Returning from maternity leave: Tips for working mothers

Many women combine motherhood with a job or career outside the home. If you're a new mother planning to return to work, you may be wondering just how you're going to manage both successfully.

It will be a challenge, but being a working mother is something you can manage — if you plan ahead. Prepare yourself for the demands of being a working mother, including how you'll cope with leaving your baby and the logistics of breast-feeding.

Emotional issues for the working mother: Parting with your infant

Returning to work poses emotional conflicts for new mothers. You might have feelings of guilt over leaving your baby in child care, but you might also feel relieved to be back at work. You're juggling more in your life — not only the usual work hours, dinner preparation, household chores, time for yourself and time with your partner, but now the time-consuming tasks and pleasures of your new baby.

Here are some things you can do, both before you go on leave and once you return to your job, that can help ease your transition back to work.

Before you return to work

• Decide on a return-to-work date. Discuss with your employer your options for how much time you can take for maternity leave. You might not have the luxury of deciding whether or not to return to work, but you can take as much time as you're allowed. Choose a day that's later in the week to make your first week back to work a short one.
• Find dependable child care. The thought of leaving your newborn in someone else's care can be troubling. Finding a reliable child care provider whom you trust can ease your mind considerably. Your child care options range from individual in-home care to a child care center. Give yourself time to research facilities in your area and to get on waiting lists, if necessary.
• Have a talk with your boss. Discuss your job duties and schedule so you'll know what's expected of you when you return. If your workplace offers some flexibility, ask about flexible hours or working from home on occasion. Be prepared to suggest ways of making a more flexible arrangement work.

Once you're back at work

• Manage your time and be organized. Combining a job with raising a child demands honed time management and organizational skills. You have a lot of responsibilities, and to make sure they're all attended to — and that you maintain some sense of sanity — set up a system for making sure everything gets done. Too many demands and not enough of you to go around means you may have to let less important matters slide.
• Stay connected. Find little ways to stay connected with your baby when you're away from him or her. Plan a daily phone call to see how your baby's doing. Keep some photos on your desk. Look forward to spending time with your baby that evening.
• Make backup plans. There will be days when your baby is sick or your child care center is closed. Be prepared with alternative plans on those days. Check with your employer beforehand about taking time off when your child is sick. Talk with a family member or close friend in advance about filling in if you can't bring your baby to child care.
• Accept that you'll feel guilty or sad at times. If you're like a lot of mothers, you'll struggle with feelings of guilt. You might feel sad that you can't spend as much time as you'd like with your baby. These feelings are common, and it might help to discuss them with your friends or other mothers in similar circumstances. Talk to your spouse about how you're feeling. If your sadness or guilty feelings are increasing or overwhelming, mention them to your doctor.
• Establish a support system. Give up trying to do it all yourself. Accept help from your partner, family members and friends. Seek out other working mothers who can offer support as you make the transition back to work.
• Take time for yourself. As difficult as this may seem, take time to nurture your own well-being. Taking the baby for a walk is enjoyable for your baby, and it's good exercise for you. Rely on easy-to-prepare meals or a relaxing bath after putting your baby to bed to help ease stress. If you feel less stressed, you'll be able to better enjoy your baby when you're together.
• Get as much rest as possible. You'll have times when you feel so tired you'll wonder how you can do it all. Unfortunately, fatigue goes hand in hand with being a new parent. Try going to bed early one night each week to catch up on sleep. Cut down on unnecessary commitments. Set aside time on weekends to take a nap while your baby is sleeping. The better rested you are, the easier it will be to handle those everyday problems that crop up.

Combining motherhood with work isn't easy. Certainly you'll have days when you won't feel like going to work, especially if your baby is fussy or seems particularly clingy. But as you and your child become used to your schedule, as your baby settles into a routine and as you become more adept at managing multiple demands, you'll learn how to handle these normal ups and downs.

Breast-feeding tips for the working mother

You may face some challenges if you plan to breast-feed after you return to work. Among these are talking to your employer about your plans to continue breast-feeding and figuring out the logistics of using a breast pump at your workplace.

However, because it's so important for your baby, do everything you can to continue breast-feeding after going back to work — unless you're unable to breast-feed for some reason. Continue breast-feeding for as long as you can, ideally until your baby is one year old.

Here are some tips to help you prepare for breast-feeding after you return to work.

• Talk to your supervisor before you return to work. Communicate your plans for breast-feeding or pumping milk while at work. Let your supervisor know how important breast-feeding is to you. Because breast-fed babies tend to have fewer illnesses, you might have fewer ill-child emergencies.
• Discuss the times when you will pump. Note that you will use your breaks for pumping so that you won't take as much time from your work schedule. If you generally work eight hours, plan on two 15-minute pumping breaks. Spacing your breaks evenly throughout the day is ideal, but in some occupations that's not possible. What's important is to keep up the frequency — for example, pumping twice during an eight-hour workday — to maintain your milk supply.
• Find a private place to pump. Ask your employer to recommend a private room with a lock where nursing mothers can express their milk. Although more and more organizations are setting aside special rooms for nursing mothers, many women still face obstacles in finding a place to pump their milk. A good rule of thumb: Don't pump breast milk in an area where you wouldn't eat your lunch — in a bathroom, for instance.
• Purchase or rent a breast pump. Electric pumps generally are more effective than hand pumps for expressing milk. Double breast pumps allow you to express your milk more quickly than single breast pumps.

• Designate a space for storing supplies. Find a place in your office where you can keep supplies in addition to your breast pump, such as breast pads, empty containers for expressed milk and extra blouses in case you have milk leakage during the day. If you don't have an office, ask your employer if a locking cabinet or closet is available for you and any other nursing mothers to use.
• Plan for storing your breast milk after pumping. Use an insulated bag with cold packs. Breast milk will stay fresh and safe for up to 10 hours at room temperature or eight days in the refrigerator.
• Nurse your baby immediately after returning home. Ask your caregiver not to feed your baby right before you're due to pick him or her up. This, too, will help you maintain your milk supply, and it will be a great way to bond with your baby after spending the day apart. Of course, there will be times when that's easier said than done. If your baby seems particularly fussy or hungry, give the go-ahead to your caregiver for a feeding. But you could suggest that the caregiver make it a smaller portion. Then plan on breast-feeding your baby or pumping when you get home.
• Introduce bottles to your baby. Sometime after four to six weeks — but before you return to work — introduce your baby to bottles filled with breast milk. This will give you both a chance to get used to some feedings by bottle. Because your baby associates you with breast-feeding, it might be easier if someone else gives your baby the first bottle feedings.

If you can't express your milk at work, pump just before you go to work and after you return home. You could also pump one or two times a day on weekends for extra breast milk to be used in bottles. Pumping any breast milk your baby doesn't take in a 24-hour period and using it during your working hours will help keep your milk supply up.

Breast-feeding resources for working mothers

Talk with a lactation consultant, either from the hospital or clinic, or contact a representative from La Leche League if you have questions about breast-feeding. These counselors can offer encouragement and sound advice if you have troubles with pumping milk or nursing your baby after your return to work.