How long can you go between nursings without drying up?

[GreenMomPhD]

I have a 12 mo and I only nurse my DD before naptime and bedtime, which amounts to about 20 min a day.  Sometimes I skip the nap feeding if she doesn't nap, like if we're out and about.  I'm not really ready to wean, and I never really pumped b/c she never took a bottle.  I would like the option to get out of the house with my husband alone, either to have a meal at a normal time (instead of putting the kids to bed and then going out), or even to spend one entire night away from home.  But I don't want my supply to dry up.  If I went one night without nursing, say I nursed her at nap time and didn't nurse again until the next night (about 30 hours), would that be too long in between feedings?  I occasionally go around 24 hrs between them, so I think it might be ok, but I don't know much about how the body *stops* making milk!  Thanks!

[aHikaru]

I nursed my babe for 18 months and I still have milk come out, 1 year later. You never technically "dry up" after your first child, your body will keep itself prepared till the next baby.

(CLE)

[lifeguard]

It is different from person to person. I was able to go for a weekend at that point without it being a problem, but ds was bfing more frequently than your dc when I was with him (& the weekends were not frequent. At 20 months I left ds for 2 weeks & still had milk when I returned but for many that would not be the case. You could also pump.

[aratiaw]

Everyone's different. My supply drops to almost nothing as soon as I'm giving less than three feeds per 24 hours.

[Megan73]

You mentioned that you're not ready to wean but if she's only nursing twice a day - and not twice every day - you may be on that path without intending to be. You may find that your supply dries up or your LO loses interest. I know at least one mom who didn't realize that "don't offer, don't refuse" is a weaning technique and was sad when her toddler stopped wanting to nurse and her supply dried up.
What I would do if you want to occasionally skip a feed without it hurting your supply is offer the breast more often when you're together. You could also pump when you're apart. For example, at 12 months my older son was nursing in the morning, at naptime on weekends, when I got home from work and at bedtime. During the week, I pumped at work. I didn't stress when I missed the occasional feed because I felt like DS was nursing often enough (although many toddlers nurse MUCH more) and my breasts were getting the signal to make more milk.