When and how to introduce mixed feeding for going back to work?

[Bart1maeus]

DS is 3.5 months and ebf (breast only, I've never expressed).

I'm going back to work when he is nearly 6 months and want to carry on breastfeeding morning and night but substitute the day feeds for formula (can't express with my job - not at all compatible).

When and how should I start doing ths? I feed on demand so should I just start by replacing a random feed in the day?

DS won't accept dummies so I'm not sure if he'll accept bottles, I was thinking of starting with a sippy cup.

Any advice?
Thanks

Only replace one feed at a time and try to do it over a week per feed if possible; if not, over a couple of days.

Keep each dropped the same, so if you start dropping late morning one, keep it to that one until you start dropping the next one etc. If you swap the dropped feeds, your supply will be all ov er the place.

If he'll take a sippy cup at around 5 months, you could start then, giving you 4 weeks to drop the day feeds (if that's enough time).

Once you start dropping, don't stop and think "oh, he can do it, I'll wait a bit longer and he'll still be able to do it". He won't necessarily so keep at it because as you say, you can't express in your job.

Good luck and it's lovely that you still want him to have the morning and night feeds - he'll love that time too .

I will use a bottle at 6mo. Very very few babies can drink a significant amount from a cup at that age. It's important he drinks the milk because he'll also be just starting on solids. (Or not even started). It's very different even compared to a 7 or 8mo. Slightly older babies may/can choose to substitute their lost bf with food at this age. So it's ok if they only take 20ml from a cup for example. It's not idea they reverse cycle to get all the milk in the evenings. For example, my DD only ever took 20-30ml in her mid morning and mid afternoon milk feed when I went back at 7mo, and dropped them all just before 9mo. And this is from a bottle and I know she could take up to 70ml if she wanted. But at least they aren't hungry and therefore unsettled during the day.

Also, try the NUK latex brown teat bottles or the breastflow bottles. You are much more likely to have success with them then avent or tt if your baby doesn't know what to do with a teat (mine just chews the tt)!

Hi, i am in a similar position to you, although i am planning to stop bf completely when i go back to work. DS is 5 months now, i'm back at work in 8 weeks. So for the last week we've been working on getting him to take a bottle of expressed milk from me wvery day. This is going well so tomorrow i am giing to give him formula for his third feed of the day, whenever that is! Plan is to drop one feed per week so by the time i'm back at work he's mostly FF, if not completely. Fingers crossed he likes the taste of formula!

Top tip if he doesn't like formula lou- express some breast milk and mix more of that with less formula and then increase amount of formula (made up not just powder obv.) to breast milk ratio. Eventually, you'll have all formula. This can be really successful as they don't notice the taste as much and the consistency change isn't as much of a shock.

Hi there! I've just returned to work and my ds is 6 months old. I didnt prepare at all! I wanted him to be ebf as long as poss, but I did start slowly weaning at just over 5 months. I know blw is popular atm, but i chose to spoonfeed, as my cm would freak out with gagging etc! It also meant that he was actually getting some food into his tummy, which has improved his sleep at night too. So, this is how things have been - I've been doing full days now for a week... morning bf at 7. Readybrek and ebm at 10ish, sleep. 4oz ebm at 1pm, spoonfeed at 3ish, and i'm home at 4.30 for rest of feeds that evening - all bf. While at work, I express at 10.00ish, and 1pm-ish, and this gives me enough milk for the ebm feeds the next day. Btw, I never really expressed before - its much easier(for me) to express missed feeds, than to express above his needs iyswim? Also, by expressing at those times at work, it keeps my supply for those times when I'm off!! Really hope this helps you... I'm only just realising that what I do, seems so planned - it really wasn't, it has just worked out that way, and it works for us!! Good luck with your return - look forward to the scheduled tea and lunck breaks - fab!!!

Sorry - just re-read your post about expressing, but you could just substitute those bottles with formula and bf all evening? And do what Loopy said about introducing the formula.