This book is a "must have" for any nursing mommas going back to work and hoping to continue the breastfeeding relationship. I wish I had had this book when my first daughter was born and I went back to work. I felt so alone in my extremely challenging endeavor of pumping and working. If I had had this book, I would have felt supported, vindicated, inspired, and most of all, would have had the collective wisdom of other women who've learned how to make it work.
I now plan to buy this book for all my friends who are having babies and planning to continue their careers out of the home. I would also recommend Working Without Weaning but if you're only going to buy one book, this one will tell you most everything you need and it's so darn affordable! It's also well written and backed up by research.
Hurray for a couple of super-moms who managed to pump AND work AND somehow find time to write a book! Most books are written by stay-at-home moms who could never understand the pump/work dynamic. (No offense to them but even my local LLL leader couldn't help me because she has never experienced working out of the home 40 hrs/wk, away from her baby, dealing with pumping and storing milk and all the rest.
This book covers everything from starting the breastfeeding relationship on the right foot, introducing bottles, buying the right pump, negotiating time/space with your employer, sleep-deprivation, anxiety about being separated from your baby, the challenge of juggling career and family priorities, the challenge of being perceived as "less productive" at work now that you're juggling everything else. It has a nice balance of informative narrative from the authors, interspersed between the journal entries of the "Milk Mamas" group sharing the lactation room at IBM. I wish I had colleagues in my workplace to share this kind of journal with but reading their comments made me feel like I was not alone in my struggles.
Unlike other books I encountered, this book does not start from the premise that new moms should consider quitting their job or giving up their careers. It starts with the understanding that you are going back to work, either by choice or necessity, and aims to give you all the tools you need to successfully continue providing your baby with breastmilk for as long as you want to. Towards the end, it addresses the potential alternatives such as flex schedules, part time work, or putting your career on hold. But it doesn't start off making you feel like you're a bad mother if you go back to work.
Now that I've read this book (and a couple others), I just know I'm going to be more successful with pumping and working this time around with my second baby. In retrospect, it helped me see that I actually did a pretty good job the first time around (100% breastmilk until 6 months; daughter weened herself at 9 months when my milk supply dried up). I just felt like such a failure and like I lacked the kind of support I needed.
Definitely buy this book NOW and read it cover to cover if you are going to be a working mom! You'll enjoy and appreciate it.
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Reviews with images
Very helpful and enjoyable read
This book helped me feel more confident in the weeks leading up to my return to work. It's a must read. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it with my little guy nestled on my chest after a nursing session.
Top reviews from other countries
A L Britton
Bulked out advice you may as well google.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 2, 2021
