Lately work has been kicking my ass, and I think my boobs are starting to notice.
Sticking to my pumping schedule has enabled me to keep up my supply, but when things get hectic, my schedule falls apart. Instead of pumping every 3-4 hours, I start going 5-6 hours between pumping sessions. I’m not even sure how it happens half the time. I’ll be at my desk and I’ll think to myself, ok, I need to pump in about 30 minutes. Next thing I know, an hour has gone by and I’m in the middle of some SuperImportantMustGetDoneNOW project and then suddenly it’s not just an hour, now it’s a couple hours and crap, I did it again.
The first few days this happened I figured were the exception to the rule. I went back to my normal pumping schedule, and sure enough, my supply stayed the same.
But then I would slip up again. And again. And I realized that I wasn’t producing as much as I was before. How much less are we talking? I used to pump 14-16 ounces while I was at work (two pumping sessions). Today I only managed 12 ounces. By some standards, that’s still a lot, but a two ounce reduction? Not cool. Not cool at all.
I’ve been trying to brainstorm ways to improve my time management. I came up with a few ideas:
- Bribe myself with chocolate. Hey, if Pavlov can do it, why can’t I?
- Set an Outlook reminder so I can ignore it along with all the rest of my Outlook reminders.
- Hire a masseuse for my pump cave. I can expense that, right?
- Win the lottery. That won’t exactly make me pump more often, but I won’t have to work, which should free up about 45 hours a week.
Or, just admit I gotta kick my own butt into gear and make pumping a priority. I think maybe I’ll add some new pictures of Levi to my photo wall next week. I’m doing this for him, after all - maybe a little extra reminder will help me carve out time to bond with my breast pump.
It IS very hard to find the time at work. I often find myself in a meeting, or working on a project, and realize that I'm late for my date with my pump. It can be awkward to excuse yourself, but everyone at work knows I pump, so I try to just be very matter-of-fact about it. "Sorry guys, gotta go feed the baby, I'll be right back." Luckily, we are far enough along now that I only pump once a day, around 2 pm. As much as I think it's a drag now, I'll miss it when I'm done. I know it.
My advice for time management? I got nothin'. It's just constant juggling…but you're doing great! Just try to keep making that pump the priority (instead of BFing being the obstacle to work) and you'll reach any goal you set. You go, pumptastic mama!!
Thanks! Luckily, my coworkers are super awesome and always tell me to take as much time as I need. I just gotta listen to them more.
I'm thankful I didn't return to work. I barely could manage taking lunch consistently. When I was pregnant it was often difficult to keep up with my meal/snack schedule – which I had to due to gestational diabetes. Good for you to keep it up & I'm sure more pics will help remind you of the schedule.
I'm jealous – I wish I could stay home
It's tough. When I went back to work after the twins I did three sessions a shift, then 2, because I wasn't interacting with my team as much and needed the bonding to get back into synch. THis time around I said screw the bonding and went for 3 sessions until I was able to get it down to 2 sessions a night without a drop in output. I was also working 8 hour shitfs as opposed to the 10 hours when I had the boys, so it worked just fine. I get so tired of pumping though. I don't know how you do it. My best friend EP's for her daughter for a year and I just don't know how- it's amazing. It's so tempting to get off schedule just a litle bit and it's so easy to run over by 10-15 minutes and then it's an hour and then you've skipped a session….hats off to you!
Wow, 3 a shift? I feel like I should do more, but since my production is keeping up with what Levi eats, I'm ok with where I'm at.