RE: Breastfeeding & Return to Employment/School I hold several workshops each year to help parents plan for the continuation of breastfeeding after Mom returns to work or school. One suggestion that has been a big hit has been the "How I Did It" notebook. I invite parents to share their experiences with continuing to breastfeed after they return to work and school. These contributions I file in a looseleaf notebook. Each parent (I get a few contributions from dads) has a unique viewpoint. For most new parents the prospect of being separated from baby and attached to a pump is very weird. (Well, good, it should be!) Often the mother will tell me her return-to-work plan by starting with: "I don't know if anyone has done this, but I am planning to..." Reading the experiences of other parents makes them feel part of a community, and I think it encourages longer breastfeeding. When parents read that some babies have been breastfeed for 2 or more years after mom has returned to employment most are surprised. And reading some of the obstacles others have overcome makes for inspiring, even hilarious, reading. My favs: The mom who commutes 3 days a week from Boston to NYC and pumps in her seat on AMTRAK; the flight attendant who flies Boston-Asia routes and pumps during her 5-7 days away (her stories of racing through customs to get to her hotel room with the pump could make a sit-com!); the CEO who express mails (no pun intended) her milk (on dry ice) while she's away--she has the hotel concierge pack and mail it! The mother who was invited to a preparatory meeting for the Beijing conference in her home country in So. America. She was convinced that the "important and powerful women" at the conference would fault her for having a 6-wk.-old baby in tow. Her husband and baby went along, but intended to keep a low profile. Dad even had a few cases of abm, bottles, etc. "just in case." Well, (long story made very short here) the "important and powerful" women were appalled when they discovered she was separated from the baby, invited the baby to theattend--and even passed a resolution that babies should be at all such meetings. Then they paid the baby's plane fare for the return trip. I tell moms that you never know where you will find allies. It's important to let people know how hard you are working to provide the best for your baby. This Thanksgiving there are many parents who are giving thanks for YOU! (So do I!) Margery Wilson, IBCLC MIT Breastfeeding Support Program ILCA Region I Representative