What It's Like to Breastfeed and Pump at Work as a Military Mom

By Alisha Gordon as told to Marla Bautista 

In some ways, mom life as a soldier in the U.S. Army isn't all that different from civilian mom life. But there are certainly major differences military moms experience — pregnancy physical training, pumping breast milk in the field and being shipped away for temporary duty assignments only months after giving birth, to name just a few.

I have been a dental technician in the U.S. Army for more than 13 years and have three children, two of which I’ve had since entering the Army. I love what I do. During both of my pregnancies, I enrolled in the pregnancy physical training (PT) program and continued to run and exercise as often as I could. I have always been an athlete, so staying physically active was normal for me.

Like all moms-to-be, I had regular prenatal appointments, ate healthy meals and did everything in my power to have an uncomplicated pregnancy and delivery. However, during my third pregnancy, I developed gestational hypertension. That pregnancy was rough, to say the least. My face, hands and feet swelled up until I was nearly unrecognizable. I was put on bed rest and monitored often, since my blood pressure would frequently spike. Missing work was hard.

After Kimberly was born, I went on maternity leave. Most days, I spent my time at home resting and caring for my newborn. I appreciated the opportunity to bond with her. I wanted more time with her, honestly — six weeks of maternity leave just wasn’t long enough. (Since I've given birth, the Army has increased maternity leave to 12 weeks.) Kimberly took to breastfeeding well. I alternated between breastfeeding and pumping as I prepared to return to work.

I was home for nearly two months before I went back to work at Fort Lee in Virginia. I enrolled Kimberly in Fort Lee's child development center. It was difficult to be apart from her after just a few weeks, but I knew she was in good hands. Plus, I was excited to return to work. I missed my battle buddies and the clinic.

Slowly, I got back into the groove. I took my breast pump and storage bags to work with me every day. Pumping was a breeze, except for one thing: I didn’t always have a safe, sanitary place to express my milk. Within my unit, I was authorized to have a 30-minute break to pump, but there wasn't always space to do so. I sometimes had to pump in the women’s locker room facing the wall. If I wanted privacy, I used a bathroom stall.

Luckily, the child development center encouraged breastfeeding mothers to directly nurse our children at the center. I would often breastfeed Kimberly before PT, then I would pump and take fresh bottles with her to child care. During my lunch break, I'd try to go to the center to breastfeed her and pump additional bottles to last her until the end of my work day.

When I could, I'd go to our installations health center, which had designated breastfeeding rooms that were open to everyone. There were comfy chairs, music, changing tables and storage. The environment was inviting and could accommodate more than one breastfeeding mom at a time.

Pumping and freezing my breast milk was a way for me to provide the nutrition my daughter needed while I was away. I sometimes stored my breast milk in bags, but I didn’t always have a surplus to freeze. Often, I’d drop off the freshly pumped milk directly to the child care center on the days I wasn’t available to spend time breastfeeding Kimberly.

When Kimberly was about 9 months old, I stopped breastfeeding before going on a 30-day military mission. Weaning was hard for me. I loved bonding with Kimberly, but duty called and I had to answer. Although I had the option to pump in the field, with sanitation concerns, lack of privacy and no place to store my breast milk, I felt like it would be an added stressor to an already labor intensive mission, so I made the difficult decision to wean.

Being a soldier and a mom is hard. And as a military mom, sometimes breastfeeding just isn't an option. Some women in the military do not have the privilege of working in an office environment, which can lead to obvious breastfeeding difficulties. Occupations like petroleum fuelers, motor transport operators and military police officers, for example, are labor-intensive positions that don’t necessarily allow opportunities for breastfeeding or pumping during the work day.

The good news is that it's becoming easier to be a military mom every day. Within the last few years, U.S. Army policies have been put in place to better support breastfeeding soldiers. Lactation support personnel help soldiers create specific breastfeeding plans and acquire equipment that will allow them to feel confident and comfortable as they continue to carry out our country’s military missions.

I have an obligation to my country, but I also have an obligation to my children. Giving birth, breastfeeding and caring for my children has been the greatest joy of my life. Even during tough times, my world has been made brighter by their smiles. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. I love my children and my country.