Leaving my 16 month old for 10 weeks for work and citizenship

[MumWithEspresso]

I have a dilemma. For immigration reasons, I need to leave my 16-month-old for 2.5 months while I return to the UK to look for a job and hopefully establish a base. I can't take him with me because I won't have any local support.
He'll be staying with my mum, who already looks after him most evenings, so she's someone he knows and feels secure with.
If I postpone the trip, I'll lose the opportunity to qualify for British citizenship next year. The long-term benefits for both of us are significant, but I'm very worried about how such a long separation might affect him.
Has anyone been through something similar? How did your child cope, and how was your relationship afterwards?

But there is a massive difference in two things.

1. This poster is leaving her child with a grandparent who is a daily part of that child's life for a limited period. 10 weeks. One off.

2. You work in Asia as a westerner, for whom is it fairly easy to get a visa with a little bit of annual paperwork. The reverse is much less true. Asians (or other nationalities) coming to the West have to jump through huge hoops (leaving her child for over 2 months) in order to be able to live/work abroad. You are merely showing your western privilege here.

Her getting British citizenship will probably enable her child to get a good education and enhance both of their lives, depending on where she comes from.