After going through the hazing that is pregnancy and birth, my blissful maternity leave was quickly coming to an end. And as difficult as those two months were, I wanted nothing more than to stay at home with my sweet baby boy.
But alas, I was a contract employee and being off meant being unpaid, so back to work I went. I’m lucky in that I work at a place with great people and a great culture. That definitely helped ease any anxiety I had about coming back.
Because I was an exclusive pumper I really wanted to stick with it so Ace would have plenty of milk to keep him going. Based on my schedule, that meant I would have to pump twice a day while at work. Right from the start, I blocked off my calendar for those times with a recurring meeting. That way, I knew I’d have time to do it. Because let’s be honest – the last thing I needed was to start leaking through my shirt at work.
The room available for me to pump in was a shared space. It was an unused office-like room with a table and a chair and windows with no covers. It was up on the 14th floor so that normally wasn’t an issue. The only time it got sticky was when the window washers were around. I never quite knew when they’d be working on my window. Miraculously, they never came by while I was actually pumping, but if they did, they just would’ve gotten an eyeful.
This time when I return to work and have to pump during the day, I think I’ll do myself the favor of getting a cute little bag for my pump. I got my first pump through a medical supply company and the motor was built into the bag so I just carried around a beige medical looking bag with a bunch of zippers. Attractive, I know. So everytime I grabbed my bag and headed to the elevator, everyone knew exactly where I was going.
That’s one thing about pregnancy and motherhood. I’ve found that my outlook on pain, modesty and gross things shifts completely. In the past, I may have been embarrassed about carrying my breastpump bag, but now I feel like it’s nothing to a boss.
So that’s been my journey. From two little lines to two months post-partum, I feel like I’ve been tossed from one corner of the ring to the other. But in the end I was still standing and my little boy Ace was still the best thing that ever happened to me.
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