To think breastfeeding is a hassle?

[choolaboola]

Apologies in advanced if this is offensive as I know some BF people feel really passionate about it - BUT - can I please ask, why do people breastfeed?

First time pregnancy here - all I read is "my BF baby won't sleep" "I can't leave them down" "I can't go to XYZ months in because Im exclusively BF" etc.

I'm genuinely wondering is it a much harder path to go down? My friends, sisters, mum and MIL have all formula fed and as far as I can see, the outcome is the same. So I'm just wondering what other people's thoughts are?

There are much better places to post this if you're genuinely looking for experiences.

You're just looking to start a bun fight.

I have BF, and not wanting to get in to a bottle v breast debate. But for me BF was hard but also lots of benefits- such as it is free and readily available any time anywhere (Vs faffing about with bottles and powder and sterilising). And there are well documented health benefits for baby and mum. And it does create a great bond between mum and baby. But yes also hard work in other ways.

The thought of having to make bottles up while a baby screams if they aren't already prepared was enough to keep me going with breastfeeding. I am too lazy for all that malarky.

I see breastfeeding giving me more freedom and it has worked for me but can understand why people like to bottle feed instead.

I loved breastfeeding and consider it one of the most rewarding, amazing experiences of my life. It was hard at first but ultimately became as easy as breathing. I did it because I felt it gave my babies the best start in life. However, we are all different and you should do what you feel is best for you.

I didn't have the experience you describe and breast fed my children. They slept fine, I could go out with planning, I enjoyed doing it, it was free ... I could go on.

Don't do it if you don't want to but there simply is no need to debate it if you have made your mind up because all your friends, sisters and mum and MIL all formula fed (which suggests you must have a very small group of friends).

Hassle? Tit-->gob.

I am a lazy bitch, and found BF so much easier. I couldn't be arsed with all the sterilising and ,mixing and having to have milk at the right temp and always on hand.

Breastfeeding was so much simpler. Always on tap, sterile, at the perfect temp. Never had to worry what would happen if transport broke down/got stuck anywhere/baby suddenly got hungry.

However, I was lucky enough to work part time (four hour shifts x 5) close to home and didn't go back until each DC was 7 months old which had an impact. Small babies do need feeding regularly, but tbh when mine were that little I didn't want to be away from them for more than a few hours anyway. As they get older, they need the milk less and less frequently until it's just once or twice a day.

It's much less of a hassle than bottle feeding. No making up bottles. Heating them, carrying them around with you wherever you go. It is perfect for on demand feeding
Also it is nourishment produced specifically for your baby.

I breast fed for a number of reasons mostly health ones but also because it was easy for me. No bottles to make, no sterilising. If you co sleep you don’t have to get up to feed either. I just used to move the baby from one side to the other and go back to sleep. The milk is there on tap to feed the baby as soon as they want it. Of course it can be more restrictive but doesn’t have to be.

Also my mum and all my sisters have breast fed so it was just the norm for me.

once it’s established, it’s much easier. Bottles need cleaning and making, boobs just do their thing.

honestly I’m the laziest person and BF was simple

…. you need to preserver for the first few weeks as the baby needs to ‘learn’.
Top tip, cut your little finger nail right down, if they don’t latch properly get them off (with said finger) pronto. Not getting chewed makes it much better!

Establishing bf can be much harder but once it's established it's a breeze. And the health benefits are well established.

In my case, every time I tried to give ds a bottle he was massively sick, as he had cmpa, so bottle feeding wasn't at all easy!

"my BF baby won't sleep" - some bf babies won't sleep. Some do. Some ff babies won't sleep. Some do.
"can't leave them down" - as above!

The only one you possibly have point with is leaving them BUT many bf babies will take an expressed bottle so can be left.

Bf is also free and magic when you have an ill/teething baby.

If you want to bf then do. If you want to ff then do

Everything with a baby is a faff. Taking stuff with you in case they are sick or have a nappy leak, plus stuff to change their nappies etc etc. If you formula fed then you have to take out all the bits you need plus make sure you have enough sterilised bottles. If you breastfeed then you already have your milk with you and that part is easier but then you are solely responsible for the feeding of the baby. There are pros and cons and whatever suits you and your baby is best.

However, breastfeeding doesn’t really affect how much the baby sleeps, although obviously you can’t take it in turns in you bf. With this baby I am mix feeding and it works well at the moment. I am hoping to replace the formula with pumped milk at least partly, who can will save some money.

I find it the other way tbh. I've had to use formula at the start with both mine and I hate the washing and sterilising, having to make up bottles (and the smell of formula isn't very nice, and even nastier when it's puked up again!), the hassle of taking them out and about or the expense and waste of using all those ready made bottles. I love being able to feed her whenever I want with no preparation and not worrying about how much milk I have with us or if we get delayed somewhere.

And also that breastfeeding solves way more problems than just hunger; I genuinely don't know what I would do without it sometimes. Illness, overstimulation, just a bit grizzly - breastfeeding solves it all.

I breastfed DD1 for a year: great sleeper, left her plenty of times with her dad for meals out with friends, cinema trips, etc.

Currently breastfeeding DD2 who is 12 weeks old and again now we are over the hump it's a breeze and so easy.

So I'm glad formula exists as we have needed it both times, but I'm glad when we don't need it any more!

I chose to BF because it seemed much much less of a hassle. I didn’t have to buy formula, buy bottles, make up bottles, sterilise bottles, worry about whether the formula was giving baby stomach ache and should I try another formula, just didn’t have to engage any part of my brain with feeding the baby until they were six months.

It's what you think will be more of a hassle. I breastfed and initially it was difficult with my eldest (painful nipples etc) but after 2 weeks that settled. It felt less of a hassle for me because I didn't need to worry about bottles if out and about or going to stay with people and if she woke in the night neither of us had to make a bottle. We didn't spend much on breastfeeding stuff either (I used the bras I had when pregnant and bought some clothes I could feed in second hand).

She probably slept less well (but obviously no way of knowing for sure if feeding had any impact on that).

Just do what you feel is best for you.

No BF is much easier, no formula, no bottles, no having to carry things around, no sterilising or measuring or temperature taking or running out in the middle of the night. Plus it helps you lose weight after the pregnancy.

I mixed fed so have a bit of experience of both. Breastfeeding can be hard to establish and stressful/exhausting in the early days. It does "tie" you to the baby somewhat, although to be honest I wasn't keen to leave mine anyway to go out so I didn't feel this was a hardship - this depends on the woman. I enjoyed the bonding aspect, I loved being able to nourish my baby.

Formula feeding has its downsides too. It's a hassle to make up bottles especially at night time and when out and about, unless you can afford expensive ready made bottles. The longer time went on, the keener I was to breastfeed because it was easy to do anywhere, any time without having to remember to bring things with me or get a bottle ready.

Re the sleeping, that's nothing to do with the type of feed. I actually switched from a bottle at night time to breastfeeding to sleep and it made zero difference to ease of getting to sleep or wakes.

If I had another I would try to 100% breastfeed, once I was through the early days I found it preferable.

Oh and I cosleep and feed lying down so I don't even have to really wake to feed. I've never had sleep deprivation with either baby. When I was doing formula it felt like a real disturbance in the night - having to make the bottle, sit upright to feed it, etc.

Ooooh we don’t talk about that on here OP 😉

I’ve done both, breastfed for 8 months (it was more mix feeding for the last month or so) then a few months of formula at the end.

Breastfeeding is both convenient and a faff. Convenient in the early days, when you’re not going anywhere anyway, and no sterilising etc to do. Possibly less convenient after 6m when you want to do the odd thing independently and no
more sterilisation is required just regular washing of bottles.

Health wise, there’s virtually no difference between a breastfed baby and a formula fed baby. There’s a small benefit to breastfeeding, but it’s only seen if you record the health data of hundreds of thousands of babies. My family are very very strong advocates of breastfeeding, yet the unhealthiest bunch of people I know - weight issues, allergies, immune conditions. Everyone has something wrong. DH’s family are of the 70s formula feeding vintage, and healthy as horses, strong constitutions etc.

Sleeping wise DD slept through from 4 or 5 months, so can’t comment there.

So really, it all boils down to whatever works for you. And you’re completely entitled to query this by the way - if people have issues with you doing so it’s because they feel it undermines the effort they put into breastfeeding, to point out it has strengths and weaknesses like anything else.

We don’t have children because it’s going to be easy.

I breastfed, my baby slept like a sleep demon, through the night from 5 months. It was free. It’s what women were born to do. It was one of the most pleasurable bonding experiences. I literally grew my baby inside me then grew her exclusively on the outside for 6 months. What greater joy!

I expressed and bottle fed/ mixed fed too so could go out when I wanted.

I'm not sure MN is in the mood for a BF/FF bunfight.

I think you should wait until you have had your baby then see what you think then @choolaboola

I’ve bf and ff. They are both a hassle in their own way but ff so much more in the middle of time.

Just in case you can’t work it out here is the NHS list of health benefits of bf.
www.nhs.uk/conditions/baby/breastfeeding-and-bottle-feeding/breastfeeding/benefits/

Thank you all - sorry - I really wasn't looking for a fight! Genuinely new to all this and the more I read (on here actually) the more I thought this.

Yes I do have BF Friends but mostly living abroad or far away from me so perhaps I didn't listen or see the extent of how it works.

Anyway I'm not really fully decided to be honest, that's why I just wanted to ask. The health professionals all tell you to BF and even if you Google it it's the same.

Thanks 😊