Going back to work and combined feedng

[fishmother]

Hi,

experienced breastfeeder advice needed!

I'm going back to work in June, so need to wean DD off bf so that she can go to a childminder. I don't want to express at work as I think it will be hard enough combining a full time job and looking after a 6 month old without that [ I expressed a lot in the early days as DD was in neonatal, so I know what a ballache it is]. She has some formula anyway so there's no issue there.

But, DD still wakes up once or twice during the night [or more if poorly / unsettled] and I'd love to keep on bf during the night as it's soooo much easier and quicker than making up bottles.

So, my question is will it be possible for my body to adjust to making milk only for night times/early morning? And what would be the best way of doing this? I do have a habit of leaking a lot and don't really want leaking / engorgment in the office!

Thanks

Will she be 6 months when you go back?

I stopped leaking around 4 months I think, and since 6 months I've been able to leave ds for up to 8 hours occasionally without discomfort (he has some milk from a beaker while I'm away).

I think if you start regularly only feeding morning, bedtime and at night then your body will adjust - I don't breastfeed at all between 8pm-6am for instance and it's fine, no leaking or engorgement at night. You probably want to keep formula to a minimum in the day though, and maybe give it in a cup/beaker rather than a bottle to avoid your baby getting a bottle preference.

I did express at work (with the first 3 children when I went back at 2 weeks) and by a year - 18 months most of them had given up breastfeeding - their choice not mine, but certainly by the time they were also eating some solids breastfeeding was less and we did get used to no expressing in the day but lots of feedinog at night (I never had a sleeping baby)

I agre withthe poster above that your body can adjust. I never bottle fed myself either although whoever was looking after the baby would give my breast milk so the baby always associated me with breast milk and may be that helped. They always seemed to prefer it.

When I first went back I wore breastpads.

yes, she'll be 6 months when I go back. I do still leak a bit, hopefully that'll stop soon.

I guess I'll just have to try it, it's good to know it can be possible to regulate the times you need milk. Obviously in an ideal world she'll sleep through and I won't need to feed at night at all!

She has a bottle every day, either expressed or formula and has done since birth so am hoping bottle preference is not going to be an issue.

Xenia - 2 weeks?!?! I couldn't even walk at 2 weeks let alone go to work!

I certainly think you can but feed as much as you can. At the weekends I always solely breastfed even though in the week I was expressing at work and that worked fine too.

(I was quite fit and if you have a 3 year old 1 yar old and new baby and are at home alone with them then I would be pretty sure people find sitting at a desk all day a huge lot easier than the physical demands of looking after new baby 1 and 3 year old and with the twins by then I worked for myself so just got them taken to me during working hours to feed which was much nicer and easier than expressing)

I think a lot of people find one bottle a day while breastfeeding is fine, but when it's bottles all day outnumbering breastfeeds then babies sometimes refuse the breast.

At 6 months+ I would aim for something like 3 meals with lots of dairy, plus a beaker of milk mid-morning and mid-afternoon, then as many breastfeeds as possible when you're home.