Can I leave my BF 4month old for 4 days?

[mistresspenguin]

I've got to leave my 4 month old DD for 4 days and am wondering if I really can. Will she forget how to breastfeed? And what if she won't take bottles? At the moment she'll grudgingly take a couple of ounces of either EBM or formula, but seems like not enough to really fill her up as next feed, if it's boobs, she'll be really greedy. Am panicking about going away a bit - has anyone else gone away and been able to pick BF back up when you got back?

[VeetorWax]

With my DCs I would have found it impossible but they were all stubborn buggers! I think you need to have established bottle feeding successfully before you go but others would say if she's hungry she will feed. Why do you HAVE to go away?

[weegiemum]

I left my 5 month old baby with her dad (long time agoo) for 8 days because of a holiday I had agreed to go on with my 78 year old gran.

It was breaking my heart. I had really pumped and frozen over a gallon of breast milk! But I didn't want to leave her.

I went. I tolerated the holiday but my gran adored it and we spent each evening eating together and she told me loads of wonderful stories about my Granpa and her it was like seeing him again (he died when I was 16).

I pumped 6x a day (but had to discard the milk!!) and when I got back dd latched on like I'd never been away! It took about a week for my supply to re-establish properly but we went on to feed for another 7-8 months.

At he time I felt like a really bad mum to leave her. But .. I now can communicate to her, and her younger brother and sister, loads about their lives, because I got it all from her.

She died in early 2008. The holiday we'd been on was to southern Germany to see the famous Oberammegau passion play. It's only performed every 10 years, and I promised her we'd go again. But she died before we could. She didn't know I'd booked the tickets.

We named our dd2 after her, and her paternal grandma.

I've never regrettd this holiday, but it was very special circumstances, and my 5 mo didn't suffer.

[KatAndKit]

I wouldn't do it personally. Can't you take her with you at all? I think it would be upsetting for a 4 month old to be suddenly separated from you, and from boobs, for that period of time. As far as she knows, you have gone and aren't coming back. She has no concept of it only being for 4 days.

Of course sometimes you have to do things that are not ideal. If that is the case and you must go, I would make sure she is quite happy taking a bottle first. If she goes back to bf then great, if not then at least FF won't be a struggle when you get back.

I also think you will find it more difficult than you think for yourself to be separated from your very young baby for 4 days at her age. 6 months later and the trip might be much easier.

[NellyTheElephant]

I left my 3 month old DD2 with my Mum for 3 nights. We didn't have any trouble. I had pumped and frozen regularly so there was a good stock of milk and while away I pumped and dumped 4 or 5 times a day. No issues at all about her feeding when I got home. I was never really able to give her a bottle to be honest, either before or after I went away as she wouldn't take a bottle from me, but she was fine taking a bottle from my Mum. If she is at least grudgingly taking a bottle I wouldn't worry too much as once she is with your mother by the second feed without bf available she will take it all. If she wasn't taking anything from a bottle I would be more worried. If you have to go, and you want to go, then I am sure you can make it work.