Advice for mum to be - when to introduce bottle

[sydenhammum]

I'm due in 3 weeks and planning to breast feed. I would really like to get my husband involved with one feed/day and so I'm keen to express for this purpose. However having read books and talked to midwives there is conflicting advice as to when it is appropriate to introduce a bottle. Some suggest that introduction at earlier than 4 weeks confuses the baby, whereas others say that unless the baby is introduced from say the first week then they aren't likely to take to the bottle at all.
Any advice from experience would be most useful.

[WigWamBam]

I'd say you would need to be very careful introducing a bottle very early. You need to get your milk supply well established first, otherwise introducing a bottle could interfere with your supply. Expressing isn't a problem in the early weeks, but giving a bottle means missing a feed, and missing a feed can quickly lead to your supply dropping.

When I had my dd, the HV's recommendation was no earlier than six weeks, but that would have been too early for me because although my supply was good, it took longer than that for me to establish feeding properly. The HV was looking more from the point of nipple confusion, but I think that the supply issue is a more important consideration.

I'm sure someone like tiktok will be along soon with some more advice.

[nickytwotimes]

my experience was that it was fine to introduce the bottle at 2 weeks. my pal tried at 6 weeks but felt it was too late as he wouldn't take it

all of them are different though; maybe try every so often till baby accepts it?
btw, made no difference to my supply

[tiktok]

There is no evidence apart from individual experience which would form any guidelines for this - and anyone who is dogmatic about 'too late' or even 'too early' is really not basing their advice on anything more than personal experience, I think.

We do know that breastfeeding is supported by frequent feeding - yes, some women can 'get away with' a bottle (of ebm, preferably, from baby's POV) a day from the start, but this really does not help bf (and it may hinder it - though again, no reason to be dogmatic about this). I have known dozens and dozens of women who have intro'd a bottle later on, and it is fine (others do have a problem). There is no way of predicting what will happen, and even babies who get used to the bottle early can change their minds.

We do know that fathers do not need to be involved with the feeding to bond (there is research on what supports bonding and fathers, and bathing the baby has some good evidence behind it) so I worry that mothers feel pressured to express in order for this to happen...there is enough work and pressure in the early weeks anyway. Do this if it is a choice, but don't feel you have to

Just intro a bottle and start expressing when it feels right for you - there is no rush, and if you do it occasionally from the start, don't feel you have to keep it up every day.

HTH

[JodieG1]

I waited until about 6 weeks so my supply wouldn't be affected and also so baby wouldn't get nipple confusion. He probably only had 1 bottle of ebm a week now but I keep that up so he's used to a bottle in case I have to go out without him etc.

[EllieKthePA]

my ds 1 had a bottle alongside breast from about 6 weeks no problem, ds2 is 10 days old and has had a bottle of expressed milk 3 times. when he's having the bottle i express the feed he misses so i hope to avoid any supply problems.

[snowleopard]

We also had this conflicting advice. Our midwife and HV said not to try a bottle too soon, as it woould confuse the baby; but a nurse we saw in hospital said do it before a month or the baby won't take to it. We left it till two months and he wouldn't take to it (though of course we don't know if he would have done if we'd tried earlier). If there's a next time though, I will try earlier, as long as BF is going well - because it would have been a great help for me if DP could have done the odd EBM feed to give me a break.

This depends on so many things though - how well the breastfeeding goes, how easy you find it to express, what kinds of bottle you try and what the baby prefers... you just have to feel your way and go with the flow. So to speak

But speaking for myself I would try it in the first few weeks, as long as everything's going well generally.

[Notyummy]

We started at 3 weeks and she accepted it absolutely fine....un til 12 weeks when we went through a week of hell with her SCREAMING every evening when dh got home and did the bath and bottle thing. It lasted 5 daysd precisely and we are still not sure why exactly, but we kept going andf she was fine.

Gave me a few hours of freedom and (apart from the screaming episode) really made dh feel very involved and that he really was giving me a proper break.

I had no probs with supply, so 3 weeks weorked great, although I take the point from the other posts that each mum and baby are different.

It would sometimes take me a couple of goes at expressing to get enough milk for a full feed at 7pm. I used to do it first thing in the morning and then try early afternoon to top up.

Get a decent pump...its worth it.