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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Original poster

Baby needs to be weaned by 6mths, when to start?

16 replies

Udderly · 20/12/2010 12:32

I'll be going back to work when DD is 6 months, she is currently 6 wks. She needs to be weaned from the breast at that stage. Its complicated but without getting into it, I won't be able to express during the day. I had a daft notion that come the time, I'd just give her a bottle of formula and all would be fine but obviously thats not the case. What is the best way to prepare for this and when should I start?

OP posts:
jamaisjedors · 20/12/2010 12:37

Just be aware that you don't need to wean totally just because you are back at work - I only expressed for DS2 until 6 months and not at all for DS1 - I mixed fed DS1 for a year.

BUT we did have a total nightmare with bottles at 3mths when I went back to work - it depends on the baby - DS2 was fine (but he had a dummy which maybe helpd?).

HaveToWearHeels · 20/12/2010 12:53

Please don't worry about anything now just get on with feeding your baby, you could express as feed every now and then and give her a bottle but please don't worry your head. Lots of things will chANge in the enxt 6 months.
My DD was EBF and would happily take expressed milk from a bottle. Then one day (out of naivety) I gave her formula which she really didn't like and vomited. It put her off a bottle of even expressed milk which made things quite difficult. For months I would try her every now and then(different bottle, different teats and different formula) and the two of us would just get into a state, so one day I just decided to go with it. Then at 8 1/4 months (I was due to go back to work when she was 9 months) we were on holiday and I had to take some medication for a serious allergic reation as was told there was no way I could breast feed, and guess what that little MINX took a bottle of formula with no problems at all. When I went back to work I fed morning and night and she had formula in the afternoons.
just enjoy your little baby !

MigGril · 20/12/2010 13:13

My freind who's gone back to work at six months. Her baby woun't take a bottle but he takes his milk EBM or formula out of a cup quit happily. She's also still BF and intends to untill 12months.

So there are other options if they woun't take a bottle.

purcellfan · 20/12/2010 13:27

After six months it's not so necessary to express all the time and if you get used to feeding more in the morning and evening you might be able to carry on bf (with formula/ebm in the day) without worrying. There's also a thing called reverse cycling where babies catch up on milk in the evenings and have less in the day when the mother is absent. (Good info about it on Kellymom).Things become much easier after six months I found, once solids get introduced etc.

MoonUnitAlpha · 20/12/2010 14:08

By 6 months you may only need two milk feeds during the day (mid morning and mid afternoon maybe) and your dd can have formula from a sippy cup or beaker by then. I wouldn't bother with bottles at all.

Original poster
Udderly · 20/12/2010 15:22

Ok, well thay makes it all sound much more manageable!! Thanks a mil everyone!! Xxx

OP posts:
MoonUnitAlpha · 20/12/2010 15:45

I'm hoping to do something similar to you - my ds is 4.5 months at the moment and feeds roughly first thing, mid morning, lunch time, mid afternoon and bedtime (with 2 feeds overnight). When he's 5 months I'm going to be studying 2 mornings a week so will be substituting the mid morning feed for a cup of formula (I hope!) and by the time he's 7 months old and I return to work I'm hoping to have swapped the lunchtime feed for solids and the mid afternoon feed for another cup of formula. Then I'll still be breastfeeding first thing, bed time and over night.

MumNWLondon · 20/12/2010 18:14

I did the same - went back to work when DS2 5.5 months old. As DD refused to take a bottle at that stage (had to go cold turkey etc) I gave DS2 roughly one bottle of EBM a week from around 6-8 weeks - made life more flexible for me, could leave him with DH/MIL/my mum.

I also did the 10 KIT days from work and he was given EBM on those days (I expressed during the day).

At 6 months on solids, only need 2 day time feeds, eg 10am and 2.30pm - so cut down gradually, he happily took a bottle - he was used to it from the kit days.

Caz10 · 20/12/2010 18:19

I went back when DD was 8.5mths, tried expressing but it was a nightmare in my workplace. Anyway she wouldn't take a bottle until the very day I went back, and even then didn't drink much in the day. I fed her morning and when I got back (and through the night) and we continued with mix feeding until...oooh now! (she is 3!) Grin

Petsville · 20/12/2010 20:02

The advice on here is good, but before deciding not to give bottles at this stage you might want to have a look at the 4-month sleep regression thread (not that I want to depress you or anything!). A few people on that thread are going mad because the baby is sleeping badly at 15-20 weeks and waking a lot to feed (which is totally normal) and by that stage won't accept a bottle, so no-one can ever give the mother a break. If you can find the time to express, and can express enough, trying to give a bottle every day to get your baby in the habit may save your sanity later.

PenguinArmy · 21/12/2010 03:33

At 6.5 months, we switched DD to a 3oz bottle of EMB a day. She would like more but has got used it and can be distracted enough until I get home. Can start to introduce a cup for lunchtimes from 4 months.

If she doesn't take a bottle then so what. She'll adapt to no milk in the day, if you can handle her catching up in the night.

Petsville · 21/12/2010 10:57

PenguinArmy, I can't be the only one who couldn't possibly face going back to work all day and then being up all night with a baby catching up on food - I would be ill and probably sacked.

jamaisjedors · 21/12/2010 12:11

oh god I'm afraid I couldn't have coped with that either, even if I did feed my two in the night if they woke!

If you do decide to try to continue to bf when you are with your baby, let any notion of schedule for bf go out the window - I used weekends and holidays as times to "boost" my supply and let the DS feed as often as they wanted when I was with them.

PenguinArmy · 21/12/2010 17:22

you see my LO never really slept and starting sleeping longer from 6 months. We're now on every 3 hours instead of every 2

theboobmeister · 21/12/2010 17:54

I went back to work at 6 months, in all that time DD had never accepted a bottle from anyone but she took it from the nanny no probs! That was EBM but she had the odd bottle of formula and seemed happy enough with it.

I found it really hard going back to work, and I was glad I kept up the BF cos it was a really nice way to bond with her again in the evenings.

Also, I found expressing breaks at work a valuable time to rest my two remaining brain cells.

Caz10 · 21/12/2010 18:33

petsville you might find you don't have any choice!!

You can do it though, I started co-sleeping with DD at that stage and half slept through the night feeds.

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