11 Essential Products Lactation Consultants Keep In Their Breast Pump Bag

“I always recommend keeping a light blanket or scarf to drape over your shoulders if you're pumping at work. Most offices are cold (especially once you start taking off clothes) and having that extra piece can help you from feeling totally exposed,” Agi says. While there’s nothing wrong with “being exposed” while you’re breastfeeding, it may be more comfortable to be covered if it’s freezing in there.

Agi says this actually helps with let-down. According to the Breastmilk Counts website, “let-down” usually happens “when your baby has been sucking on your breast for about two minutes,” and your breasts release the milk. “Some women feel this let-down reflex as a tingling or a warmth. Other women don’t feel their let-down at all. Even if you don’t feel your let-down, you will see a change in baby’s swallowing patterns and hear your baby swallowing,” the website noted. By keeping a photo of your baby handy, you can help your body with its let-down.

Unfortunately, leaky breasts are just a part of life when breastfeeding, whether you’re pumping or not. While it’s helpful to wear them prior to pumping, it never hurts to have a few extra pairs, just in case.

Holy ouch, Batman. Sometimes pumping (and nursing) does a number to your nipples. And they certainly can get sore. The nipple lubricant is important to have to give you optimum comfort while you’re pumping, according to Agi.

Of course that pumped milk has to go somewhere, right? Depending on your pump, the two bottles should be connected to the flanges that are on your breasts and then you can put the caps on after you're finished to ensure minimal spillage, Agi notes.

If you fill up the two bottles that your pump is connected to, it’s a good idea to bring extra bags to keep that precious, precious milk. Just make sure you have the next item on this list to keep it fresh.

A cooler is important to have if you can’t store your breast milk in the company refrigerator, Agi says. According to the Medela Pump In Style instruction manual, the breast milk will stay good in a cooler with an ice pack up to 24 hours, as long as it’s at 59 degrees. In the refrigerator, it will last as long as eight days.

So I guess technically these could be two separate items, but they both have to do with keeping your pump and accessories sanitized for your baby. Use the hand sanitizer prior to and after pumping, and use the cleaning wipes to wipe out the equipment after each use. They make special cleaning wipes specifically for breast pumps, so don’t use those Clorox bleach ones.

After cleaning your equipment, Agi says it’s good to have a large Ziploc bag to store all of your items, like the tubes and flanges. That way they’re all in one location and you don’t have to go digging around for them in your bag. Plus, once they’re sanitized, you don’t want them floating around in your bag anyway, right?

Pumping sure is hard work, am I right? And most women get pretty hungry either during of after they pump. Keep some snacks handy to satiate that hunger.

While you’ll probably already be wearing a nursing bra, Agi suggests using a hands-free nursing bra and maybe having an extra one handy, just in case the other one gets messed up.

Every mom is different, and what may be a necessity for one mom may not be a necessity for another. As long as you have the pump and all its accessories, and a way to store your breast milk, you should be good to go. Happy pumping.

Check out Romper's new video series, Bearing The Motherload, where disagreeing parents from different sides of an issue sit down with a mediator and talk about how to support (and not judge) each other’s parenting perspectives. New episodes air Mondays on Facebook.