Worrying about return to work

[TheGirlAtTheRockShow]

DD is 10 months old, BF and eats solids well. She BF's 3-4 times a day, and often 1 at night. Early morning, lunchtime feed to sleep, bedtime feed to sleep, sometimes mid morning or mid afternoon. Has 3 meals a day plus snacks.
I go back to work Monday, will be working 8.30-4.30 3 days a week. DD will be going to a childminder while I'm at work. She's had settling in sessions between 10-2 already.
DD will not take expressed milk at all! Childminder has tried both bottle and sippy cup, DD just won't take it. DH has also tried at home - same reaction! She also has yet to nap there, despite being there for her regular nap time. Not sure if that is related to not having milk.
My question is, do I need to worry as much as I am? When she's come home from her settling in sessions she then is constantly on and off the boob for rest of the day. Obviously once I'm back at work, she'll be away from me/milk even longer. Any tips to get her to take milk? Or should I just leave it? I'll keep supplying milk for a while just in case.

[HappyAsASandboy]

Personally, I would just leave it.

When my twins started nursery at 11 months they didn't drink either milk or water from a cup all day. They waited until I collected them, and then fed all night! A bit tiring for me, but they were just fine.

Eventually they copied the other kids and go the hang of drinking from a sippy cup. I tried so many different cups, but it was the nursery cups they mastered first, and I'm sure it was because they watched the others all day.

If you're happy to give formula, then if have your childminder continue to offer milk, but not stress about whether DD drinks it. If you only want her to have breastmilk, then if have the childminder offer water and then breastfeed when you're together - life is too short to express milk that won't be drunk.

At 10 months, and successfully on solids, I don't think it will hurt to be without milk from 8.30 until 4.30, particularly if you can offer feeds just before and just after. She may well just shift the feeds to 1 - wake up, 2 - 4.30 collection (likely to be a big feed, as hungry/thirsty and to reconnect), 3 - bedtime. So you may not get too many extra night feeds :)

Good luck with settling your DD. It is a big transistion, but your DD will either work out how to take a cup/bottle, or she'll wait for you to come back :)

[Shybairns]

Hi if I were you I would try not to worry about what she eats, drinks, sleeps when not with you, as really its beyond your control. Yes you can instruct childminder on how you'd like things to be, but like when the grandparents are in charge, she will have to do the best she can to meet your daughters needs.

There is bound to be a settling in period, she will come home and need your physical presence (and boob) till she is asleep. This will calm down though, give it a couple of months.

Do you plan to express at work? The breastfeeding network have great instruction on hand expressing. You may only need to express for comfort during the day. Is work providing you with a locked room for this purpose?

[Milkyway1304]

Will she drink water? I went back to full time shift work when my dd was 10 months and essentially exclusively breastfed. (Refused solids as well as ebm/formula). She did take water though. There is a breastfeeding counsellor on the staff in her nursery and we had a long discussion about how to manage. Essentially her advice was not to worry, she would eat or take milk when she was hungry, and to expect some marathon feeding sessions at home the first few weeks which would settle. This was 8 weeks ago and she was right. DD now eats 3 meals and 2 snacks in nursery, has 2-3 bf when we are together and her night time sleep is unchanged.

[TheGirlAtTheRockShow]

Thanks for your replies!
She does take water from a cup - just not EBM.
I will express at work if I need to for comfort/provide childminder with milk if needed. I haven't really spoken to work about it, but I know they'll be fine. We all have our own rooms so won't be an issue with that. I have a very good electric pump to use. I struggled with oversupply for 7 months so don't want to go back there! I have no trouble expressing generally as I expressed before I ever BF'd as DD was preemie in NICU.
Happy I have no issue with formula, DD wouldn't be here if it weren't for formula. I just would prefer her to have breast milk as that's the parenting choice DH and I have made for her. If she needs formula she can have it.