820"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kpthrivingfamilies.org\/pediatricsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3820"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kpthrivingfamilies.org\/pediatricsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3820"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}