To think this could work? (part-time breastfeeding)

[Pipsqueaked]

I'm due to go back to work in a month's time, my baby will be 8 months old and he is currently ebf. When I go back I will only be working 2 days a week but they will be 12 hour shifts. My plan is to keep feeding the days I'm home and give formula when I'm working. DH thinks this isn't possible and would only confuse DS. He thinks I should wean now. My problem is I so enjoy bf I don't want it to end just for 2 days out of 7 I need to be out of the house. WWYD?

Any breastmilk will be beneficial and you might find your baby adjusts on the days you're not there by reverse cycling, where they feed more when mum comes home/at night.

I went back to work at 10 months and fed my son until 18 months. Only reason I stopped was because he stopped asking for it, otherwise we would have kept going.

kellymom.com/bf/normal/reverse-cycling/

You can pump at work if you want to which will help keep your supply for the feeds yob are missing. Your work legally must allow you time and place to pump if you are a bf mother.

I'm a nurse to when I returned to work I was out the house 3 days a week for 14 hours. I returned to work when he was 10 months old.

I breast fed DS before I left for work and for the remainder of the day any milk he had was either EBM or formula and so was his bedtime feed. On the days I wasn't at work he continued to breast feed absolutely fine.

I used to pump 3 times a day at work when I first went back but once my body adjusted to having days away from DS my milk supply also adjusted and within a few months I could go 48 hours without seeing him or feeding him and I didn't have any problems with engorgement and nor was my supply affected.

We breast fed for just over 2.5 years with this pattern, no problems.

You will be fine OP

I went back to work when DD was 9 months. She's always refused a bottle and has just waited until I got home. She's now 2 and still BFing

You can do that for sure. My boss used to breastfeed in the morning and evenings. And baby had forumula in the day time.

It'll be fine. Its what I did exactly. I fed her myself when i was at home and he gave formula she I wasn't. I pumped at work for a while but my supply adjusted. She was 8 months when i went back to work. I fed her until she was 2 years and six months

Every baby is different but it can be more flexible than you think!

At 4.5 years, my child would bf at night and during the day at the weekend - only occasionally, on demand. Tbf I wasn't producing much any more, but a bit. And frequently I'd be away for 3 nights with work (every other week). So she had a mix of bf and walking to the fridge and getting out her own cow's milk!

I gave up trying to express for her - I never got much.

PS for work - I found hand expressing easiest and most effective. Worth a try then you don't need to cart around kit. Like others after a month or so my supply settled down and I only needed to express if I had a particularly long day or something.

You have the legal right to express. It's not about hoping or asking, tell them.

By 9 months mine were birth feeding morning and night only (and in the night too..)

You'll probably find that they replace milk for food anyway! You'll be fine.

Yes, can't see a problem with this at all. I went back to work at 9 months and found no issues. I did pump at work but didn't actually need to in terms of rock hard boobs - that just never seemed to be a problem, I certainly didn't pump every day. We used BM for feeds offered during the day but found DC very quickly preferred water in the day and saved the big feeds for afternoon and evening. No stress at all.

DC not used to a bottle or sippy cup at all before 9 months, we did get them used to this by putting BM in cup before I went back and getting this into lunchtime routines. This kind of went along with introducing foods etc. so wasn't a big deal as in 'taking boob away and replacing with teat' trauma! Are you trying that?? - making the sippy cup one of the new things along with finger foods etc.? You might not be quite at that stage yet at 7 months so I wouldnt' stress about it yet. I've heard that two different sippy cups of different colours, one with water one with BM is worth a try.

DC both fed til 2 and a half. Was extremely glad I carried on - some of the real advantages come later I find, such as always having bf to fall back on when they're ill and you need to keep them hydrated.

Oh and yes they absolutely have to provide a place for you to express. By law!

At 9 months, is your baby eating solids well? If so, whoever is providing childcare can offer solids and water to your baby while you are at work, then you feed on demand when at home. That means on your days off work, you feed on demand throughout the day etc. No need for formula at all, it is completely unnecessary. It doesn't taste nice either.

Don't wean now, this is totally possible!!
Look up 'reverse cycling'. Baby will be fine and will make up for the lost time!! Just try to work on food intake and water from a sippy cup/bottle.
Good luck to you

Yes it will most probably be fine provided you can express whilst at work. Kids are adaptable and will change feeding patterns to work around when you are there.

I'm in exactly the same situation going back next week. 12 hour shifts etc. I am planning on doing this too. I've had days/nights away as practice and she's been happy with formula whilst I've been away. Your supply will adjust for the days you work.

At 9 months i went back 3 days, dc fed before and after....then made up for it in the night time.
At work i hand expressed and dumped the milk as no way to store.
In the day dc ate well and drunk water from a tommee tippee free flow cup.
We fed till 2.5 years with no problems ☺

I mixed fed from 0 to 6 months with both dc. It was fine. A hassle for me but better than not bf at all, imo.

Mixed feeding is completely fine. We do it and have had no issues!

I BF DD four days a week and she had formula (from a cup, refused a bottle) at the childminder for three days a week. I pumped for comfort at work and once we got into a routine, I had milk on the days I needed to and was comfortable at work on the days I didn't. I still BF at breakfast and in the evenings as my work day was 9-5. I'm amazed my body worked it all out.

This was all from 9mo. I finally stopped feeding in the days at 16mo and at night at about 18mo.

DS has however been a total pain because I'm with him all the time. He was a bugger to stop BFing, wouldn't drink formula at all when I was trying to stop BFing and has only recently started drinking milk at nearly 2yo. I wish I'd given him a bottle of formula much sooner.

You can definitely do this. I do it. I work part time and breastfeed on demand when I'm with my baby. On working days we're apart for 11 hours and I don't even need to express for comfort. My supply has adjusted.

Why not try it and see?

yes to the keeping a couple of bf feeds a day and maybe formula for the rest? Your boobs get into whatever regular pattern you set, so might be easiest

Of course you can mix feed, many babies are mix fed.
At 8 months is probably even easier to do so as he will be eating solids. I'd try him with the formula in a cup instead of introducing a bottle at this age.