Breastfeeding or Working?

If your baby is being exclusively fed by breast milk he will not easily accept any substitute. This causes somewhat of a complicated situation, if on top of breastfeeding you are working outside of your home. Your dilemma is the one of many mothers’, because on one side you worry that your baby is fed well during the hours that you are working, but at the same time you cannot interrupt your work life to dedicate yourself exclusively to him. This is one of the biggest worries of mothers that combine breastfeeding with their professional lives.

In this case, your husband, grandmas, nanny’s or people taking care of the can help you in the feeding of the baby, by giving the baby the breast milk that you had previously pumped with a breast pump.

If you are in the house when someone else is going to feed your baby with the bottle, try not to be in the same room, since your baby will be able to see you or feel your presence, and will most likely resist the bottle and want to breastfeed.

Ask the person substituting you to sit in a different place from where you normally breastfeed your baby, since your baby will associate this place or chair with you, and feeding time will become interrupted again.

Be patient. Each person has his or her own particular way of bottle feeding, and this means that your baby will need to get used to it before accepting the difference.

It is recommended that both first practice the best technique, and better yet if when the training is being done that the baby is not too hungry. Patience is the key in this process, since not even the hungriest baby will accept the bottle from one day to another. You can go trying what adjusts better to your baby, try, for example, with different bottle nipples and experiment with different sizes of holes in the nipple, to see if the milk flow that comes out adjusts to the baby’s needs.

If your baby is six months or older and completely denies accepting the bottle, try offering milk from a cup or giving it to the baby in teaspoons. You can use special baby cups with mouthpieces, which are designed specifically for babies.

If the baby were to accept drinking from a cup, keep the following things in mind:

• The baby should practically be sitting on your legs.
• Offer the baby a sip, wait and then give him a little more. Continue rhythmically until the baby finishes the milk.
• If this alternative also fails, the baby can be fed baby food while you are not home and drink milk when you get home.
• Organize yourself so that your baby continues drinking milk in your absence.
• You will need to choose the hour that most accommodates you in the office: going into the office one hour late and leaving an hour early. You can develop the stimulation activities in the morning or choose the night bath. If you live near your work place and have someone who can bring the baby to you, you can breastfeed your baby then. The important thing in this stage is not the amount of hours you spend with your baby, but rather the quality of time you dedicate to your baby.