How long should I allow to stop bfing altogether?

[welshmum]

I've got to go back to work at the very end of November and need to get ds on to bottles (which he loathes - that's another thread) Any advice/experience of how long to allow for the bf process to stop? Which feeds to drop first etc? At the moment he has:
7.30am(plus solids),
9am (little one),
1130am (plus solids),
2.30pm,
5.30pm (half a bf and solids),
6.45pm and
4am (am trying to lose this one anyway)
I'm getting a bit panicky about achieving it at all and don't have much confidence in myself to carry it through

Any thoughts anyone?

How old is he?

I started by replacing the daytime feeds with formula. Ds was used to expressed bottles, so this wasn't much of a problem. Once he was having these I found it easier to get him into a routine and he naturally dropped other daytime feeds. I continued to feed him in the morning and at bedtime until he gave it up naturally. Will your baby be going to a childminder or nursery? They are used to dealing with this tricky period, so it might be worth talking to them before you go back, to establish what they will expect. I think the main concern will be getting your baby to feed from a bottle or cup, which, as you say, may be another thread.

welshmum, no advice but just wanted to say i'll watch this to see what you decide on...ds is 9 mths & still bf like an addict. have no idea how long to let him go on like this - esp since he's a poor eater & i suspect he's filling up on milk all the time (plus getting up at night, sometimes 2/3/4 times, like your).

No advice, but watching thit thread in ernest, as have to go back to work when DB is about 4 months old here myself.

Hiya moondog - he's nearly 6 months.
He took a bottle today for the first time so that's one problem out of the way thank goodness.
I can't decide whether to try to continue with the morning and evening feed - is that a possibility?

hya, am and pm feed is possible. I dropped the daytime BF feeds as DD went to nursery as I went back to work. I started with just two feeds in the evening and the first one of the day, plus if she woke up during the night I would feed her then that was when she was 6months

She's now 8 months, I still do the evening and morning, but have found that I can feed her on the boob at weekends - which has been a godsend when caught short when out.

Boobs are fab, they'll fit in with you and what you want to do.

Will keep watching the thread as am also dropping daytime BFs as back to work in 2 weeks. Am currently doing same as madrose, though my DD always wants at least 2 feeds in the night.

Madrose, if you do extra feeding at the weekend, do your boobs go back to the lower output rates in the week without engorgement or anything? would love to be able to do this but worried about storing up problems for later....

Why not welshmum?
My dd went to nursery at 7 months.Went in for a month at lunchtime to feed her,then stopped,but continued with am and pm feeds for 30 months.

She never had formula or cows' milk,just a drink of water in the day.

Yes I did that lockets at w/ends,holidays and days off.Worked just fine.

Well thanks all, that's pretty encouraging, I really didn't want to rush him or me. Might not manage the lunchtime feed Moondog as it's 45 mins each way to my lovely childminder. I'll try to hang on to as many feeds as I can then and put my trust in my bosoms