I went back to work when baby J was just 2.5 months old. Naturally, it was a very difficult time for me since that was the first time I had to leave the baby for hours at a time. What made it even more difficult was the fact that baby J has been exclusively breastfed since birth. And knowing the many benefits of breastfeeding, I have already decided to breastfeed her for as long as I have milk to offer.
Balancing a full-time job (with frequent travelling involved) and being a full-time breastfeeding, hands-on mom has been the most difficult challenge I had to face. If we had tons and tons of money, I would have let my career take a back seat and be a stay at home mom until baby J was old enough to enter pre-school. But who am I kidding, I would probably have missed working also if I did that, plus the fact that the hubby and I now have a mini human being to raise and give the best possible future to. So, of course, the extra income would go a long way for the little one.
So, it was off to work I went with my handy electronic breastpump complete with the ice pack and insulated bag. Lucky for me, the office was very close to our house, so I would go home for lunch to feed baby J when time permitted. On busy days, I would express milk 2-3 times in the office, leave everything in the office freezer, and just get it before I went home. Usually, by the time I bring it home, the milk has been frozen already.
My greatest fear with expressing breastmilk is its "life expectancy". I did not want to give baby J spoiled milk, at the same time, I did not want to waste a single drop of breastmilk (all breastfeeding moms would understand this!). With this in mind, I stumbled across the guidelines from La Leche League regarding storage of breastmilk. Check the link below if you are unsure.
http://www.llli.org/faq/milkstorage.html
Difficult as it is to work and fully breastfeed baby J, we have successfully managed to do it for the last 15 months! I am proud to say that baby J is still breastfed (and eating solids, of course), and we will keep going until she decides to stop wanting it (at the rate we are going, I don't see her wanting to stop anytime soon).
All moms want the best for their kids. Since breastfeeding is best for babies, that is what I am giving her! Thankfully, I have been blessed with very good milk supply. So, if you have good milk supply, just go for it. Know that there are millions of women out there with the same situation as you.
Balancing a full-time job (with frequent travelling involved) and being a full-time breastfeeding, hands-on mom has been the most difficult challenge I had to face. If we had tons and tons of money, I would have let my career take a back seat and be a stay at home mom until baby J was old enough to enter pre-school. But who am I kidding, I would probably have missed working also if I did that, plus the fact that the hubby and I now have a mini human being to raise and give the best possible future to. So, of course, the extra income would go a long way for the little one.
So, it was off to work I went with my handy electronic breastpump complete with the ice pack and insulated bag. Lucky for me, the office was very close to our house, so I would go home for lunch to feed baby J when time permitted. On busy days, I would express milk 2-3 times in the office, leave everything in the office freezer, and just get it before I went home. Usually, by the time I bring it home, the milk has been frozen already.
My greatest fear with expressing breastmilk is its "life expectancy". I did not want to give baby J spoiled milk, at the same time, I did not want to waste a single drop of breastmilk (all breastfeeding moms would understand this!). With this in mind, I stumbled across the guidelines from La Leche League regarding storage of breastmilk. Check the link below if you are unsure.
http://www.llli.org/faq/milkstorage.html
Difficult as it is to work and fully breastfeed baby J, we have successfully managed to do it for the last 15 months! I am proud to say that baby J is still breastfed (and eating solids, of course), and we will keep going until she decides to stop wanting it (at the rate we are going, I don't see her wanting to stop anytime soon).
All moms want the best for their kids. Since breastfeeding is best for babies, that is what I am giving her! Thankfully, I have been blessed with very good milk supply. So, if you have good milk supply, just go for it. Know that there are millions of women out there with the same situation as you.
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