To find breastfeeding exhausting and not especially convenient

[Namelessbabe]

Feeding is going 'well' in so far as weight gain etc goes. Bi

I find it far more convenient and quicker than ff BUT it is exhausting, especially as DS is a bottle refuser. I've been doing it for 5 months now and whilst I don't like it (I actually actively dislike it most of the time) I feel I can't give up due to the convenience, especially at night but also because giving up would be a choice rather than a necessity IYSWIM.

Yes, you have my full sympathies, as it really can be hard. I was in tears so much for the first couple of months, requiring DH to constantly help with positioning, sore nipples, oversupply, leaking. But it was so worth persevering , if only because as they get older, it's such an easy way to get them back to sleep - lie down next to them, give them breast, fall back to sleep yourself. The extra rest I got over the first three years of DS' life was worth any amount of trauma in the first weeks.

It can be really really tough. Yes it's brilliant and beneficial but it can be exhausting, painful and draining. I found it so hard at first. I really wanted to bf though, and kept going. I mix fed for a bit just to give myself a break then magically at 10 weeks it all sorted itself out. I'm glad I did. But the cluster feeding - I found that tough.

But, this is about you. What do you want? If you want to bf (and it does get easier and more convenient) then try to access support and push on. Accept it can be painful at first but that it does get easier, the leaking largely stops and as supply regulates you lose the 'about to pop' feeling.
And...If you want to mix or bottle feed then you don't need anyone's approval- just do it. Breast feeding is great, but if it's making you hideously miserable then you don't have to do it. What matters is that you're feeding your baby and bonding. Anyone else's judgement can take a running jump.
I very nearly packed in, and if it hadn't have started working when it did I would have done because it wasn't working for me. Having a tiny baby is hard enough without an extra source of stress.

YANBU. I had no problems physically but struggled psychologically. I am not pregnant with ds2 and tbh if I could get away with ff I totally would.

I am now pregnant with ds2 I should say

YANBU because your experience of it is entirely subjective and who can argue with you? I BF my daughter and in retrospect it was relatively easy and totally convenient. It was exhausting, however I am under no illusions that FF would have been any less so as my DD's dad wasn't overly involved and I would have been getting up to do them too.
It's not a competition, do what makes you and baby happy.

YANBU. And it gets my back up when the avid BFers come and say how much more convenient BFing is, and they're too lazy for FF... They have never tried formula so how would they know? I found FF way more convenient than BF and I had a pretty easy ride with BF - never had any comments, or worries about public feeding, or feeding issues (except DS was tongue tied and fed constantly, but that would have been the same for FF).

I mix fed dd and found that to be most convenient, bf most of the time and then one ff at bedtime. It depends a lot on the baby though, ds had tt and was a slow breast feeder so it would have been easier to ff him I think. Dd was a quick, efficient breast feeder and from about 3 weeks only took a few minutes each side to feed. She did however need f really quite warm to take it so we never ff during the day when out and about as it was much quicker and easier to bf her. On the whole I'd say bf is the most convenient (and I have done both as both were mix fed).

Yanbu.

The 'ease' only came for me when DDs were a good 3/4 months old. Before that it was sore, hard to establish and I found it difficult in public. Most certainly not easy or convenient...

I'm feeding my year old to sleep as I type. I've been here an hour while my Dh has been watching hv downstairs and relaxing I don't love breastfeeding but I was determined to do it and would do it again with a second baby. I would say it got a lot easier after a few weeks but I still hate feeding in public and don't think I'll ever get over that

It is hard work and exhausting but it does get 'easier', I promise. The first few weeks are awful, hormones, tiredness etc. But when you settle into a rhythm it is really convenient and free (I've saved so much money since having my baby).

I honestly am in awe of women who bottle feed because I couldn't imagine getting up in the night with a screaming baby or having to faff with the bottles when out.

If it really is draining you then have you thought about combination feeding? Have you got anyone who can watch the baby whilst you have a rest?!

I ff my first, bf second. I'm aware I was lucky but I found bf much easier and far more convenient.

I've done both and found bottles so much easier.

It is exhausting. I am nearly three weeks in after EMCS, a four day hospital readmission for a an infection that had put me in sepsis, reducing my supply and my baby had a tongue tie. We mix feed on an evening and occasionally top up during the day as I don't have enough milk and I am emotionally exhausted. I am not sure how we are still doing it.

If you are not happy then your baby won't be happy. You need to do what is best for the whole family.

Loathed it. Wasn't too hard after the first few weeks but found it incredibly restrictive and a right pain. Bottles just became part of evening routine. Did it 6 months each time and if I had another, which I won't, I will go straight to bottle

I found in pretty easy/convenient/enjoyable (after the first 3-4 weeks). If I hadn't enjoyed it I wouldn't have done it past the first 3 months.

My only regret regarding breastfeeding was ever agreeing to try it in the first place.

I did try it though, and hated every single second. Constantly screaming, very hungry baby. Bollocks to that I knew I should have stuck to my guns so gave up after four days (ill and sleep deprived). I formula fed, and it was as though I suddenly had a totally different baby. She was instantly much happier, more contented etc. We never looked back.

That was DD1. When DDs 2 & 3 were born I didn't bother even trying to breastfeed.

No regrets here. You do what works for you and your baby and sod what anyone else may think.

For the past 6 months I've found it super convenient and really easy. Except now I'm trying to get him on a bottle so I can actually leave the house without him. And he's having none of it. It's a disaster. So there are definitely pros and cons

I found it so hard, harder than I ever would have imagined but then when I had it sorted it was amazing. Wouldn't have to worry about when and where I was going. Even fed one at the top of great Mis Tor. Loved the closeness, love how my five year old still strokes my neck for comfort like he used to when feeding.
I guess though it's your opinion and you know what's best for you. It really does get easier though.

I started bf DS1 but he was difficult to feed and latch, I had constant sore and bleeding nipples I had Mastitis twice and then breast thrush which was agony. I gave up at 6 weeks.

Ds2 was born and latched on straight away and I never had any problems with him whatsoever. I found it really convenient but it was difficult to get him onto bottles when I was going back to work and i needed a large glass of water whenever I was feeding him.

Tallulah - you need the cheap latex teats from the chemist - the brown ones.

I found ff so much more convenient.. Sterilise bottle for a couple of mins in microwave, powder in, boiling water, mix, put in fridge, put in bottle warmer for few mins when needed. Anyone could feed him. He started sleeping all night. No sore nipples, leaking milk, worrying about how much he's getting, popping my boob out everywhere, sleep deprivation. Both of us were happier all round! But everyone is different and I do respect people who bf round the clock, the dedication is amazing.

I mix fed to start with as DS was quite small. But I found it easy and fairly convenient. The first couple of weeks were hard from a sleep deprivation perspective but it was super easy after that. DS had a bottle a day after 8 weeks and I can't say that FF was any easier than BFing. Would happily do it again.

I've never formula fed a baby (of mine that is) and couldn't imagine it at all. I have found breastfeeding to be convenient and in the main easy. But if others don't then it's up to them not me to decide on how they will feed their baby.

I know I will get shot down for this. But yes, it is hard work and yes it can be inconvenient. I was 50:50 about breastfeeding when DD was born but a midwife telling me I'd fail made me stubbornly refuse to. The first six weeks were very hard. Much easier after but still exhausting at nights. After weaning on to solids she has had far less and its easier but still think it is harder than ff. But it is sooo much better for babies than formula (I say this as a ff baby). I wouldn't hesitate to do it all again if I can. We need to stop pretending that bf and ff are equal. Breastfeeding is better. Yes its fine to stop and there are many good reasons to and I know many people struggle for valid reasons but lets not pretend that ff is just as good for the baby.