MOMS! Back to work after baby... Input needed!

[EverGraceRN]

To all the working mamas out there,

Hey ladies, here's my situation:

I'm heading back to work this coming Tuesday after having 12 wonderful weeks off with my new daughter. I'll be working three 12 hour shifts each week (with one weekend a month), so she'll be at daycare 2-3 times a week, depending on my schedule that particular week. I leave the house at 6:15 in the morning and won't return until 7:20-30ish. Dad will be taking her to and from daycare on my work days, the only days she'll go. I've been exclusively breastfeeding her, but she's had a bottle once (mama got her hair done! Woo!), so I know she'll take it...

My question is, how did all of you breastfeeding, working mamas out there make the transition to bottles at daycare? I have no idea how much she eats in a feeding (guessing 3-5 oz). Send supplies and let them prep or pre make bottles? She eats on her own timing right now, so I hate to give them a schedule. Blah, I just what's best, but because I've been with her since birth, this mama's a little lost :/

So what has worked for you? Examples would be so helpful!

Thanks!

[anurseatlast]

Slow flow nipples may be better when she is getting used to the bottle. Once problem some bf babes have with the bottle is that their suck is so much stronger from suckling at the breast that they can empty a bottle very quickly. Daycare may like this but the baby may not have the sense of being full for 2 reasons - not enough time for brain to get full message and they do not get the sucking urge satisfied as well with the bottle (think eating a bowl of soup which requires little chewing vs something with more texture). This can lead to overfeeding a bf baby when she is given a bottle. Some babies may want a pacifier for a short time after bottle feeding to satisfy that sucking urge. If daycare doesn't understand that, they may think she wants to eat more when she simply needs to suck.

Definitely supply small amounts especially at first when you do not know how much she will take. If she needs a little more at a feed, ask them to pour 1 oz into the already used bottle (rather than use the fresh bottle) and offer that. This will result in less waste. I work with teen moms and found cute little 2oz bottles at the dollar store for her to send with bm to daycare because the dcp just couldn't stand feeding the baby "so little" and were wasting a lot of bm by starting with 4 - 5oz and having to discard leftovers. She asked them to start with the 2 oz and then add more if needed. (Her baby takes 2-4oz) It has cut down on waste a lot.

It is hard for many people to understand that bf babies do not need as much volume. This is because they digest almost everything in bm but not in formula. This is why ff babies have bulkier stools. Formula and bm are not the same! You can explain it to the dcp - you can eat a whole bag of chips and not feel full but if you are eating more nutritious food you can feel full with less volume.

[Devie06]

Have you thought about hiring a nanny? Care.com is a great resource, and provides background checks :) Plus, its usually cheaper than daycare!

[linearthinker, DNP, RN]

I always froze breast milk in ice cube trays b/c each cube is about an ounce. That way, I knew exactly how much to defrost for bottles, cereal, etc. NO WASTE! Those Medela breast milk bags are a rip off. Cubes in a ziplock work just fine for 10% of the price.

Start getting up an hour before baby does NOW, pumping and storing the milk (you will almost always get the best output first thing int he morning), then feed the baby as usual when she wakes up. Also, try pumping one breast while nursing the baby on the other. Baby will stimulate a better let down than the machine, and you will get more milk, and then voilà, your body makes more for baby!

[bmathis]

I would send frozen to prevent waste, When it is thawed out after being froze it dosent stay good as long. I always just ran hot water on the bag, and with only 2 oz it only took a couple minutes to thaw out. Medela bags are crazy expensive! I used to buy some from walmart, Lansinoh brand. They are like $5 for 25 or $10 for 50.

[anurseatlast]

A few hints on pumping at work (I assume you have done some pumping and understand the basics??):

* Bring a pic of your baby and a blanket or other item with her smell. Some moms also record the baby babbling on their cell and play it while pumping. You could also choose some music to play both while nursing and pumping. Conditioned response may help with letdown and decrease stress.

*frequent pumping (even if relatively short) is better than 1 or 2 long pumpings

* Do not watch how much milk you are getting. It can stress you out if you don't get as much as you think you should which may inhibit letdown and flow.

* Expect that you will have days when you get less milk. It is normal especially if you work several days in a row. Try not to stress over it. When you are with your baby, nurse her as often as possible to increase production. If you have time, adding a pumping or two on days you are home could help too. Pump whenever you can fit it in - first thing in the morning, while she nurses on the other breast, or even after a feed (you will get less milk after the feed but pumping will provide extra stimulation to kick up production).

* Expect it to be somewhat stressful in the beginning. Going back to work always is, nursing or not. You will get a routine down so stick with it. Be proud of yourself for making the effort to continue breastfeeding so that your daughter gets mom's best :-)

*Take good care of yourself in your first few weeks back at work. Take a nap on your day off, take a bubble bath, play with your baby- whatever works for you. Try not to overschedule other things the first couple weeks. Give yourself time to adjust to your new schedule. In a couple months, you will be giving advice to other moms returning to work. You can do it!