Weaning off breast milk when I go back to work

[Queazy]

My daughter is 9 months old and is ebf. I'm going back to work in 2 months and she is feeding 3 times a day. I think I can persuade her to have a snack instead of afternoon milk, but at what age do babies move to one or no milk feeds? She is allergic to dairy and has never taken a bottle. We tried but she hated dairy free formula and i left starting the transition to bottle too late. The HV said to move to a cup, but I can't imagine that sending her to sleep at night!!
Thanks all!

[Indith]

varies a lot. Unless you actively want to quit you dint need to do anything, she will most likely be perfectly happy to drink water from a cup and have food when you are not there and bf when you are and your supply with adjust accordingly.

[Indith]

for random anecdotal comparisons my eldest dropped to once a day around 11 months and by 12 months was feeding every other day then stopped totally by 13 months.

number 2 fed constantly until just before 2 when I couldn't cope and went cold turkey.

number 3 was 2 in March and can feed a few times a day and at night. or can feed once. Or not at all if I'm on a long shift. or not at all at night if I'm on night shifts.

[Queazy]

Oh thanks so much. It's really helpful to know that they can adapt with work schedules to a certain extent. She's my first and 9 months on, still a bit clueless! She's used to bf before bed...how did/do you handle bedtime without milk?

[Indith]

Honestly didn't do anything in preparation, dh just cuddled and settled to sleep and they coped. The toddler settles better when I'm not there these days.

[weebairn]

I went back to work at 10 months and she coped.

In the day she had water or food instead. We still had 2-3 feeds per day (around my shifts, including night shifts) for several months. She adapted very well (better than I did probably!) Generally she'd have one first thing, one at bedtime, and one in the night; but as I sometimes worked evenings and nights sometimes it was a daddy-cuddle instead, not a very set routine at all.

I night weaned at 14 months because I was absolutely shattered, that took a few days but she accepted it fine

From around 15-20 months we had a blissful 1 feed per day (early morning sleepy one) then sadly she went off breastfeeding and we stopped (I was pregnant again by then). Still a bit sad about this :(

One feed per day and feeding a toddler was the most I enjoyed breastfeeding, by some distance.

Good luck with the return to work Queazy! Thinking about it is worse than doing it… and it does get easier.

[museumum]

Will she have to go to bed while you're still at work?

My ds won't take a bottle (nothing to do with leaving it "too late" - he had expressed milk in a bottle daily till about 3.5mo when he decided to refuse).

Anyway, I breast feed him at breakfast and bed time only and he uses a cup in the day - mostly drinking water but occasionally a wee bit of milk. I don't express in the day, my supply is fine. I will continue till I think he can go to bed without milk. Now he has dinner, bath, bf, story, bed so it's not impossible to imagine skipping the bf.

[Queazy]

Thanks again all. DD won't have to go to bed without me, but there might be times with work that I stay away or do an event in the evening, or travel and get home late. My commute is 1hr15 already, so a push to get back on a good day. I plan to do morning and evening as long as possible, but want to get her semi-used to different methods before bed, so it's not cold turkey one day when I'm not there. Sorry, I know I'm trying to plan when I can't control it...thinks it's returning to work nerves We had such a tough time breastfeeding in the early months - she lost weight, I had mastitis 4 times and a breast abscess...never thought I'd breastfeed for a year or more but so glad now that hopefully that'll happen xx

[Indith]

I think the rouble with trying different methods before you are not there is that you are there when trying the different things so baby goes "er mum why not milk?" When you are not there they go "oh mummy isn't here, ok I'll cuddle daddy/nanna/childminder instead". I know the panic well but honestly, 99% of the time they are fine, hey adapt and so do you. You might find she feeds more on weekends/your days off as a way of reconnecting, enjoy it! It doesn't mean she is desperate for milk when you are not there.

[leedy]

Pretty much exactly what Indith just said! I didn't really do anything to prep for going back to work with both DC and it worked out just fine.