11 Tips to Prep for Pumping on the Road

11-tips-for-prep-for-pumping-on-the-road

Guest Post by Megan Ann

One of my favorite parts about blogging is meeting other mommy bloggers and learning from them. It is a vast community of support and nothing but love. All bloggers have their own style, experience to offer, and view on things which keeps life interesting.

I am honored to feature one of those bloggers today, Megan Ann. She writes over at MyMomsBest.us which is a great blog about a wide variety of topics related to parenting. Thank you, Megan, for taking the time to share your knowledge with us!

~Heather Grace

There are basically two main reasons why you need to pump your milk. You need to collect and store your milk to satisfy your baby’s hunger even if you are not around to literally breastfeed him. Even if you are just home, someone else can feed your baby with your breast milk if you have a pre-collected supply. Pumping also enables you to maintain your steady supply of milk. Pumping milk can be a challenge for working moms. The challenge increases when just like me, your work requires you to be frequently on the road or in the air. Let me share with you then 11 tips to prep for pumping on the road which has helped me a lot. This

Pumping milk can be a challenge for working moms. The challenge increases when, just like me, your work requires you to be frequently on the road or in the air. Let me share with you then 11 tips to prep for pumping on the road which has helped me a lot.

To get us started, this video features some excellent tips on how to travel with breast milk:

1 – Join an Online Support Group of Nursing Moms

If you are a first time mom or will be traveling for the first time while nursing, joining online forums of moms with your exact situation is most helpful. It should be easy to find such online forums as there are a lot of nursing and working moms. Sharing of thoughts and tips and gaining insights from more experienced moms will give you the much-needed assurance that you will do just fine.

2 – Let Your Employer Know that You are a Nursing Mom

discussing-pumping-at-work Let your employer know that you are a nursing mom and you need to pump while on the trip so he/she can help you make the necessary arrangements. If you are off to a conference, it would be best if you could be booked at the same hotel of the conference venue. This way, you can easily slip out of the conference to go up to your room when it is time to pump your milk.

(Related: How to talk to your employer about Pumping at Work)

3 – Do Extra Pumping Sessions Before You Leave

The moment you know how long you will be gone, do some additional pumping sessions. It would be best to have several bottles for at least a day or two ready in your home fridge. This will make sure your baby does not run out of milk while you are still working on getting settled in your hotel or until such time that you can send some pumped milk to reinforce the supply you left.

(Related: How to Build a Freezer Stash of Breast Milk)

4 – Prepare Things You Need to Bring on the Trip

Make a list of the things you need and pack a few days before your trip. When you are pressed for time and panicking, chances are you will forget some of the things you need to take with you. It would also be nice to include a photo of your baby to get you relaxed while pumping. Here is a list of things you need to pack:

Need a great & Portable Pump? Check out the Spectra S1!

Breast Pump
Pump parts
A nursing cover
Nipple shields
An ideal nursing bra
Wipes for yourself and the pump parts
A small cooler
Ice Packs
Sterile and safe plastic bags
Storage bags for milk

This is a basic list. You can add more depending on your own specific need.

5 – Do a Dry-run

Before leaving on your trip, do a dry-run by going out and observing how your baby and the household will do without you. Observe closely how the family member or any person who will be in-charge of your baby will do while you are gone. Observe too, how much milk your baby will consume so you know how much to leave behind and how much to send home. introducing-bottle-to-breastfed-baby

6 – Read up on Your Hotel

Check online the amenities of the hotel which will be helpful to your pumping. Make sure your room has a mini ref where you can store your pumped milk. Check, too how far away your room is from the conference venue.

7- Plan How You are Going to Send Pumped Milk Home

If you will be away for more than 3 to 4 days, it would be wise to coordinate with your company so you can make use of their courier service. This will be a lot cheaper to transport your pumped milk. If you will be gone for just a couple of days, you may opt to bring pumped milk home yourself. Since time may be of the essence, you could request for a direct flight or take the fastest route home.

8 – Check Airport Regulations and Support for Nursing Mothers

United States airports fully support nursing mothers whether or not they are traveling with their babies. Thus you will be allowed to have in your carry-on luggage a breast pump and pumped milk. To swift through security, advise them ahead of time that you will be carrying a breast pump. Check if this can be done upon booking and confirming your flight. When going through the X-ray machine, tell the security officer that you have a breast pump with you. Be prepared for the checking hassles though should he insist on opening and checking your luggage.

9- Planning Your Pumping Schedule While En Route

There may be instances when you need to pump while you are at the airport or while flying. Do research on the airport you will be embarking from and check for comfort rooms with electrical outlets. Some airports have special lounges for nursing mothers. You may want to check that out, too. If you plan to pump while onboard, check the airline if they have a special seat for pumping mothers. It may be wise to get that seat upon check-in.

10 – Get Your Household Ready

Being on a trip is completely different from being at work for the day. Your family members like your husband, mom or mother-in-law should be ready as well. Well, anyone you are going to leave your baby with while you are gone should be ready. Some babies turn unruly upon noticing that their mom has been away for some time.

11 – Prepare Yourself for the Challenging Task

You have done your research, prepared everything you need and have readied your household. You have everything covered. Are you ready for the challenging task of pumping milk while on a trip? Can you multi-task? Condition yourself for the challenging task ahead. You are a super mom, right? You and your baby will be just fine!

It is extremely challenging to be a working mom. However, in this equally challenging world we live in, we just have no choice but to go along with the tide. Your job should not get in the way of feeding your baby breast milk. Pumping while on a trip may be difficult but when you are doing it for the welfare and well-being of your baby, it will be worth all the effort.

I hope I have shared what I have learned so far as a working and nursing mom. The tips I presented above have helped me keep my baby on breast milk while I am on a trip. Do you have some tips you would like to share with us, too? Share some of your thoughts in the comments section.

About the Author

She is Megan Ann and She is chatting about parenting, family friendly activities, yummy recipes, family travel, and living a life full of love and laughter. She tries to write useful and informative articles to help you as much as she can with her knowledge about parenting. Check out http://mymomsbest.us to learn more about her work.

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