I was a driving force in establishing a pump room on my base. There were trials, from ridicule from other (non-breastfeeding) mothers to cow jokes to lewd comments from male co-workers to being walked in on before the private room was established to not being allowed to pump often enough.
I also had to cut all dairy, soy, and eggs from my diet for months. If my son had more reactions after my diet changes, he would have required specialized prescription formula. Thankfully, he thrived on my milk.
When he was born he did not know the suck, swallow, breath reflex. He would choke and turn blue. It was terrifying. What was worse is the medical staff thought I was exaggerating and did nothing to help. I researched all I could and frequently called my mother-in-law and by the time my son was nine weeks old he mastered it.
With my work schedule my son developed a reverse schedule. He would take a begrudgingly bottle, only to not starve, and he nursed often when I was home. It's very common for babies with working mothers to do this. It helps with the mother-child bond and maintain the milk supply.
I tried to pump every three hours at work and he nursed every 1.5-2 hours when I was home. Because I was not allowed to always pump on a schedule I had constant supply issues. Therefore, I ate oatmeal for breakfast every morning, always had water with me to drink throughout the day, and took fenugreek off and on to help maintain my supply. I probably smelled like pancakes for most of a year.
The Navy decided to put me back in training upon my transfer from maternity orders. I pumped for the three months while in class.
After transferring to my ship I pumped on my duty days [staying overnight on the ship] and even a few short underways. I was able to store my milk in an empty freezer with the galley [with command permission].
The last time I nursed my son was in the wee hours of the morning we left for deployment. He was 17.5 months. I had saved enough milk in our deep freezer that Hubby was able to give him breast milk and transition him to almond milk by a week before he turned 20 months. I felt pretty good about that.
If I had known that I'd be staying in San Diego after I was flown back from deployment, I probably would have tried to re-lactate. My son did not transition well from not nursing. He would take the bottle/sippy cup of pumped milk because I wasn't there.
After I came home there was a lot of confusion and tears that I couldn't nurse him anymore. Then he started playing with my elbows. With my family's vacation, I thought it was over, but the day after they returned, my son started playing with my elbows again. It seems to by dying down now, but I don't think it's over.
Click here for Part 1, Part 2, Part 3
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