Should I start pumping?

kjsmith9

We've made it to the 4 week mark (yay!), and I'm wondering if I should start pumping, even if it's just once a day?  I know the recommendation is to wait until around this time just to make sure your supply has regulated, but how do I know if it is?  LO is currently eating every 1.5 to 2.5 hours during the day, and occasionally will go as long as 3.5 to 4 hours at night.  The only time I really feel engorged anymore is after that long stretch at night (to the point where I want to wake her up just to give me some relief).  

I'm planning to go back to work full time on February 4th, at which time LO will be in daycare from about 7am-4pm.  I live in an apartment and don't have tons of freezer space, so I won't be attempting to build a huge stash or anything.

What do you all recommend?  I haven't opened the pump yet (I wanted to make sure everything was going to work out with BFing in case I had to return it), but I want to make sure I'm very familiar and comfortable with it before going back to work.  I'm really concerned that pumping is going to affect my productivity at work, and that my supervisor is going to get upset from the start if I'm spending a ton of time in the pump room because I'm not efficient with it yet...

If I do start pumping, should it just be once a day?  When do I start increasing that number?  Thanks for any advice!