I heard recently there has been a downswing in the number of nursing mothers, especially those in corporate jobs. Anecdotally, a friend of mine who delivers care packages to new moms has noticed fewer moms in general seem to appreciate the breast pads and lanolin cream, instead snapping up the pre-mixed formula and bottle nibs. Now, not that my own experience with breastfeeding was so spectacular (a pathetic and painful six month struggle with each of my three children), but I worry about how much the work environment is playing a role in the choice professional moms make. Let me just say for the record I am not advocating either breast or bottle feeding over the other, I am merely conjecturing on how the workplace may play a role in impacting the choice or the sustainability of breastfeeding for professional moms.
When I was nursing my first, I returned to work quite quickly (8 weeks later) and dutifully carried my Medela double electric breast pump back and forth. I would install a “do not disturb” sign on my office door and my mostly male colleagues knew to stay away. So privacy was not an issue. The same company had a “mothering room” for breastfeeding employees, which attracted a really cozy coven of nursing comrades, but it was two buildings away and, after all, I had an office with a door. My second nursing experience was not as nice. It was a different company, and my office walls were glass. My options were the restroom or the executive shower room which my male peers frequented after using the gym, (apparently the gym showers were inadequate for their needs) and in which their soiled athletic wear and smelly shoes were loosely scattered. Heck, at least there was an outlet! On my “do not disturb” sign one of my comedic colleagues detailed the “top ten” reasons why entry was ill-advised.
While many more companies are becoming savvy to the privacy needs of nursing mothers, I think there are other challenges, too. For one thing, these crazy, back-to-back meeting schedules with barely enough time to travel between venues, let alone for a bio break, make it tough to keep pumping (necessary if you want to sustain adequate milk supply). Even with my super fast double pump, I needed a 15 minute break every three hours. While I became pretty efficient with my time during the un-tethered work intervals, I flinchingly recall those long meetings where someone endlessly pontificated until I thought my chest would explode. Travel was also challenging. Even if the pump schedule could be maintained, there was the tragic waste of breast milk because it couldn’t be stored and transported properly. Of course, there is the problem of food. It is hard, even without taking all of those “extra” pump breaks during the day, to get a sustaining bite to eat on a busy executive schedule. When breastfeeding, a typical mother needs an extra 500 calories a day, and preferably healthy ones. At work in the corporate world, this is almost impossible. The choices available for me were the vending machine or whatever I could think to bring from home and scarf ferociously between appointments; not exactly the nourishment a new baby deserves. Some women have a very difficult time with the breast pump itself. Either it is too painful to use or they have trouble getting the milk to ‘let down’ in such a sterile environment. I brought a photo of my baby to help, but I have to admit, it was hard to make the scheduled switch from thinking about marketing strategy to thinking about diapers and baby smiles.
Despite all of the challenges, there are many examples of professional moms who meet their breastfeeding goals. These determined women find a way to keep focused, carve out the time, draw boundaries, and make healthy food available to themselves. Moreover, some companies really have figured out a way to create a better environment for nursing moms.
I would love to hear your horror stories, innovative solutions, and advice for other professional moms who have made the choice to breastfeed their babies. Maybe if we can share, we can improve the odds of success for everyone.