Netflix and chill? More like Netflix and pump!
Whether you’re breastfeeding the baby or pumping to fill your stock for later, one thing new mothers have an abundance of is time – and most of that time is spent on the couch, in bed, or in your favorite recliner.
What you do with this time – now, that’s entirely up to you.
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Some mothers choose to read a book, while others might sit down and write a book. Of all the things you could be doing while feeding or pumping, there’s one that usually takes the cake – binge-watching Netflix.
I mean, they don’t call it the ‘boob tube’ for nothing!
Alright, that’s not why they call it that, but it’s a fitting name for what we’re here to talk about today – and the question comes from one of our anonymous readers, who wrote the following in our community forum:
“Need a good Netflix binge show for while I’m pumping! Or a really good list of movies!!”
You asked – and we’re going to answer. Whether you enjoy binge-watching a 10-season television show or knocking out one movie after the other – let’s see what mamas like you are streaming these days!
10 Netflix Shows to Watch While Pumping or Feeding
Think about all of those times you wanted to sit down, get comfortable, and watch the newest episode of Bridgerton or binge-watch a classic like Sex and the City, but couldn’t because life kept getting in the way.
Well, now you have an excuse.
With several thousand television shows and series to choose from – including both Sex and the City and Bridgerton – Netflix is one of the best streaming services on the internet, and is worth the monthly cost.
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Of course, one of the hardest things about Netflix is finding the right show to watch. Not because it’s hard to find a good one, but rather because there are simply too many quality TV shows to settle on just one.
With that said, here are 10 of our favorite Netflix shows to binge-watch while breastfeeding or pumping!
10. Supernatural
Genre: Fantasy
Seasons: 15
Total Episodes: 327
Starring: Jared Padalecki, Jensen Ackles, Mark Sheppard
Supernatural originally aired from 2005 to 2020 and centers around two brothers, Sam and Dean Winchester. The two brothers travel across the United States in a black 1967 Chevrolet Impala, hunting demons, ghosts, monsters, and other supernatural beings in search of their missing father.
9. Bridgerton
Genre: Drama
Seasons: 2
Total Episodes: 16
Starring: Adjoa Andoh, Julie Andrews, Lorraine Ashbourne
Bridgerton is a TV series based on the novels by Julia Quinn, set in the competitive world of Regency-era London during the debutante season. The show first premiered on Netflix in 2020 and quickly gained popularity for its lavish production, diverse casting, and modern take on the period drama genre.
8. Suits
Genre: Drama
Seasons: 8
Total Episodes: 134
Starring: Gabriel Macht, Patrick J. Adams, Sarah Rafferty, Meghan Markle
Suits is an American legal drama television series that first aired in 2011 and ran for eight seasons. The show is set at a fictional law firm in New York City and follows talented college dropout Mike Ross, who starts working as a law associate for Harvey Specter, despite never having attended law school.
7. Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Genre: Comedy
Seasons: 8
Total Episodes: 153
Starring: Andy Samberg, Andre Braugher, Stephanie Beatriz
Brooklyn Nine-Nine is an American television sitcom that aired from 2013 to 2021. The series is set in the fictional 99th precinct of the New York City Police Department in Brooklyn and follows a close-knit (yet not so close-knit) team of detectives under the command of the newly appointed Captain Raymond Holt.
6. Gilmore Girls
Genre: Comedy Drama
Seasons: 7
Total Episodes: 153
Starring: Lauren Graham, Alexis Bledel, Kelly Bishop
Gilmore Girls is an American drama series that originally aired from 2000 to 2007, with a miniseries released in 2016. The show is set in the fictional small town of Stars Hollow, Connecticut, and focuses on the close and often humorous relationship between single mother Lorelai Gilmore and her daughter Rory.
5. NCIS
Genre: Drama
Seasons: 21
Total Episodes: 466
Starring: Mark Harmon, Michael Weatherly, Cote de Pablo
NCIS is an American police procedural television series that premiered in 2003 and is still turning out new episodes to this day (origiannly airing on CBS). The show follows a team of special agents from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, which investigates crimes involving the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps.
4. Shameless
Genre: Drama
Seasons: 11
Total Episodes: 134
Starring: William H. Macy, Emmy Rossum, Jeremy Allen White
Shameless is an American drama series adapted from a British series of the same name. It premiered in 2011 and concluded in 2021. The show is set on the South Side of Chicago and follows the lives of the Gallagher family, a low-income, dysfunctional family as they navigate some of life’s toughest challenges.
3. Grey’s Anatomy
Genre: Drama
Seasons: 20
Total Episodes: 426
Starring: Ellen Pompeo, Sandra Oh, Katherine Heigl
Grey’s Anatomy is an American medical drama series that premiered in 2005 and was created by Shonda Rhimes. It’s set at the fictional Seattle Grace Hospital (later named Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital) in Seattle, Washington and focuses on the lives of surgical interns, residents, and attending physicians.
2. Breaking Bad
Genre: Drama
Seasons: 5
Total Episodes: 62
Starring: Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul, Anna Gunn
Breaking Bad is an American drama series created by Vince Gilligan, which aired from 2008 to 2013. The series is set in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and follows the life of Walter White, a high school chemistry teacher turned methamphetamine manufacturing drug dealer, after being diagnosed with cancer.
1. House of Cards
Genre: Thriller
Seasons: 6
Total Episodes: 73
Starring: Kevin Spacey, Robin Wright, Michael Kelly, Diane Lane
House of Cards is an American political thriller television series that debuted in 2013. The show revolves around Frank Underwood, a ruthlessly ambitious politician played by Kevin Spacey, who navigates the dark and manipulative world of American politics with the aim of gaining power at any cost.
10 Netflix Movies to Watch While Pumping or Feeding
If Netflix was only known for its massive collection of television shows and series, then it would still be worth the monthly investment – which is as low as $6.99 (no ads) or as high as $22.99 (premium).
Luckily, we live in a world where users get much more bang for their buck.
More than just shows, Netflix has a massive collection of movies and documentaries to help occupy and entertain mothers who are breastfeeding or pumping – especially when you have several hours to kill.
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In fact, Netflix is home to about twice as many movies (3,600+) as TV shows (1,800+).
From hysterical comedies to eyes-watering dramas and mood-setting romances, let’s take a look at 10 of our favorite movies and documentaries to stream on Netflix for those precious moments of downtime.
10. Anyone But You
Genre: Comedy
Length: 1 hour, 43 minutes
Starring: Sydney Sweeney, Glen Powell, Alexandra Shipp
Anyone But You is a newer film (released in 2023) directed by Will Gluck. It’s about a Boston University law student, named Bea, who hooks up with a Goldman Sachs employee, Ben. The two quickly grow apart from one another, but find one another again when Bea’s sister starts dating one of Ben’s friends.
9. Rebel Moon Series
Genre: Sci-Fi
Length: 2 hours, 16 minutes
Starring: Sofia Boutella, Djimon Hounsou, Ed Skrein
Rebel Moon is a space opera set in a galaxy dominated by the oppressive regime of the Mother World and its military arm, the Imperium. It centers on Kora, a former soldier of the Imperium, who embarks on a mission to protect the agrarian inhabitants of the moon Veldt from exploitation and oppression.
A sequel was released on April 19, 2024, and an R-rated director’s cut is being released later this year.
8. Otherhood
Genre: Comedy
Length: 1 hour, 40 minutes
Starring: Patricia Arquette, Angela Bassett, Felicity Huffman
Otherhood is a 2019 American comedy film directed by Cindy Chupack, based on the novel “Whatever Makes You Happy” by William Sutcliffe. It follows three suburban mothers who, feeling forgotten on Mother’s Day, surprise their adult sons by showing up unannounced at their homes in New York City.
7. Red Notice
Genre: Action
Length: 1 hour, 58 minutes
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Ryan Reynolds, Gal Gadot
Red Notice is a 2021 action-comedy film directed by Rawson Marshall Thurber. It’s about an Interpol agent, John Hartley (played by Johnson), who teams up with the world’s greatest art thief, Nolan Booth (played by Reynolds), to catch a notorious criminal known as “The Bishop” (played by Gadot).
6. The Mother
Genre: Action
Length: 1 hour, 57 minutes
Starring: Jennifer Lopez, Joseph Fiennes, Gael García Bernal
The Mother is a 2023 action-thriller film directed by Niki Caro. It’s about a former U.S. army sniper, known simply as “the Mother,” who comes out of hiding to save her estranged daughter, who has been kidnapped. It combines themes of redemption, maternal sacrifice, gritty survival, and much more.
5. What Jennifer Did
Genre: Documentary
Length: 1 hour, 27 minutes
What Jennifer Did is a true-crime documentary that delves into the shocking case of Jennifer Pan, a young woman from Markham, Ontario, who orchestrated a brutal attack on her own parents, resulting in her mother’s death and her father’s severe injuries. It features real footage and interviews on the topic.
4. Tully
Genre: Drama
Length: 1 hour, 35 minutes
Starring: Charlize Theron, Mackenzie Davis, Ron Livingston
Tully is a 2018 comedy-drama film directed by Jason Reitman and written by Diablo Cody. It’s about a mother of three, Marlo, who’s gifted a night nanny by her brother to help with her newborn. The nanny, named Tully, forms a unique bond with Marlo and helps her navigate the challenges of motherhood.
3. Marriage Story
Genre: Drama
Length: 2 hours, 16 minutes
Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Adam Driver, Laura Dern
Marriage Story is a 2019 drama directed by Noah Baumbach. It explores the intricate and emotionally complex process of a couple going through a divorce, and centers around Charlie, a successful theater director in New York, and Nicole, an actress who decides to move back to her hometown of Los Angeles.
2. Bird Box
Genre: Thriller
Length: 2 hours, 4 minutes
Starring: Sandra Bullock, Trevante Rhodes, John Malkovich
Bird Box is a post-apocalyptic thriller directed by Susanne Bier, based on the novel by Josh Malerman. It follows a mother and her two children, who must navigate a world overrun by mysterious entities that cause anyone who sees them to commit suicide. They wear blindfolds to avoid that gruesome fate.
1. Everything Everywhere All at Once
Genre: Action
Length: 2 hours, 19 minutes
Starring: Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan, Stephanie Hsu
Everything Everywhere All At Once is a surreal and imaginative film that explores the concept of the multiverse. It follows the story of Evelyn Wang, a Chinese-American who, while undergoing an IRS audit, discovers she has the ability to access the skills and lives of her alternate selves in other universes
Other Things You Can Do to Kill Time While Pumping
Netflix shows, movies, and documentaries are a go-to source of entertainment for millions of mothers around the world, but it’s not the only thing you can do to pass the time while breastfeeding or pumping.
I mean, let’s be honest – not everyone enjoys binge-watching shows and/or movies.
If that’s not your forte, then you can read a book (or article), browse social media, listen to a podcast (or music), write a journal (or start a mothering blog/vlog), play a video/mobile game, or partake in crafts.
You can also catch up on all your emails, text messages, phone calls, voicemails, and video chats.
These practical activities not only help pass the time but can also provide a bit of much-needed relaxation or stimulation during the repetitive and sometimes lengthy process of breastfeeding and/or pumping.
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Are you looking for more advice from mothers like yourself? Are you looking to join a community of mamas who support one another through life’s greatest journey? If so, then you’re going to appreciate our Answers by Mamas Uncut forum – built by mothers, for mothers. Come join the conversation today!