wonk more hs and breastfeed, or pump and work less?

[@llli*sandykassia]

Hi,
my baby is 3m2w and i am going back to work on Wed.
I have 2 options:
1. work 4.5 to 5hs a day (4 days a week) and pump/send milk
2. work around 6hs a day (4 days a week) and go to day care every 2hs to breastfeed (of course sending some milk to hold in case i am late (occasionaly i would be held up and increase the interval to 2.5hs).

What do you think?
Day care seems to think it might make adaptation and routine harder i i stop by every few hours (but will accept if i do so

Also, i chose 4 days a week because i felt it would be better to stay home one extra day... BUT I could work 5 days a week for 3.5hs a day if pumping, or about 4.5hs a day if feeding at day care. Would that be better?

thanks

[@llli*auderey]

to me, it depends on what your work is and how mentally into it you need to be. i am a writer, so when i'm working, i can & need to block out everything else. i also do well with regular routine, so i might be inclined to do the 5 x 3.5 days and pump once in the middle of that. but it depends a lot on what your work is, how interrupting it will be to leave or to pump, and your personality. overall, nursing is easier than pumping, but if you're just going to be pumping once a day, that's not so bad either. and depending on your pumping yield, you might be able to get away with nursing right before you work, pumping in the middle, nursing at pickup, even for a 6 hour shift, and much more likely for a 4.5 hour shift.

[@llli*sandykassia]

I am a physical therapist working with homecare.
So I do 30-40 min sessions, and drive to the next house.
If I do pump, I will probably pump while driving or do small breaks at gas stations. If I go breasfeed, I will add a visit or two to day care in between patients

[@llli*mer.mer]

I work as an ST in outpatient setting. I work 10 hour days with a hour long lunch. I make sure to bring DS early enough so I can nurse him at the DCP then leave to work. I come back at noon to 1 for a feeding and then nurse again usually in the parking lot cuz they are closing around 530. We just started this schedule (he previously was with a sitter too far to go to). I really like it no I LOVE IT. Currently I have two half days and 3 full. If it were me... I think I'd go for the four days for 4.5 to 5hrs (sounds like my current half days) pump once and nurse the rest. Before DS started here I was having to pump at least twice for the same amount of time sometimes 3 but that was mostly to keep from getting engorged rather than getting enough to cover what he took in. I would just play with it and not worry about figuring it out all at once. See what works for you because it will change.

[@llli*djs.mom]

I would pump and work less. That way she doesn't have to say good bye to you 3 times a day. She gets into her groove with her DCP and she knows that when she is with her, food comes from a bottle and when she is with you, it comes from the tap.

[@llli*elaina]

How awesome that you can be so flexible! If it were me, I would opt to nurse at or right before drop off, pump in the middle and nurse at pickup or right after like a PP suggested. That leaves a smaller chunk of away time and a bigger chunk of undivided time.

Do whatever you think will work best for you and your babe. Good luck!

[@llli*joe.s.mom]

Or you could start out by visiting and breastfeeding, especially if your LO is having a hard time adjusting to the bottle, and then later do the pumping thing ... it's nice that you have that flexibility.

[@llli*goldentoes]

Honestly when I came back to work I thought I would go over once a day to nurse - daycare is "on campus" and it sounded so easy! But the reality is that between pump breaks and trying to do my job, if I went over I would NEVER get anything done. Since you'll be driving to the different appointments, I would be hesitant to try and go nurse her at daycare, because you may be varied distances from DC at any given time, or an appointment may run over, or the time commitment of doing it might surprise you quite a bit and interfere with your job. I also think that at daycare they tend to develop good routines, so it might be best to let that establish itself. Overall though I think that opting to work slightly shorter days and pumping/supplying them with milk will be the less stressful option for you.

[@llli*sandykassia]

Thank you all for your opinions!
I started working last week. last week I worked 2 days for 2.5hs. So she didn't eat at day care, but I did not care because she was probably not hungry.
Then Monday I was out for 3hs and again she nursed right before and right after.
On tuesday I was held up and spent 4.5hs away. I got a call half an hour before I got there (so 4hs since last meal) saying that my baby had been crying for an HOUR, seemed hungry but would not take the bottle. When I finally got there (30 min later) she had finally decided to eat and was drinking.
BUT the whole idea of her crying of hunger for 1hr is extremely disturbing to me. I even talked to hubby about re-financing our home so I maybe could stay home a little more.
I don't know what to do. With my first daughter she would go without eat at times but did not cry of hunger.
Any suggestions?

[@llli*auderey]

You have to figure out what is best for your family, in terms of working, but if you need or want to work - for money, for your mental health, for cognitive engagement, whatever - it is OK for you to work. Your baby will figure things out and she will be ok. I am all for minimizing crying at all opportunities, but partly that's because sometimes baby will cry and I *can't* do anything about it. Like maybe this time, for you. It is also ok for you to decide you don't want to work, now, so much, or not yet. Remember that Tues was essentially the first time she had ever needed to take a bottle at day care without you - so it seems to me an hour of crying before taking the bottle actually bodes pretty well for how she will adjust if she continues to need to eat there. And her DCP will get better at reading her cues, etc. Hang in there, whatever you decide to do!