Pumping at the Dojang

When they say pumping is hard, the physical act of it is not so bad. I mean, you're not running a marathon. The problem is that you need to be relaxed for the milk to flow, and if you're on a time crunch, stuck in an uncomfortable place, or stressed out from work issues, you get even MORE stressed, the milk doesn't flow, and you just wasted your pump break.

As always, I hope this information is helpful to new Sabum-moms and those managing Sabum-moms.

Legal stuff first: 

• In the United States, the PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act requires employers to provide:

• Reasonable break time for an employee to express breast milk for their nursing child up to one year after their child’s birth.

• A place to pump at work, other than a bathroom, that is shielded from view and free from intrusion from coworkers and the public.

I know that first one sounds so very vague and can be frustrating for managers, but everyone's bodies and environments are so different. Sabum-moms, speak up often and early on so your manager knows what to expect. Managers, be understanding, especially the first few weeks back at work from maternity leave. Your instructor won't be at physical peak anyway and will need breaks from getting up and teaching.

That being said, I manage most dojang operations at this point and my boss (grandpa) is invested in his first grandson doing well, so I understand that I have a lot more freedom than most employees. Please keep in mind these are all suggestions below and what works for me. Use this as a template to do what works for you, and talk to your employer about expectations at work so that the process goes as smoothly as possible!

If I haven’t mentioned it before, a lot of prep for this stuff happens way before you even get pregnant. If you have a good reputation at the dojang, people will not mind if you take reasonable breaks. Also, if your parents and students respect you, they will also not be weird about your pumping. That works for me because I don’t use a private room to pump. I COULD if I wanted to, but I prefer to just do it right in the lobby at my desk. Note: Employers, you should not expect this of your employees. Re-read the legal stuff at the top. 

I am very comfortable both breastfeeding and pumping in front of people. This works for me because I have a big managing role at the dojang. I don’t feel comfortable being completely MIA in a private room and want to be available for questions and interactions with parents and students. I don't recommend kicking or punching with them on, but you can certainly walk around. I use the Willow Go pumps, which slip right into your bra. It’s very easy with the V-neck dobok top. I turn away slightly and pull them in and out of my bra.

At first, yes, absolutely, I was mildly self-conscious. I am a B-cup gal. When I have my pumps on, I feel like I have DDD breasts. However, most people actually don’t notice and it’s not like I’m walking up to people and shoving my chest in their face. With the Willow Go pumps, I need to make sure I’m sitting down and relaxed for the initial letdown, but then I can walk around if needed. I forgot to take pics without the pumps for comparison, but below are more photos with my pumps on:

My experience overall has been very positive. I get SO MANY COMPLIMENTS from my moms. The top comment is, “I wish I had those back then!” The dojang can be a great place for Sabum-moms because most of your clients are children with parents and they (usually, if you’re doing it right) love and respect you since you have taken great care of their kids.

I have only gotten two weird looks - one from a teenage girl whose eyes grew to the size of my DDD breasts when she saw me walking around with pumps on, and one from a dad who saw me pouring out the breast milk into a container.

You have to own it. I educate where needed and keep it simple if I don’t have time. 

Kids get curious when I bring out my pumps and ask, “What is that?” And I just tell them, “I use these to make milk for the baby.” And then they say, “Oh, okay!” And then they run off and do whatever they do.

Or, if I’m busy, I just tell them, “Don’t worry about it, go away.” I prefer the first option though, to educate. If I have more time and they want to learn more, I will explain more.

For older kids and teenagers, I might explain that if I don’t pump, then the milk stops coming because my body thinks the baby doesn’t need milk anymore.

Okay, now for some more technical stuff, like photos of my setup, supplies, and some sample pumping schedules. Please note that I supplement with formula since I can’t make enough to feed my baby breast milk exclusively. So you might need to adjust the schedule to your needs. If you are exclusively feeding your baby breastmilk, make sure you build up a stockpile before you get back to work, especially since the first week or so of pumping might not yield as much as you’d like due to your increased physical activity and also the stress of trying to get back to work after your pumping session. There is also a learning curve, so I recommend trying to pump a few times at home before attempting to do so at work.

(Heads up that I earn a little money through the Amazon affiliate links below!)

Supplies

• The pumps! I use Willow Go, which goes right into your bra and don’t have tubes or bottles sticking out. The Willows don't have AS strong suction as the less portable ones, so if that's important to you, then consider using a private room and a stronger pump. I sacrificed effectiveness for portability since I don't make a whole lot of milk anyway.

• “Pumping” bras: I use quotation marks because I just use my regular sports bras now that I have lost some weight and my chest has shrunk. Remember, when you’re pregnant, your lungs get shoved up so your body has to adjust to that and it doesn’t just spring back into shape instantly. At first, I wore my nursing bras from Amazon, which were adjustable. I had to put it on full expanded mode at first, but now I am close to the tightest fit. If you are doing private pumping with tubes and such sticking out, you might prefer a pumping-specific bra if your room is not 100% private. If it is 100% private, you can just take your top off and maybe consider a nursing cover just in case.

• Milk containers or milk bags: I got these free from the hospital and use them so that I can get more accurate measurements of my milk productions. The Willow pumps have measurement marks, but they aren’t 100% accurate.

• Milk bags to pour into for freezing or sending to daycare. You could also use the milk containers if you have extra and it works with your dishwasher schedule. I use these Nuliie ones from Amazon.

• Extra chargers at work, just in case. I keep the original chargers for overnight charging at a station at home, but I like to have extra chargers at work.

• Container or bag for pumps: You’ll see below how I use pumps through the day, but I use a bowl for the non-refrigerable parts that need to get washed, then wash right in the bowl.

• Cloth bag for motors, since they can’t go in the fridge

• Brush and dish soap and towel for cleaning just in case

• Fridge to store milk and pump parts

A major hack I use is to refrigerate pump parts between pumping sessions so that I don't need to clean them every time. This is NOT advised by the company, and if your child was born prematurely or you want to be extra careful of germs, do NOT do this and make sure you have a sink to wash the parts. I make sure I wash my hands thoroughly before handling pump parts.

Here are photos of the Willow pump parts:

I don't take every single part apart - you can see in the middle photo the motor and the three other sections on the blue lid. The milk collection part is actually three different parts together, but with the fridge hack, I can just pop that section off and pull out the blue and clear suction parts.

Below are two pumping schedules that I use.

Pumping schedule for normal school days where I am nursing and hanging out with baby before work:

Arrive at work 12:30 PM (last breastfeed at 11 AM)

2:00 PM Pump session before leaving for After School Program pick up

4:00 PM Teach After School Class

5:00 PM Teach Beginner Class

5:45 PM Pump session, return to class by 6:15 PM 

6:15 PM Teach last part of Intermediate class, then the 6:30 and 7:15 PM classes

8:30 PM Pump session on the drive home (or pump when I get home)

On camp days, when I am at work all day, I increase my pumping frequency because the Willow Go isn’t that strong and I have more breaks to pump.

7:30/8 AM Arrive at work

8:00 AM Pump session

9:00 AM Morning training with camp students

11:00 AM Pump session during lunch

12 PM Free time/field trip time for the students

2 PM Pump session

2:30 pm Afternoon Training with camp students

4:30 PM Pump session

5:00 PM Teach Beginner and Intermediate classes

6:30 PM Pump session

7:00 PM Teach classes

8:30 PM Pump session on the drive home (or pump when I get home)

Let me know if you have any questions and keep on kickin'!