April updates
Going back to work
Let’s talk about getting prepared to go back to work after having your baby.
It’s never too soon to start thinking ahead about what going back to work will look like for you. Here are some questions to get you started.
Are you working in an office? Do you travel for work? Do you work from home? Do you have an active job where you are out in the field for long stretches of time?
Have you discussed your plans with you supervisor? Does your job have a policy about pumping or feeding infants on site or wherever it is you do your work? If so have you looked it over? Is your supervisor aware of what is in the policy?
Did you know there is a federal law protecting your right to pump at work? Read more here. There are specifics for these workers as well: agriculture industry, care workers, retail and restaurant industry, transportation, and education. Once you have found the information that is specific to you, bookmark it so you have it on hand if you need it while at work. You’ve got this!
Does your work place provide reasonable break time and a private space to pump at work? This includes a space that is functional for pumping milk, shielded from view, free from intrusion, available as needed and is not a bathroom. If you can, plan to go see it before you go on family leave. You may even want to take pictures so you can remember what it is like when you are planning to go back postpartum.
Once you’ve thought through these logistics, then you can move on to figuring out a good pumping and/or infant feeding schedule for yourself once you go back to work.
Do you need support in navigating pumping, milk storage, and/or bottle feeding? I would be happy to support you during this time. During a visit, we will do a pump fitting session to ensure your pumping time is as efficient and comfortable as possible. We will also discuss milk storage guidelines, how much milk to put in bottles and to store, and how often your baby may feed while you’re away. By the end of our visit, we will come up with an individualized plan for you and you can message me for continued support afterwards. If you need support with bottle feeding, we can discuss that too! Schedule a Pumping/Back to Work visit with me today.
Spring Scheduling
I have a lot of availability coming up, including for prenatal visits. These can be scheduled as soon as you’d like or as close to your due date as you feel comfortable going. We cover a lot of info and it is tailored to your individual needs, plus priority scheduling when your baby arrives!
As always, if you don’t see online appointment times that work for you, please call or text me because I almost always have extra time set aside during the week for emergencies and follow ups.
Birth Fair Info
The Bellingham Birth Collective is hosting their annual Birth Fair at the Bellingham Cruise Terminal on April 28th from 12-3pm. Come say hi and please share with your family and friends who are having babies this year. Its a great place to come and see what services and support are available in our community and to plan ahead for when baby arrives. There will be lactation consultants, doulas, bodyworkers, and more. I would love to see you there!
Baby Bistro with Essential Lactation & The Latchmaker
Baby Bistro is an informal infant feeding support group that meets the first 4 Tuesdays of each month. We are a drop in group from 11a-1p. Briana (The Latchmaker) or I will be there to facilitate each session and we will bring our scale with us so you can weigh your baby if you’d like to. We hope you come to one (or all!) of our groups and meet your people there!
Please head over to this form and fill it out prior to your first drop-in. Join our facebook group and follow us on Instagram to stay in the loop and learn more about the group.
Our next group meeting is tomorrow with Sara, April 2nd from 11a-1p at the Bellingham Towers 119 N Commercial Suite #280
The 2nd meeting is with Sara on April 9th from 11a-1p at the Bellingham Towers 119 N Commercial Suite #280
The 3rd meeting will be with Briana on April 16th from 11a-1p at Inner Child Studio 715 W Orchard Dr Suite 2
And the final meeting is with Briana on April 23rd from 11a-1p at Inner Child Studio 715 W Orchard Dr Suite 2
There is no meeting on April 30th!
See you there!