Traveling & Pumping - Los Angeles,CA

Hi K.,
I nursed my daughter until she was almost 2. I had to travel for work during the first year, and I was fortunate to have enough milk stored up in the freezer before I left so I didn't have to supplement with formula. I was more concerned about maintaining my supply while I was gone, so I made sure to pump every 3 hours (except while I was on the airplane).

If you have enough time before your trip, can you work in an extra pumping session (preferably early in the morning) so you can store up some extra before you go?

Here's the link to the TSA website regarding breast milk.

http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/children/index.sht...

You are permitted to bring it on the airplane with you. Like the other poster below, the TSA had more questions for me on the pump than they did with the breastmilk. I would recommend pulling out the pump and putting it in a bin, just like you would with a laptop. On the way home, declare to the screener that you have breastmilk before you go through security. They may swab the pump with that explosives detector thing, but they never made me dump out any milk.

I was fortunate that I had a minifridge in my hotel room, and there was a freezer at the work location I was going to. I always froze the milk (using the freezer in the hotel room, or preferably the full size freezer at the office) figuring it was less likely to spoil if it was frozen rather than just refrigerated. You may want to bring extra gallon size Ziploc bags to keep the milk in so there's a double layer between your milk and the freezer. You can also use them to put ice in to keep the milk cold while you're on the airplane, and you won't have to worry about leaky ice. I was usually able to refill the ice just before getting on the airplane from one of the restaurants near the gate area. I always carried the milk on with me; if your flight is delayed, you can make sure to get extra ice. You won't be able to do that if it's in your checked luggage.

You may also want to call ahead to the office in NYC to see if they have a designated pumping area and a freezer for you. I did that when I had to go somewhere, and they set me up with a special locked office and a freezer I could use. You'd be surprised at how accomodating some people can be if you just let them know what you need.

My daughter maxed out at 6 oz of breastmilk per feeding. She's never been a big eater.

If you really don't think you'll have enough milk, you should make sure they have some formula if the milk runs out. A little bit won't hurt her. It's going to be OK!

Oh joys of traveling and breast feeding. I'm doing that right now. My little one is almost 9 months old. My little one is geting breakfast in the morning (a couple T of fruit, half a container of Baby Yo Yogurt, and about 1/8 of a cup of cereal). He also gets dinner which is about 3 T of veggies, another 1/8 cup of cereal,and some sort of finger food that he tries to put in his mouth (but often isn't very successful) like some small pieces of bread or shredded cheese. He gets breastmilk usually 5 times a day (4am, 7:30am, 12pm, 4:00pm, 7:30pm approx). For months I have been pumping once a day (right before I go to bed) nad putting that in the freezer to ensure I have enough milk for him when I travel. This takes time though - I can pump about a day's worth of food for him in a little over a week.

I carry on my pump and breast milk that I've pumped while gone. At the airport the TSA security people are dumbfounded with the pump - I always get pulled out of line while they look through my stuff and try to figure out what it is. They are generally most concerned with the ice pack so I've taken to just throwing that in a bin rather than leaving it in my suitcase because they always want to see it. On my way home when I have pumped milk I also get pulled out line and asked a variety of questions "What is this? Does your child have special needs? Is it medicine?" Once I explain what it is the TSA people usually look embarassed and simply let me through. I've never had one yet tell me I had to dump it. While I'm traveling I only manage to save four little Medela bottles. The rest I end up dumping because I simply have no room to travel wtih it and keep it cold. While traveling I usually keep my pumped milk in the hotel's minibar.

HOpe this helps. Any additional questions please let me know.

I have had to travel quite a bit while I was breastfeeding (mainly LA to DC). Carry it on, pump and all. I have never had a problem at security with it. Bring re-freezable packs to keep it cool. If your hotel has a freezer you can freeze it and keep it frozen. Mine stayed frozen the entire trip back.
Try to add extra pump sessions to increase your supply. I always felt every ounce counted :) Your body will make more (positive feedback loop).
The only pain really was that pumping does not fully deplete me and I always felt full and uncomfortable throughout my trip.

When my (now 12 month old) was 7-8 months, I gave her breast milk 5x/day around 4oz/time.

Good luck.

The consierge(sp) should be able to freeze it for you and if you can carry it on just put it in a cooler type lunch bag. Make sure you check with the airline or FAA because you may have to box it up and check it (ask when you are at the airport in LA). Continue to pump before you go and to pump while your there. Your baby should probably need 30 oz/day at the VERY most. If daddy is running low they can also increase solids until mommy & her boobies get back!
If you have any other concerns please contact our website as I'm sure you would only need one 30-minute consult.
VirtualBreastfeedingHelp.com