Hello
My girlfriend has been breast feeding for 8 months and her birthday is coming up. I have a chance to take her to kings dominion for cheaper than usual for the occasion but we would have to be there all day. The day would start at 630am and end around 1130pm. My concerns are; how dangerous will it be if she goes all day with out feeding and do amusement parks have locations you can pump? Is it to soon to go all day with out BF?
I have read all the responses and I thank all of you for you input. Tyler does take a bottle at night and he does eat stage two foods. However after all the input I am realizing that it may be more of a risk to be that far away for that long and this may not be the right time to go all day with out breast feeding. We would try and half it as one suggested, but we would be going with a big group on a bus with a lot of people we don't know. Again, I thank everyone for their input.
I would ask the mom in question. Where there is a will, there is a way. I was BFing but took a similar day trip skiing, when DS was only 4 months old. Made use of the infirmary. Put the milk in their ice box, collected it at the end of the day.
ugh I would have been soo full and leaking at every sight of a kid. I dont know if they have pumping stations :) but i wouldnt want to pump in a more than likely filthy place. Is there anyway you can half it? I dont think it would be dangerous per say, just super uncomfortable and the rides would start to really hurt when she gets engorged.
If you are feeding exclusively, then that is way too long to go without pumping or feeding the baby directly. You might accidentially ween the baby and she may get blocked ducts or worse.
If she has a way to get some privacy and doesn't mind pumping in public, if you have a good battery operated pump with a powerful suction (not powerful enough she'll get blocked milk ducts or leak everywhere) or one that can plug into your car lighter you can plan breaks for pumping in your car if baby isn't along with you. Baby is better of course, but if she pumps every 2-3 hours for at least 10-15 minutes or at least at the same times of day her baby feeds and until her breast are fully empty (can't pump anything more out) she'll be fine.
Be sure to bring a cooler that can keep the milk stored at 40 degrees or less to keep it safe and useable if you will be leaving the milk in the car. I don't trust just using ice packs and an insulated cooler in a situation like this, since it's summer and very hot in a car.
There are small electric coolers that you can plug into your cigarette lighter that will keep things cold at about 40 degrees. You can get them at Target, Walmart, or any store that sells camping supplies.
Be sure she drinks plenty of water and doesn't get heat stressed or dehydrated. That could mess up her milk production for a few days.
For similar questions you can get answers from the La Leche League website at www.llli.org
I wouldn't go all day without bfing my baby regardless if I have a pump,or baby has begun solids nor be away from baby for that long unless it was a no choice situation..Ask your girl if she is wanting to do this or find something else to do.It's nice your wanting to do something to celebrate her b-day.
Sounds like a great surprise but I would ask her!
I found this:
"The park has family restrooms. In addition, they have a location where mothers can nurse or change the baby and not have to utilize the restrooms."
You can call to find out more.
16000 Theme Park Way
Doswell, VA
###-###-####
Definitely, you'll want to ask her before investing in those tickets. As another poster said, there are potential issues for the baby as well as for her. Even if she finds a good place to pump, how is Baby going to eat for that 18 hour period? I think if it were me, I'd be just as happy with an afternoon expedition as with something that long, but that's me.
It's great you are looking for input, and hope you end up with a great way to celebrate!
If I were in your friend's shoes I would decline the offer. There are SOME things that get put aside when BFing your baby and this is one of those things. Instead how about a fun girl's night at a comedy club?
Everyone's different, but if I had done that I would've definitely risked a clogged duct and mastitis. It happened to me when I left my baby for 6-8 hours. Also, does the baby take a bottle well? If not, it's actually more dangerous to the baby than the mom. Nice of you to try to treat her though.
She can go all day without BFing when she is no longer breastfeeding. :) Some women can pump, but pumping at an amusement park seems impossible to me -- where can you pump? What do you do with the milk after (it needs to be refrigerated)? Even if you could solve those, some women just don't respond to a pump, and some babies won't eat well enough from a bottle to go all day.
If I were her, I personally don't think I'd want to do that. I might be happy to take the baby with me, with a few friends so that one of us could stay with him while other did rides (and switch who keeps the baby), but 18 hours away from a breastfeeding infant would be a really uncomfortably long time for me.
Does the baby take a bottle at all? Does baby eat any food?
I would ask you gf. When I had an 8mo old, I wouldn't want to leave them all day like that, some people would and that's fine too - I just think it might be too risky to invest money into a surprise that she might not want?
Ask her, first, if she is willing to do that. "Just pumping" isn't always as simple as it sounds--packing around a pump, keeping the milk cool all day, finding a comfortable and clean place to pump, and pumping up to four or five times during the outing.
Because I am away from my now 18mo all day Monday through Friday, he and I both look forward to just "hanging out" (literally) on the weekends. I know that this is a one-time deal, but it would just be a good idea to make sure that she is willing to commit to that.
It sounds like a long day for a bf'ing mom. This might not be the right gift for right now.
That said, if you think she would really enjoy it, I've pumped in some pretty odd locations. She just needs a bit of privacy. Any bathroom can provide the privacy. A family bathroom (a bit bigger with the sink and toilet inside the room) would be best.
Good luck and have fun if you go!
