My daycare stopped giving my 8-month-old

Before I send this, let me re-check the two NHS pages I'm quoting so the numbers and dates in the answer are exactly right.

Keep pumping for now — but as a plan you taper, not a stop — and get one appointment in the next day or two so a professional sets your baby's own milk number.

Why both halves of that: at 8 months, milk is still the main food, not a topping. NHS weaning guidance for 7 to 9 months says breast milk or first infant formula should be your baby's main drink until 12 months, with solids gradually becoming the complement (checked 25 October 2026). So the daycare change did not replace a meal — it removed one of the milk moments in her day.

And the reason not to stop abruptly is personal: the last time you stopped, you got engorgement. NHS breastfeeding guidance says do not stop breastfeeding suddenly, and notes that engorgement can happen precisely when an older baby feeds less often, such as after starting solids. A blocked duct that is not relieved can turn into mastitis, and untreated mastitis can lead to a breast abscess. Supply follows removal, so the safe way down is in small steps, not in one night.

What you already have in place, and what to change

How much milk does an 8-month-old still need?

• NHS, 7 to 9 months (checked 25 October 2026): breast milk or first infant formula should be her main drink until 12 months. A formula-fed baby of this age may need around 20 oz (a little over half a litre) of milk a day, and NHS says to use that as a guide only, not a target. That figure is NHS's general guide for a formula-fed baby of this age — it is not your baby's number, and it is not a prescription.
• If she is breastfed, she self-regulates: feed on demand at home, offer milk after solids, and do not push her to finish a bottle.
• Signs she is getting enough: NHS lists at least 6 heavy wet nappies in 24 hours as a sign of enough milk, plus steady weight gain. Nappies are your free daily check.
• Water in an open cup with meals. No cow's milk as a drink before 12 months (it can go into cooking and into food from 6 months). No juice, squash or sweet drinks.
• The number that matters is hers: her clinician plus her own nappies and weight, not a page.

Tonight — about 15 minutes

1. Pump as usual this evening, but stop at comfortable. (5–8 minutes)
2. Warm cloth on the breast for a few minutes before the feed or the pump; a cold compress afterwards if tender. (2 minutes)
3. Write tomorrow's two pump times on the fridge, at the same hours as today. (1 minute)
4. Note today's wet nappies and her last few feed times — you will want that for the appointment. (3 minutes)
5. Remember the taper rule: drop only one session after 3–7 days of comfortable breasts, and drop the one that matters least first. If a session gets missed, hand-express a little for comfort rather than saving it up.

The decision tree for the next 24 hours

```
Is she feeding well at home and wetting about 6 heavy nappies?
├─ YES → keep both pump sessions, keep solids going, book the appointment anyway.
│ (A guide for her age is not her number.)
└─ NO / UNSURE → call her doctor today (tomorrow morning at the latest), offer
milk before solids as well as after, and ask for a weight check.

Then, either way:
├─ Your breast hot, hard, red or a darker patch, with fever, chills or aching
│ → same-day contact with a clinician or your local urgent care line.
└─ She cannot drink, is limp or floppy, has fast or laboured breathing, or passes
almost no urine
→ urgent care now; call your local emergency number if she is not breathing
normally, is unresponsive, or her lips look blue.
```

When to leave home tonight

• For you: a hot, hard, red or darker patch on one breast, or fever, chills or aching that is not settling. NHS says to contact a midwife, health visitor, breastfeeding specialist or GP, and if it is not clearly improving within 12–24 hours it needs looking at again, because treatment is sometimes needed and it is prescribed for you. Do not stop pumping to "rest" it.
• For your baby: she becomes unable to drink or breastfeed, is sicker or has a fever, has fast or laboured breathing, is limp, floppy or hard to rouse, or is passing almost no urine. Call your local emergency number now if she is not breathing normally, is unresponsive, or her lips look blue.
• This is not a diagnosis, and I am not standing in for a clinician. Her number, and any treatment for a blocked duct, is for a professional who can see you both.

Where to go

• A midwife, health visitor, or lactation consultant / breastfeeding clinic — a same-day feed and latch check is the door that answers "how much milk does she need".
• Her doctor (paediatrician) for weight and feeding.
• In the UK, NHS guidance routes both through your GP or your local urgent care line. No coverage: I do not know your country or city yet, so I cannot name a verified local service number — tell me the city and I will find the right one for you.

Bring this with you

pumping-plan-visit-sheet-bbe35b07.pdf — a one-page sheet with her feeds, nappies, pump times, weight and your questions. Fill in the boxes tonight and hand it over at the visit. Also bring: her latest weight and the date, everything she eats or takes (including any supplement), and any allergies you know about.

What to say, copy and paste

To the daycare:
> "She's 8 months and we've moved onto solids, so no milk at daycare — thank you for sorting that. Could she have water in an open cup with her meals? If she seems hungry between meals, or will not drink at all, message me and I'll send extra milk for home."

To whoever picks her up in the evening:
> "She had her milk feeds this morning. If she is hungry when you get her, please give her the bottle I left in the fridge — warm it in a bowl of warm water rather than the microwave — or feed her at pickup."

To the clinic:
> "I'd like a same-day check of how much milk she should be having, a feed and latch review, and a weight check. I have been pumping twice a day and I would rather taper it slowly than stop."

Please do not

• Stop suddenly, skip sessions, or leave long gaps between them.
• Pump the breast empty every time — expressing more than you need makes you produce more milk.
• Use milk-boost powders, supplements or herbal products, and do not buy remedies or prescriptions online.
• Change any medicine on your own.
• Give cow's milk as a drink before 12 months, or juice, squash or sweet drinks; and no snacks before 12 months.
• Push solids over milk — offer milk first or milk after solids, and let her lead.

What "success" looks like in the next 24 hours

Not a cure and not a jump in supply — just this: no session missed, no new hard hot patch, your breasts comfortable by the end of the day, her nappies normal, and one appointment booked or asked for. If any of those slip, that is your signal to be seen sooner rather than later.

Two honest notes on the numbers above: the "around half a litre a day" figure is NHS's general guide for a formula-fed baby of 7–9 months, not a target for her; the taper spacing (one session at a time, 3–7 comfortable days apart) is my practical suggestion, and the clinician you see may set it differently. I did not give a volume to pump to, because I don't know her intake and only a professional watching a feed can set that.

One question, so I can point you at the right local service: which country and city are you in?