Weaning when going back to work
You have already given your baby the most wonderful gift by choosing to breastfeed. Now you may be wondering what to do when you return to work. It can be an emotional transition to wean your breastfed baby to the bottle. We spoke to Jane Barry who is a Registered Nurse, Midwife and Child Health Nurse as well as Philips AVENT’s baby feeding and well being adviser and creator of mybabybaby.com.au to give you some reliable tips on going back to work and feeding your baby.
From breast to bottle
After breastfeeding has stopped, you may worry that the close emotional bond you shared with your baby will end as well. You may also wonder how you can recreate those special moments and physical closeness which are an intrinsic part of breastfeeding. Try not to set your standards for mothering so high that they can’t be met. We all want to be wonderful mothers and have ideals which we badly want to achieve. But life sometimes gets in the way and for all sorts of reasons, we need to adapt and change. Going through the processes involved in transitions like going back to work, helps to build our resilience and coping abilities and in turn, may be less likely to experience depression or other issues related to maternal adjustment.
Start the weaning process by expressing your milk after every breastfeed and storing it in an enclosed container in the freezer. Continue for the next month if you can as this will give you time to reassess whether you plan to continue expressing or move to formula. If your baby is used to breastfeeding they may need to adjust to the changes required in sucking from a bottle. Give them time and plenty of practice to do this. For babies who are used to frequent small breastfeeds, it can take a few days to a week for them to accept larger volumes of milk from a bottle.
Make sure you feed your baby from bottles and teats which are suitable for their age and size. A rapid flowing teat can create problems with wind, and feeding times which are too fast and rushed. Similarly, a teat that is too slow can create frustration and lack of feeding interest from your baby. Try the Philips Avent Natural range of feeding bottles that have teats similar to the shape of the breast for a more natural feed. The teats are conveniently numbered on the side to indicate flow rate, as some baby’s tend to suck harder than others. It also offers a soft silicon teat with built-in valve, which helps to reduce colic. When selecting the size of the teat for your baby, Philips Avent has made it easy with clear labelling on its packaging indicating the flow rate based on the baby’s age:
Tips for Expressing
The truth is that some women find expressing to be easy and others just don’t. The mechanics of expressing, being organised, managing the pump, bottles and storage of breast milk may all impact on how you perceive the whole experience.
The number one factor that can influence the success of breast milk expression is your attitude. Feeling confident and believing that expressing your breast milk and feeding this to your baby is the best thing you can do will impact on your expressing success. This is the case no matter what volume of milk you can obtain. Manual breast pumps are ideal when there is no power source available and they are also very portable. Because of this, they are often used by mums who need to express at work. The Philips Comfort manual breast pump is a comfortable pump with soft massage cushions with a warm feel for gentle let-down stimulation. It also includes a Philips Natural feeding bottle and teat to easily combine breast and bottle feeding.
When expressing at work, be very familiar with how you will store your milk at work and then transport it home. If you wear a dress to work, then think about the practicalities of accessing your breasts for expressing. A buttoned up blouse or top with pants/skirt is better. Also, establish which fridge you’ll be using at work to store your milk. Think about labelling this just to avoid any confusion with your work colleagues.
Storing expressed breast milk
Freshly expressed breast milk (EBM) is best used within 6-8 hours at room temperature however it can be safely stored in the fridge for three days. EBM may be kept in a bottle, storage bag or other container and stored in the freezer for up to three months. The Philips Avent milk storage feeding system for its versatility and designed to space save. It allows you to use the same cup to express, store and feed breast milk to your baby plus the cup fits all Philips Avent breast pumps and teats.
If you’re expressing at work, have an insulated bag with you when expressing so you can place the EBM in it straightaway before storing in the fridge. This means your bottles of milk aren’t on show for all to see at work.
Article written by Jane Barry on behalf of Philips Avent. For more information please visit https://www.facebook.com/Philips.AVENT.Australia
