Breastfeeding Mums On How They Survived Going Back To Work After Baby

Breastfeeding is hard when you have a new baby. For working mums in Singapore, you are entitled to four months paid maternity leave before you have to head back to the office and then a whole other set of breastfeeding problems kick in like where to pump your breastmilk at work, boob leaks, engorged breasts, storing and handling breastmilk and even a drop in milk supply. But don’t despair mummy! These are the benefits of continuing to breastfeed after you return to work:

Provide the best nutrition for your baby
Make it possible to keep breastfeeding when you are together
Keep a special closeness to your baby even when you must be apart
Save money
Avoid the health risks associated with formula feeding
Miss less work, because breastfed babies are sick less

So what exactly is the problem with breastfeeding at work? Why not just give your baby the bottle? Ah, if only it were that simple…

Breastfeeding Struggles For First Time Mums

Charlotte* is a first time Mum who is facing a huge dilemma as she prepares to head back to work at the end of the month; she is exclusively breastfeeding her newborn daughter.

“My daughter is 5-months-old, and financially I have to go back to work,” says Charlotte.

“After trying for months to get my daughter to prepared for drinking my expressed milk in a bottle… she just will not take a bottle. My boob is, therefore, her only source of nutrient and I feel insanely guilty leaving her to go back to work.”

Charlotte is a teacher, and her strict breastfeeding breaks will take place over recesses and lunch.

“I am gutted that I have to go back to work, a process which is stressful enough on its own, and now my entire days will be structured around pumping breast milk for a child who refuses the bottle,” Charlotte finishes.

Common Concerns When Breastfeeding At Work

Amelia* is a nurse and agrees that time frames add to the pressure of young mums going back to work. “I went back to work while breastfeeding and had to express in a cubicle on a time limit, was hard work,” she says.

The best way to get around this is to simply talk to your employer and come up with solutions together. You may think there is nothing in the world more mortifying than saying the word “breast” in front of your boss, but if this is going to work for you, you’ll have to do it at least once.

It may be that many women have pumped at work before you, and all you need to do is arrange your break times with your boss. Or, you may be the one paving the way, and you’ll have to convince your boss that allowing you time to pump is a wise economic decision for his or her bottom line.

Truthfully, breastfeeding at work and away from you baby is never going to be an easy process, but with the right information and support it can certainly be less painful. Here are some tips that may help some of you:

https://www.womensweekly.com.sg/gallery/family/tips-on-breastfeeding-going-back-to-work/

Breastfeeding Mums On How They Survived Going Back To Work After Baby

1. Take Your Baby To Work

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This, of course, depends on your job, your employer and your baby. If you are self-employed, working from home, or running your own business, and are able to arrange things to suit, including organising a carer for baby when times are busy, this can be ideal.

But – having baby with you only works while he is young, and if he is the kind of baby who obligingly sleeps a lot between feeds.

Otherwise he may need a permanent carer, either someone who can bring him to you for feeds or a daycare place nearby where you can conveniently go to feed him.

2. Express Breast Milk At Home

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With expressed breast milk, you can find someone else to feed your baby while you are at work.

If you work full-time you will need to be able to express milk at work as well as at home, and for this you will need a private place (not a toilet) and access to a refrigerator to store the milk.

Be sure the milk is carefully labelled – unlabelled milk has been known to turn up unexpectedly in morning coffee!

3. Try Mixed Feeding

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Mixed feeding is when you breastfeed your baby when you are with him and have him fed formula when you are not available.

Morning and evening feeds are usually still possible, as are weekend and night-time feeds. For this to work you need to gradually reduce the daytime feeds before you begin work so that you do not suddenly cease feeds and thus affect your supply.

Even so you may find that you need to express some milk at work to keep up the supply. Manual breast pumps are available in pharmacies, supermarkets and baby shops. Most are portable, often coming with a handy carry case. Breast pumps, and any container in which expressed milk is stored, must be kept sterilised. Expressed milk must be kept refrigerated, and transported only in a cooler bag.

It separates easily, but this does not mean it has passed its use-by date. Generally it will keep for up to 24 hours in the refrigerator, two weeks in the freezer compartment of the fridge, and up to three months in a separate freezer. Once defrosted – always do this in the fridge – it must be used within 12 hours.

(Text: Holly Royce, bauersyndication.com.au / Additional reporting: Natalya Molok)

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Breastfeeding Mums On How They Survived Going Back To Work After Baby

It’s never going to be an easy transition but knowing what you’re entitled to and having the right support can make breastfeeding and returning to work less painful.

Breastfeeding Struggles For First Time Mums

Common Concerns When Breastfeeding At Work

Privacy Menu

Breastfeeding Mums On How They Survived Going Back To Work After Baby

It’s never going to be an easy transition but knowing what you’re entitled to and having the right support can make breastfeeding and returning to work less painful.

Breastfeeding Struggles For First Time Mums

Common Concerns When Breastfeeding At Work

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