Breastfeeding Mothers can enjoy going to All-Day Events and Conferences too
You go, Mama!
Well before my son was born, I signed up to go to a tech conference just as I had done many times. I love going to conferences for the networking opportunities as well as the ooOoo and Ahhh moments as new products and features are unveiled.
Fast forward to a beautiful baby boy in my arms and the feeling of gut-wrenching guilt as I remember I am leaving soon to go to a conference. Once I got past that part (it never entirely does), another oh-shit moment kicked in. How do I make sure I don’t jeopardize my decision to continue breastfeeding while away? Taking the baby with me wasn’t an option. I sought advice from fellow breastfeeding moms as well as my trusted advisor, Google.
I came up with a plan that worked. I wanted to share in hopes of helping out other moms in the same situation.
If you aren’t a mom and just so happen to be planning an event or conference where moms will be present, do keep reading!
So here it is.
Location, Location, Location
Figuring out the “where” is such a critical part of making this process successful. Why? The location will be your back-up (if the below sections don’t give you an answer you like) or in some cases the place where you will pump. You will also need a place to store your milk.
What if I am going to an all-day event and not staying over?
Find out where the event will take place. You will want to call the venue and find out:
- Is there a room with a door you can lock where you can pump?
- Can you use a refrigerator to store your milk?
- Do they close off any of the amenities you need at a particular time?
- Do they have a microwave? (for sterilizing)
If you aren’t too happy with the answers you get, reach out to the event planner. Sometimes venues will offer access to a meeting room or a hotel room at a discounted rate or free at times for the event coordinator. You will thank me later.
Booking hotel for an event
I always book the hotel as soon as I know I will be going to an event. Pick a hotel that is a quick walk from the event venue. If you happen to get the hotel where the event is hosted, you have hit the jackpot.
Many times I book the hotel before the event or conference special rate is available. You can always call once it is available and asked to be switched.
Make sure to ask for a refrigerator!
If you are sterilizing your pump parts, a microwave can be helpful if you aren’t bringing your sterilizer. I swear by the Medela Quick Clean Micro-Steam bags.
Figuring out where to pump
If you are like me, I wanted to keep pumping in the bathroom as my last resort. I have done it a few times, but it always feels wrong. Going to the bathroom is for relieving waste not for sustaining life!
If you are going to a day event and have a private room, then you are all set! Pamper yourself with a lactation cookie, if you like those. You have just solved a significant piece of the puzzle!
If you don’t have the luxury of getting access to a private room and, like me, don’t want to pump in the bathroom, you have a few options. You can shell out cash and get a hotel room nearby; Or, you can pump in your car. Yes, you can pump in your car. Take a moment to let that sink in. Mobile pumping is also handy for road trips.
If pumping in your car, I recommend getting the following:
- Car adapter to give your pump some juice!
- Nursing cover for some privacy. I recommend something like this.
- A cooler to hold your milk. I found this resource helpful for keeping milk in the cooler.
If you are going to a conference, reach out to the event planning staff to find out what other options you may have.
What it means when event planners think about us Moms
I had the luxury of attending Google Next conference this year and boy did they spoil us! Google had rented out a room in each of the hotels with sessions. All you had to do was reserve the room and pick up your milk before 7 pm.
The room was decked out with medical grade pumps, snacks, extra pump parts, a fridge, lotion, as well as cleaning and sanitation goodies. They even had a room allocated for pumping in the exhibition halls. If you aren’t too keen for people watching you go in and out every time, think about what other options you have.
They even left handy stickers for labeling the bottles or storage bags. Thank you Google Cloud!
Figuring out when you will pump
Now that we know our “where” we need to focus on “when.”
You can’t be everywhere at once
Figure out what sessions you will want to attend. Conferences send out the session schedule a couple of weeks or sometimes months before.
I will warn you that most events and conferences have small breaks that won’t be enough time to pump, clean, and sanitize (up to preference). So, this means you won’t be able to attend everything. Take a minute to let that sink in.
Build your pumping Schedule
By month 4, I had a pretty set schedule I could rely on as to how many hours I could go without pumping (3–4 hrs). That allowed me to figure out what sessions I will miss.
You need to decide what is most important to you. If you do choose to delay pumping because you want to attend a couple of sessions know the impact that can have on your body. Skipping a pumping session can amount to significant physical pain and even lower your supply. Your milk makers rely on the demand to keep the supply up. Lower demand = lower supply!
Make sure to take into account walking to and from where you will store your milk.
If you are attending an all-day event you should let your manager or event planner aware that you need to step out every n number of hours to pump.
Pack smart
With my pumping schedule, I knew that I was probably going to be pumping around 2–4 times depending on the specific event I was going to.
I decided to bring with me the complete set of pump parts to match with the exact number of times I will pump. If I was going to pump three times, I packed three different pump sets (e.g., breast shields, valve, membrane, tubing, storage bags). I put each set in a ziplock bag and kept it with me in a cooler.
I was able to focus on washing the pump parts after each use, but I didn’t have to worry about drying them or sterilizing them before pumping again. Doing this allowed me to save a significant amount of time! With this strategy, I could prepare everything each night and be ready to go the next day.
You will need to decide what will work for you. Sanitization plays a role, and it is all about how comfortable you will feel with the approach. Just think ahead!
Also, in the case of Google Next, they provided us with individual pump parts. Make sure to find out what the case for you will be. Having these parts provided can save you money and the trouble of figuring out where to store your own.
Getting the milk to your Baby
All this prep work for the baby and we are finally getting to the good stuff! We need to talk about how the milk will get to the baby.
If you are planning and can create a stash to give you some breathing room, you are ahead of the game. I didn’t have the luxury and needed to have it shipped while at the conference.
Getting the right package
I found that FedEx offers temperature-controlled packages (aka cold shipping). These packages allowed me to supply my baby with fresh milk without breaking our routine.
I ordered a couple of packages and brought it with me during my travel. Most FedEx’s don’t carry these on site. The small standard was more than enough for me to send up to 3 day’s worth of milk. Know your schedule and output to calculate what will work.
It ended up costing me around $130 to get the two small standard boxes with FedEx Priority Overnight shipping. Again, this is just to get the boxes not to ship the milk out. I was lucky enough to bring this to the attention of my manager and get this as an approved expense. I recommend you ask!
The package itself is pretty cool. Yes, I love gadgets. You press a button, and it cools the package. I waited until I was at the counter at FedEx to do this.
Ship your milk
Since I knew I would be sending milk, I made sure to:
- Find a FedEx (or another shipper) closest to my hotel or event venue
- Calculate time to FedEx (or another shipper) and back. I knew how long it would be to walk there or Uber/Lyft
- Calculate the ballpark cost to ship out the milk. You can call the shipper for help here. I got pre-approval from my manager to get this expensed. Yay!
- Schedule when I would ship out the milk. I was able to plan out what sessions I would miss and how much milk I would have.
During the event
Focus on keeping your supply up. If for you that means lactation cookies, increased water intake or looking at baby pictures, remind yourself to do that every day. I found using FaceTime to see my son was very helpful. Just need to figure out how to get him not to press the red button.
It can get hectic going to large conferences and easy to forget the simple things. Make sure to pack your favorites. The event may even have these for you. Thank you, Google Cloud :)
Breathe
There was a lot we just went over. Take a moment to breathe in. You have just made sure your bundle of joy will reap the benefits of breastmilk and still enjoy yourself at your event!
I will also say doing all of this became second nature. I knew what I wanted to achieve and kept my eye on the prize. It won’t always be a walk in the park. Hang in there. Do what you feel is right for you and your baby.
Was that everything?
These tips and tricks worked for me. I’m sure I forgot some things, but at least I got you thinking about this! Planning is key here.
Now go and give your baby a big kiss. You two have earned it.
