Trip away from breastfed toddler

[PiInTheSky]

Work are asking me to spend 5 nights away from home. My toddler will be 3 when this happens. At the moment he usually just feeds at bedtime with an occasional morning or daytime feed.

Does anyone have experience of leaving a bf child for this long and whether I am likely to still have milk.

(I do not particularly want to go down the expressing route and I am not worried about engorgement as I seem to have gone beyond that stage.)

Wow. Tough. Your 1st bf child?
he might find it hard; may need a comforter or substitute. Depends on his personality & how secure he is with you away.
You might find you need to express a little anyway, not necessarily to keep it, but to ease the engorgement; maybe if you reduce/avoid milk while away it might be easier for you.
I might try to negotiate one night less away. I'd have found it too difficult. Good luck!

Will your DC be staying with his/her dad? Do you want to continue feeding when you get back?
I have known friends who have used going away (and leaving DC with dad) as a way of weaning. When they got back DC was easily persuaded (at this age) to carry on going to bed with dad without bf. On the other hand, someone I knew who had weaned a month earlier ran out of cow's milk and her DD asked for bf instead and she still had milk after one month! So I'm sure you could continue on your return if that's what you want.

When ds3 was about this age i left him for 3 nights for a work trip and when he was a little older i had 4 nights away with my mum - he was fine while I was away just needed lots of cuddles and when I got back he resumed bf as though the had been no break. He seemed to realise that what he called "mummynilk" was only available when I was around. I was quite nervous when I went away the first as I hadn't been in that situation before. I am planning a night away in a couple of months and that will be the first time I will have left ds4 overnight and am hoping we will have a similar experience.

Thanks for the replies.

I have left him before but for no more than one night away. I have other concerns about leaving him for so long as he is quite a clingy boy but I wan't sure how bfing would factor in.

It sounds like I would still have milk so that is reassuring. He is atan age now where he could be weaned but I think I would be very resentful if it happened to someone else's timetable rather than when he was ready to stop, if that makes sense.

you would almost certainly have milk left

ds3 is almost 3 and is in the process of weaning, he asked for milk the other morning after at least 2 weeks of not having any, and still got some out!

I left DS for 6 nights when he was 18 months old - no issues with supply or demand! He pretty much undid my top himself when I got home :o I also left for work - will probably have do the same for DC2 next april when they'll be 10 months, it's quite nice to have the break actually

I hand expressed in the shower each morning whilst away, but was working too hard to manage any other time, and it wasn't an issue (and I am quite prone to mastitis)

feel free to ask more questions if you'd like, I am 34 weeks with DC2 and can't think straight right now, but could answer direct questions if they are put to me!!

good luck :)