This is a practical, relatable, and humorous guide to surviving the difficult, awkward, and rewarding job of being a breastfeeding, working mother.
Meet the frenemy of every working, breastfeeding mother: the breast pump. Many women are beyond “breast is best” and on to figuring out how to make milk while returning to demanding jobs. Work. Pump. Repeat. is the first book to give women what they need to know beyond the noise of the “Mommy Wars” and judgment on breastfeeding choices. Jessica Shortall shares the nitty-gritty basics of surviving the working world as a breastfeeding mom, offering a road map for negotiating the pumping schedule with colleagues, navigating business travel, and problem-solving when forced to pump in less-than-desirable locales.
Drawing on the war stories, hacks, and humor of working moms and on her own stories from her demanding job and travel in developing countries, she gives women moral support for dealing with the stress and guilt that come with juggling working and breastfeeding. As she tells the reader in her witty, inspiring manifesto, “Your worth as a mother is not measured in ounces.”
Jessica Shortall is a mother of two with a career dedicated to business and doing good. She started out as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Uzbekistan and holds an MBA from Oxford University. For five years, Shortall worked as the first director of giving for TOMS Shoes. She is a contributor to the Huffington Post and the Bump and speaks nationally to businesses and nonprofit groups.