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Home › Articles › Breastfeeding › Get Away!

Get Away!

Hitting the Road Without Baby

By Teri Brown

Pages:  1  2  3  

A breastfeeding mother should plan to pump every three hours around the clock. The pump is never as effective as a nursing baby, so the mother needs to compensate with frequent pumping. If a lengthy plane trip is involved, the mother needs to plan how she will pump on the plane. Not all planes have electrical outlets in the restroom. Battery-operated pumps or manual pumps may be necessary.

If you do have trouble letting down to a pump, Haldeman has several tips to encourage your let down reflex:

  • Hot, moist, compresses (when available) and massaging prior to pumping can aid in let down.
  • Traveling with a picture of the baby can help with the let down reflex.
  • Some mothers have recorded the baby's sounds and/or brought along an article of infant clothing to smell during pumping.
  • Remember that frequent and routine pumping is critical to avoid engorgement.

Packing a pump is absolutely necessary when planning a weekend away from baby, but there are other things you can do to prepare.

Preparing Baby
Haldeman says that separation can begin as early as 4 months for breastfed babies. When an infant is dealing with separation anxiety, the mother and caregiver need to be prepared for protest crying as mother leaves her infant. The crying and general distress usually resolves within a few minutes, and the baby will adjust to the caregiver.

"Many mothers have found it helpful to leave an article of clothing behind, which smells strongly of the mother, for the baby to cuddle with," says Haldeman.

Other preparations include the following:


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