Pumping on Business Trips

Every time I get an email requiring me to go overseas for a business trip, I get pangs of panic and feelings of impending doom. I suppose it is the upcoming separation with little cute munchkins that drive me that way or alternatively it could be apprehension at leaving the cute munchkins at the hands of the default babysitter (ie my dear husband),whose babysitting capabilities can be considered to be slightly suspect at times. Granted, DH is generally capable compared to the chauvanistic men of yesteryears, but he is not quite Super Dad either.

The other main concern I have with business trips is the adverse effects it may have on breastfeeding, as I am not one with bountiful supply of milk, and pumping, I suspect, extracts, way less milk than feeding the baby directly. Although I managed to breastfeed MG for more than a year (exclusive BF for the first year, and supplemented in the second), it was achieved through a lot of effort, sweat, and sleep deprivation.

Well the good news is that, with some planning and preparation, average breast feeder performers like me, can still go on business trips, and still not lose it too significantly after the trip! FYI - I am a Medela Freestyle user and I also have a Avent manual pump as a backup.


Short Trips (4-6 days, with about 6 hours flight time)

Preparations

1. Get a cooler eg. Coleman. Hard case is better any day than a soft lined cooler. A hard case is better than styrofoam boxes, but the latter is OK for short trips. It is handy to also have a smaller cooler to carry expressed milk and pump parts for the day. I find that the Medela cooler bag is too small to carry pump parts and milk, so I purchased a bigger one. Putting the pump parts in a cooler bag eliminates the need to wash pump parts every pumping session, durign the day.
2. Ice packs. Daiso has cheap ice packs (RM5 each) but it doesn't stay frozen for 12 hours. Try to get better ice packs for longer journeys eg. the Medela brick lasts 12 hours, and so does Techni-ice. For long haul flights, dry ice is MUCH better.
3. Prepare sufficient breastmilk storage bags. Bags are better as they take up less space, but can "explode" or leak.
4. Email the hotel to ensure that they are willing to store breastmilk in their freezer as most hotel room only have a bar fridge. I have experienced some hotels, one of which is Holiday Inn, that does not accept milk due to "hygiene" reasons! If you can't use the hotel freezer, consider using the freezer at the office at the country you are in, and are visiting.
5. Bring a stainless steel container so that you can fill it up with hot water and sterilise pump parts, bottles, etc. Alternatively purchase sterilising tablets.
6. Pack a small bottle of bottle cleaner and a small bottle brush.

Pumping on the Plane
1. Bring along a small cooler bag/ box, with pump parts and spare bottles and bags as your handcarry.
2. Bring along 1 or 2 ice packs (freeze this before flying so that it will not be confiscated). You might need this to keep your cooler bag cool in case the flight attendant refuses to store the milk in their fridge. (It has happened to me once before in our beloved national airline).
3. Bring a nursing cover (or the airplane blanket also will do).
4. You've got 2 options of pumping venues, i.e. the toilet or your seat. I don't like the idea of pumping in the toilet, but sardine class seats are so close together!! If you are pumping at the seat, do it when the cabin lights are switched off. For those who own the Medela Freestyle, you will be pleased to note that the sound of the pump (which is likened to a groaning cow) will be drowned out by the aeroplane noise.
5. After pumping handover the cooler bag to the flight attendant for storage in the fridge.
6. Collect the cooler bag 30 minutes before arriving at the destination.

Pumping during the Work Day
1. Try to pick a time which is convenient and doesn't get the colleagues wondering about your mysterious disapearance - I usually pump before breakfast, just before lunch or dinner or have a quick lunch/ dinner and pump before the next session.
2. Store everything in your little cooler bag and sufficient ice packs during the day.
3. At the end of the day, pass the collected milk to the hotel to be stored in their freezer or fridge. Wash and sterilise the pump parts at night.

The Risk Free Way
I know a lot of mummies out there freeze their milk and bring that home, but personally I think that chilled milk is a lot easier to transport home, compared to frozen milk, which if thawed, needs to be consumed within 24 hours. If I go on a 4-5 day trip, I would just keep the milk chilled and there would be almost no issues (and no heart attacks if the flight was delayed etc and the ice packs and frozen milk thawed). Of course, if the business trip is more than 4-5 days, then freezing the milk is the only option (as milk should only be chilled for 4-5 days).

It's a great feeling to bring the liquid gold back home to the little one, and to know that although you can't be there for those few days, your little one will still have the best food supply during that time.