Hi there
I think you are right that he probably is dependent on the breast for sleeping, but also his routine could probably do with a little bit of tweaking which may make things a bit easier for you. Have I read it right that sometimes he doesn't get an afternoon nap? Do you put him to bed earlier on those days? At his age two naps would be usual for most babies, so if the afternoon nap os frequently being skipped or refused I would probably suggest to start shortening the morning nap to get him to take one in the afternoon. That might also help with the EWs - have a read of this:
10/11 month old sleep gone wonky? Read this first! (note I'm not suggesting dropping to one nap! But this is the very very early beginnings of transition and shortening the morning nap may help get him well-rested).
Just to deal with the milk - at 8 months his primary source of nutrition should still really be milk, so you would probably want 4 daytime feeds as a minimum (usually WU, mid-morning, mid-afternoon and bedtime). Obviously more is fine too
but if you are back to work soon you will need to think about how you are going to replace daytime feeds rather than just dropping them. At this age 2 feeds only is unlikely to provide sufficient nutrition, regardless of how well he eats, and will potentially contribute to more wakings at night. You could try introducing a bottle, but a sippy or straw cup can also work at this age with either expressed milk or formula.
In terms of separating eat and sleep, you could try something like the gentle removal plan if you prefer a slow/gentle approach -
Gentle Removal Plan - or if you are more of a 'rip the plaster off' kind of person then PUPD would also be appropriate for this age -
Pick Up/Put Down (PU/PD) - Everything you ever needed to know! Is your husband willing/able to help with changing the sleep association? It's often easier for someone other than a breastfeeding Mum to get LO settling in another way, though you can do it yourself if needs be
Let me know what you think x