Preparing to Pump at Work Before Your Baby is Born

For many of us, there comes a time when we need to return to work after our baby is born. Some of us are blessed and able to wait until our little one is older and successfully weaned from breastfeeding. Some of us need to return to work sooner than our little one is ready to leave breastfeeding behind. There is no one size fits all and each mother (and family) needs to make the decision that is best. Also remember, what is best today may change with each month or child. However, if you plan to return to work while breastfeeding, it’s best to have a plan for pumping at work.

I have returned to work with each of my children, usually when my youngest was around 2 – 4 months. Keeping a successful breastfeeding relationship for a working mom depends quite a bit around the ability to pump at work. With each of mine, I was able to continue pumping and breastfeeding. This lasted anywhere from 6 – 10 months, until my little one was ready to be weaned.

The best way to create a successful pumping at work experience is planning ahead. You will need to have a conversation with your work and your partner, you will want to pick up the best supplies, and even get in the right frame of mind. Having the right mindset goes a long way to a positive pumping at work journey no matter how long you plan to continue.

Plan Before You Return

Starting a successful pumping relationship begins before your little one is ever born. Begin when you inform your employer that you are expecting and would need maternity leave. You will want to know your expected time frame, when you expect to take leave and when you expect to return. Also, inform them that you plan on pumping when you return to work. Dates can be a little tricky as our unborn baby doesn’t always cooperate. It’s okay to tell them that these dates are tentative and based on your child’s birth.

For those living in the US, be sure to check your state laws — so many require that employers allow time for pumping at work. The current federal law can be found on the US Breastfeeding Website. Your state law is always good to understand before speaking with your employer. As these laws are changing, many employers may not stay current. They may offer you the solution that worked for the last pumping mother, which may not follow current laws. Plus, you will want a plan that works for you and not what worked for another. So much more is to come too regarding better laws for working mothers.

It’s important to know that this time can be unpaid time. However, I was always lucky enough to negotiate my pumping time as working time. It’s important to be creative here – can you still work while pumping in a separate room? This ensured that my salary was not lessened while I cared for my little one. Hopefully this changes for all mothers soon!

Talk to Your Employer about Pumping at Work

Discussing with my employer was always a little awkward, but necessary. If you want to successfully pump at work, sometimes you need to discuss awkward things with your boss and co-workers. I made sure that I shared not only my desires for time and location requirements. I also shared what I was willing to do so that I could have my pumping time as well. Then be open to suggestion and feedback throughout your conversation.

I find that going in knowing the state law, work place supports, and your own employee contract language so very helpful. Once you have all this information, think about your perfect plan and then where you are and are not willing to compromise. Knowing these areas will really drive your conversation with your employer while keeping you grounded and focused.

During your meeting, your employer may offer a different plan. That’s okay and you should definitely listen to the plan. Yet, always remember that just because it worked for someone else, does not mean that is what you need. Counter their offer with your nonnegotiable items, those that mean the most to you. Finding a compromise can take time. It’s even okay to try something out and then discuss why this doesn’t work for you. It’s so important to keep the conversation open to discuss your changing needs as a pumping mother.

Be Sure to Find a Safe Place

For location, I always wanted a secluded spot just for me. Sometimes this was a larger closet, locked hallway between two areas, my own classroom, and even a storage room. If you aren’t sure what options might be available, take a walk around your work place. Peek into back areas or even ask one of the maintenance staff to show you around. I promise, they know all the unused places better than your boss.

If there is honestly no extra space, you always can ask to pump in your car. This is a different beast, but definitely doable and possible.

In each instance, I asked for a key and permission to keep my pumping supplies set up in the room. Sometimes I was lucky enough to have a sink and a refrigerator. Other times, I would need to bring ice storage containers to hold my expressed milk and a wash basin for ease of cleanliness. Knowing your planned space ahead of time lets you know what you will need to purchase.

Determine When You Need Breaks

For times, I would ask for time about every 2 to 2.5, sometimes even 3 hours from the moment I left home to the moment I returned home. This really depends on your baby and their nursing schedule when you are home. I try to keep my pumping at work schedule as consistent to my own baby’s eating schedule at home.

I was lucky to have a 5 – 20 minute drive over the course of my pumping times. Some of us have much longer transport times. Many times, I would arrive a little early and use this for pumping. Factor in your driving time when thinking about your first and final pumps of the day before you arrive home. So take a look at your day, pencil in your times needed for pumping while cross checking breaks already built into your day.

For me, this usually meant 3 pumping times a day for about 15 – 20 minutes at a time. I only pumped for about 10 minutes but I needed travel time to my location, prep time, and clean up time. I always tried to schedule my pumping around my lunch whenever possible and the breaks that I naturally had within my day. When this wasn’t possible, I discussed with my employer options for allowing me to continue my pumping times. This sometimes meant a working pumping time where I focused on paperwork, computer work, or even answering e-mails.

If you have a long drive, or an employer who is less than thrilled about providing support, please check out Pumping in the Car. This was never my favorite, but a necessity nonetheless.

Working While Pumping

To ensure pumping did not interfere with my day too much, I discussed with my employer a working pumping time. Sometimes, pumping takes an hour out of your work day which is a considerable decrease in pay if you are unable to negotiate a working pumping time. For this, you will need some special supplies. A hands-free pumping bra is always nice. I loved the bras that were made for wearing, pumping, and nursing so that I didn’t need extra clothes to change into for pumping or nursing.

The Supplies for Pumping at Work

First, a hands-free pumping bra:

A good breast pump is another necessity. We bought a hospital grade breast pump as it allowed me the ease of pumping hands-free with the best output. We bought our pump used on an eBay auction and then purchased all new tubing and pump supplies to ensure a sterile environment for my expressed milk. Be sure to try to buy preowned from a hospital or a site like ebay if you want to go this route and save a little money. These run around $2000 on amazon.

Finally, you will want a way to work while pumping at work. This might be a table or cart in your pumping space so that you are able to complete tasks. I found that I needed a space for my computer as this was how I managed a working pump break. I also needed a portable laptop or tablet to bring with me down to my pumping area. Always keep in mind what you need to carry between your desk and your pumping area. This was a big reason I always asked to store my pump and supplies in my area, but if you use a communal area this may not be possible.

Make Pumping Easier

Finally, I suggest keeping a separate set of supplies for each time you pump at work. For me, I usually pumped three times at work for the first 7 months of my baby’s life and then 2 times at work after my little one was 7 months. So, I had 3 sets of pumping supplies and usually a fourth set that I kept at home for pumping at home or emergencies.

Why the change in amount of pumping sessions? Well, my little one usually started eating solid foods at about 6 months of age. We would schedule most of her solid food meals for when I was at work and then most of her milk meals for when I was home. This allowed us to continue breastfeeding much longer than otherwise.

Why Multiple Sets of Pumping Supplies?

Having 3 sets allowed me to use a clean set each time I pumped to ensure that my milk was not contaminated for my little one and then thoroughly clean my pumping supplies each evening after returning home. This included the flanges, connectors, valves, membranes, and bottles. This saved so much time since I didn’t need to clean my sets more than a quick rinse in-between sessions. I would keep my milk in a smaller cooler or a refrigerator in the bottles instead of transferring to breastmilk bags for ease for me. However, they also make breastmilk bags that connect right to your connectors so that there would be no transfer.

I used the little cooler that came with my breastpump. The black cooler with blue ice packs that went in the center. This would hold up to 4 bottles each day. If you pump more than 24oz a day, you may need to have 2 coolers or use the 8oz bottles to get 32oz. This was never a problem for me because I never pumped 24oz in a day.

I also bought a plastic container to carry all my pump materials to and from work. In addition, I would keep extra baby blankets or light towels in the container so that I could bring home my used pump items that I washed and rinsed at work. This container doubled as my wash basin when I was unable to be located near a sink for easy clean.

Final Thoughts on Pumping at Work

Discussing with my employer early and ensuring that I had the right materials was the plan that worked for me to continue my breastfeeding relationship until each of my children was ready to wean. As you begin to create your own plan, remember there is no right or wrong answer. You need to do what works for you and your little one.

Some women pump once a day and that is enough. Some women need to pump more often. Moreover, some women breastfeed their child more at home and forego the pumping at work (think of this as your 8 hours of sleep). Find what works for your family and be open to change as your body and the needs of your little one change.

For those of you pumping at work or who have pumped while working, leave us a comment below with your best tips. We’d love to celebrate your journey with you!

Hi, I’m Nicole.

Here at Creatingbutterflies we provide families with practical solutions to real life problems for everything parenting, scouting, dual language, and enjoying time outdoors. We are a family of 6 with 4 wonderful becoming bilingual children who loves scouting, camping, and hiking with their family. Mom is an educator and dad is a firefighter/paramedic.