Breastfeeding is a full-time job in itself, so the thought of having to add that into (non-existent) breaks at your already full-time job can seem very daunting.

My first weeks back at work I could not figure out how to pump effectively, so as a result, we blew through almost my entire freezer stash that I spent my whole maternity leave building. 3 months work of milk and pumping was gone. What now? I panicked when we got down to the last few bags. With 2 pump breaks during my 10-hour shift, I was only able to get about 10 oz total. With Grayson eating at least 21oz of milk with our nanny, I wasn’t sure what I was going to do. I knew I needed to get a strategy in place to maximize my output.

I realized that by just using the frozen stash I was being very reactive instead of proactive about my pumping. So I needed to come up with a plan that would start from the bottom up.

1. I needed to increase my supply

I started aggressively Googling, looking for every milk production trick that I could find. Everything from foods, to supplements, to powders, to tea. I got my hands on everything. Lactation cookies, Mothers Milk tea, fenugreek drink mix, protein powder, GoLacta capsules, literally everything. I was drinking well over 100 ounces of water every day as well. This was a great first step as I realized that I was feeling more engorged more often.

2. I needed to invest in pumping bras

On maternity leave, I was used to just pumping one side at a time, so I could just hold the pump in place. However, now that I needed to do both at once, holding them was just not very realistic. The first couple weeks at work, I tried to hold the pump in place and was so stressed about them falling off or the suction not being efficient that my letdown took forever! Once I bought a pumping bra and was able to let go of some of that stress and be more hands-free, I saw a huge improvement! I was able to get over 5 more ounces every day! Which was a huge deal for me! Well worth the $40 spent.

3. I needed a fast and effective way to clean my pump

As I need to clock out for my pump breaks, I try to make everything as fast as possible. Washing and drying all of the pump parts was taking forever, so I was getting more frustrated with being off the clock for longer than I wanted. I found amazing pump wipes from Medela that are perfectly sanitizing and sterile without the need for water. You just wipe down the parts, let it dry, and you are good to go. This was perfect for my 2 pump breaks! *I still fully wash and sanitize my pump parts every night after work* But just during the shift, this method was ideal because it cut like 10-15 minutes off each break!

4. I needed to trick my body into thinking Grayson was hungry

As I am away from Grayson, my let down does not always come easy. Afterall, pumps are not as effective as baby himself. So I watch videos, look at pictures, or even FaceTime him while I’m at work. I found the best way to go through all the photos of him was to use a slideshow on my phone. Because iPhones automatically sort people by their faces, there was already an album of just Grayson. It also creates a video and puts everything together which eliminates the need to swipe through all the photos on my phone.

5. I needed to stimulate my let down faster

Now this is where I feel a little (a lot) like a dairy cow… The most effective way I’ve found to get my let down faster was to literally just squeeze the milk out. I have the pump going but sometimes it would take way too long for milk to actually come out. So I decided to give a little nudge in the right direction. Believe me, a little massage (more like aggressive squeezing) goes a long way! The milk comes shooting out and triggers a great let down.

Since I’ve implemented all these changes, I’ve been able to almost keep up with Grayson’s milk needs. I still lack about 3 or 4 ounces every day, but that is a huge improvement from where I was at. I am able to replenish the freezer stash by pumping on my days off or before I go to work. Usually, just one pump on each day off is enough to keep us even. Thankfully I’m able to generally get 2 pump sessions in every day, so the freezer stash is slowly coming back! Yay!