Hi mamas. DD is 9 months old now and I have over 2000 ounces of milk in the freezer for her – enough to get her to 1 year. She doesn’t nurse during the day (long story, we’ve tried for months, it doesn’t wok), but I have been successfully nursing her at night since this whole daytime nursing strike thing started, like, 5 months ago. Anyways, for months now she has only woken up to nurse once at night and more recently has had some nights where she slept all the way through (I tried nursing her upon waking in the mornings but with no success – but I’ve made peace with this and it’s OK). I’ve been maintaining my supply by pumping A LOT during the day. Now, with enough milk (and then some!) I’m ready to start dropping pumps. I also plan to pump for an extra week or two and donate to a milk bank.
Here is my question – any ballpark as to the minimum number of pumps I can do during the day but still maintain enough supply to nurse her overnight if/when she wakes? I’ve just really got to let up on the pumping because my family needs me back (I also have a 3 year old)! I currently pump 8 times a day. If I were to eventually wean down to 5, or even 4, times a day, I assume I’d still be able to nurse overnight? Thanks for the feedback! I'm so protective of my supply it's hard to wrap my brain around dropping pumps - I will love the freedom it will bring but it is of course with mixed emotions.