Working moms and breastfeeding

Returning to work after having a baby requires a lot of planning. Working moms find work and nurturing a baby incredibly demanding, and that is why many mothers rethink their priorities. Breastfeeding unfortunately, is placed on a scale. As you think about work and breastfeeding, know that the more mother’s milk your baby gets the better. However, breastfeeding does not have to be all or nothing. Women have come up with many ways to fit breastfeeding into their busy work schedules. These choices have made breastfeeding possible for many working mothers, worldwide. “I fully breast feed while at work. It grants me and my son the opportunity to bond and spend the day together,” says Mimi Mukesha, a self-employed Rwandan mother and entrepreneur. Like Mukesha, most self-employed mothers either spend the day with their baby at work or have the baby brought to them at work for their feeds. Other mothers choose a caregiver who lives near their work place. This is usually a walk able distance so they can feed their baby as much as they want. The reverse cycle nursing also works. Here babies are made familiar with feeding when mothers retire from the day’s duty. Babies spend most of the day sleeping, when moms are at work. Pumping is also another heaven-sent way to ensure breastfeeding takes place. Mothers pump breast milk into safe bottles which they keep for babies. Usually pumping is done before the baby wakes up in the morning, right after work and after feeding at home. Pumping provides dual solutions; baby gets access to breast milk even when mum is away while mother works reluctantly without boobs being heavy with milk. With the dynamic world we live in, mothers have managed to kill two birds with one stone, when they apply the above methods of breastfeeding. Women have the ability to raise a healthy baby while managing their work errands. lillianean@yahoo.com