I need advice...Exclusivly pumping and working 24hr shifts

So when I go back on 03/07/10 I will be working 3-24hr shifts every 2weeks. This is normal for me and not an issue except i'm exclusivly pumping. I'm worried my supply will go down if I can't pump as much at work. There will be times it could be hours and I may get interupted 2min, 5min, or 10min into it. I have about 250oz in the freezer but even that is only a little over a month's worth. My question is should I consider formula? I also worry about engorgment. I can't be leaking everywhere on calls. I just worry that after 6 or 7 hrs of not being able to pump i'll explode a lil. WWYD

Re: I need advice...Exclusivly pumping and working 24hr shifts

There's no way you can have a 15 minute break every 2 to 3 hours in the first few months? Then as the baby gets older have the breaks every 3 to 4 hours? Could you talk to your boss to work something out? I know in the beginning if I didn't pump or nurse every 2-3 hours I would immediately feel engorged. I know theres some type of law in NY that lets you pump in the workplace. I would look into it, bring it to your boss' attention and see what happens. Good luck, being a working/nursing mom is hard!

Re: I need advice...Exclusivly pumping and working 24hr shifts

See what happens. By the time you go back to work, your supply should be well established, so skipping one or two sessions every once in awhile won't really affect it.
Even if you only get to pump for 5-10 min and get a call, it will be enough to keep your supply up.

Re: I need advice...Exclusivly pumping and working 24hr shifts

I pretty much exclusively pumped..I nursed in the morning until my both my DCs turned 1.

I trained my body to only need to pump 3 times after 6 months (I think)! I would pump 1.5-2 bottles worth per pump and that was enough for a daily supply...it is def poss! just really do all you can to drain as much as you can in each pump...I pumped 20 min each session and massaged the breasts the whole time to help drain it even more!

good luck!

Re: I need advice...Exclusivly pumping and working 24hr shifts

If you are only working 3 - 24hr days and are able to pump normally the other 11 days, you will be fine. I would pump four times a day every day except Saturday. I had to work and my Sat job didn't really have a place for me to pump. So I would pump before I left for work and not pump again til 3 or 4pm. So I would go 9 or 10 hours w/o pumping every saturday. This never affected by supply but yes I was supper engorged the first few weeks, but after a while my body knew that I would not be pumping til the afternoon and the engorgement was no more.

Re: I need advice...Exclusivly pumping and working 24hr shifts

i think you will be ok if you have a good supply now. Just keep doing what you are doing and try to stay relaxed about it, since your supply will dip if you're stressed. You can try eating oatmeal, taking fenugreek, etc on days when you might not pump as much.

The other thing you could do is try adding an extra pumping session sometime during the days you're not working a 24 hour shift (not sure how many times per day you pump now) to try to get a little extra in the freezer.

Keep an open mind and if you do find yourself needing to use formula, it's not the end of the world either

Re: I need advice...Exclusivly pumping and working 24hr shifts

Definitely get a hand pump-mine was a lifesaver. I was able to pumo 20 oz in 10 minutes on a long car ride we took. I had a great supply for a while which it seems like you do too. The only thing I would say to watch out for is getting AF. My supply severely dipped luckily I had almost reached my goal(6 months) and was able to transition to Good Start

Re: I need advice...Exclusivly pumping and working 24hr shifts

Thanks ladies...I have the hospital grade pump at home and i'm doing it every 2-3hrs, but from 0100-0700 I sleep since Joe does that feeing. I have the PIS original for work and ect. I have plenty of "time" at work to pump, but I am a paramedic so I could be just starting, in the middle, or 10minutes from needing to pump when we could get a call. That's my concern. I'm also working in a more rural area so the average call time from start to finish is about 2-4hrs. I have no shame so i'll just get into the back of the truck and pump when we're heading to our bases.


I was more worried an=bout being full, but at the least I can add ice packs on t he way to the call if I need to.

Re: I need advice...Exclusivly pumping and working 24hr shifts

I exclusively pump. I gradually increased the amount of time that I can go between sessions. For the first month I pumped every 3 hours, day and night. During the second month I went to 4 hours during the day and a longer stretch of 6 hours at night once DS started sleeping better. Now DS is 3 months and I pump 5X a day and I am able to go 10 hours at night. I usually pump at 11pm before bed and pump around 8 or 9 am. My breasts are definitely full, but it's not totally uncomfortable. I would have never been able to go this long in the beginning. Your body adjusts to your needs.

Re: I need advice...Exclusivly pumping and working 24hr shifts

Once your supply becomes established you shouldn't have to worry about engourgement that much. At least I don't. See how it goes. I made it to 8 months without formula but, once AF returned I had to supplement.

Re: I need advice...Exclusivly pumping and working 24hr shifts