Has anyone in here had any experience w/ a mother in the National Guard or
Army Reserves? I have permission from mom to ask this question. Mom is
bfing her 2nd baby and everything is going wonderful and she is so happy. BF w/
her first child didn't work out and she is determined that this experience
would go well. However, she and her husband are in the National Guard (same
unit) and are scheduled for their annual summer camp training in June.
Usually, the summer camps are in "war-like" conditions: tents, no electricity, water
issues, etc.-- you get the picture. Her baby will be 3 months old and she
is not really wanting to leave her or wean, and has concerns about pumping
under questionable sanitary conditions.
Does the military grant any type of leave of absence in this type of
situation?
Suzanne Bowes RN, IBCLC
********************
Suzanne,
This soldier should check with her JAG (Judge Advocate General--lawyers)
office about the current regulations. However, in my nine years on active duty
(1994-2003) and my experience since (my husband is still Active Duty and I
work with military families for lactation issues) the rules are this:
1. There is no regulation about breastfeeding for any branch of
the military as far as I know. Breastfeeding falls under the general
category of post-partum issues and these are the regulations for the Army:
2. A mother is non-deployable (normally field training doesn't
count but it could) for 3-4 months post-partum. This comes under the heading
of "commander's discretion". I have seen commander's get really creative to
help their soldiers and really unimaginative to toe the party line.
3. A mother is exempt from an Army Physical Fitness Test and
weigh-in for 180 days after birth.
4. She is authorized 42 days convalescent leave (a.k.a.
maternity leave) from the date of discharge from the hospital/MTF (military
treatment facility). Although this doesn't apply to your mother I want to make the
following point for general knowledge. Sometimes moms get short changed on
days of maternity leave because the paperwork for her leave starts the day she
delivered. In the military you can't be in more than one status category at
one time (i.e. you can't be MIA and AWOL at the same time). You are either
an in-patient OR on convalescent leave, therefore convalescent leave days
start the DAY AFTER discharge from the hospital (this can amount to another four
days off if the last day falls on a Friday and thus gives mom the two days
in-patient plus a weekend).
5. There is no such thing as a leave of absence or other such
luxury for soldiers, unfortunately!! This mom might be able to do her 2 week
drill with another unit in the area and thus she and her husband wouldn't be
gone at the same time but I don't think she would be able to NOT do the
drill. Unless her commander excuses her from the drill she must be there. She
could be part of the "rear detachment" that keeps things running in the home
office while the bulk of the unit is doing the training exercise if they are
doing that in her unit. The commander has some leeway in these situations but
most aren't willing to take the heat for what you are talking about.
So, barring anything significant changing with the mother or her unit, a
plan should be made for her to express and, hopefully, store and transport her
milk to her baby while she is gone. Having pumped in the field several times
I can tell you it is easier than one might imagine. The cooks and mail
personnel (assuming they will get mail there) usually go back "to the rear" (i.e.
the nearest base or place to replenish supplies) about once each day.
Usually the cooks have ice, electricity and a tent. Also, the motor pool (the
car/truck garage) usually has electricity. So, if she can start networking now
with the soldiers who are cooks and mechanics she might get access to
electricity for pumping a couple of times each day (or more) and ice to keep the milk
cold (I kept my milk storage bags in a large Ziploc full of ice). If the
cooks or whomever are leaving the field site and going anywhere close to where
her baby will be at that time, someone can meet the Army truck and do a hand
off of the EBM (a small cooler or freezer bag works nicely as no one has to
know what it contains if that is an issue) to the baby's caregiver or other
milk angel willing to help the mom and baby.
Of course hand expression works well too and she has plenty of time to
practice. One of my soldiers hand expressed into a large Ziploc bag and kept it
on ice until she or someone else could make a "milk run".
If she can't get the milk to her baby, she might be able to freeze the milk
if freezers are available (most Guard units do their drill on a post with
normal facilities (i.e. dining hall etc))and she could coordinate with them to
keep her milk on ice/frozen until she leaves for home.
If all else fails and she has to feed the milk to the local wild life, her
baby will not wean in two weeks at 3 months of age (most likely) and she just
needs to pump/express to keep up her supply and be prepared for some time to
adjust when she returns. See if the caregiver could cup feed or something
w/o bottles. I worked with a mom who pumped for 6 weeks in another country and
returned to resume nursing her 6 month old. It is difficult but worth it,
of course.
The sanitary conditions are determined by each soldier, basically. Every
soldier has a canteen of water at all times. She can always wash her hands
(and rinse/wipe her breasts) prior to beginning expression.
Basically, the more leg work and coordination she does prior to leaving the
easier it will be for her to outline and follow a plan. Most soldiers just
don't know who to talk to in order to make this happen. In most units there
isn't anyone who is going to set this up or offer to help but if she requests
help and starts the ball rolling she might be surprised who will step up.
If she or anyone else has any questions about this, please contact me. I am
happy to talk to anyone by phone also.
Christie Pillado
El Paso, TX
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