As a follow-up…

As a follow-up to a recent post I wrote about breastfeeding while at an academic conference, I was pleasantly surprised to see this in my inbox today:

“amalgamating parental and work responsibilities in the workplace: one recommended reading”

Imagine my surprise when I read that New York (state) requires that designated pumping areas cannot be restrooms.

The fact that no-restroom-lactation rooms has to be legislated–AND that it is only legislated in one state–is an (imperfect) indicator of just how far we have to go. Hopefully, pieces such as the recommended reading (above) will facilitate awareness of how US society places stringent demands on newborn mothers’ bodies (you should really breastfeed for the entire first year….) while also making it extremely difficult for working newborn mothers to comply with these demands.

A conference, an electric breastmilk pump, and me

This whole post feels like it’s going to be an “A priest and a rabbi walk into a bar” joke. Fair warning.

Last week, I went to my first academic conference since Baby was born. I was very much looking forward to giving my presentation and doing a little bit of networking, as I’m getting to the point in my graduate career when that is supposed to happen. I was also looking forward to catching up on some sleeping and thinking. As it turned out, I got a bad cold the night I arrived, which did a number on both sleeping and thinking, but at least I got to present a paper and, yes, do a little networking.

But this post is not about any of those things. This post is about how awkward and ridiculous the process of pumping breastmilk was while I was in attendance at the conference.