Aaaargh, 6 month baby rejecting bottles/anything not boob!

[aethelfleda]

hiya. This is my DC3, but unlike my older two who mix fed quite happily (well, they were easily persuaded anyway), DS has other ideas. He wants boob and is very annoyed I am giving him anything else. I have tried different formulas, EBM, sippy cups, bottles, doidy cups, and he will take an ounce or so from any of these but strictly in addition to full on 24 hour demand feeding.
He seems to like the taste of the formula I'm using, and I have one bottle type I'm now using for continuity, but he really needs to take bottles, I admit this is for practicality, I'm back to work parttime in the autumn and one day will be long enough he needs to take an alternative in a decent amount
I'm currently trying to put him just onto bottles (alternate EBm and Formula) and it's been awful this weekend, I have cracked and fed him once in the night and oce this morning as I can't bear him being so upset because of me, and I feel rubbish: I don't really want tips as such but a bit of sympathy and suggestion of what worked for you would be very welcome. Please be aware that I'm quite emotive about this and so any "just give up and BF him longer" criticisms may be met with a less than polite response. I already feel grotty about this so don't want criticism please!

Weeeellllll...

If anyone does say just give up on the bottles for now, autumn is still a way off, it is not criticism ie you are doing the wrong thing. Just well you tried, he's not having it now so time to reassess. I'm sorry if this is not what you wanted but getting so stressed out and him upset too sounds awfully depressing for you.

Plenty of babies (not bloody mine!) would be sleeping through at that age and go 9-12 hours without milk at night. Yes they will be feeding the other hours. I just wanted to offer you a little hope, in the worst case sceanario and he doesn't take a bottle, he won't starve.

Don't feel rubbish, you are trying what you think in best for the two of you, not deliberately being neglectful.

Thank you! I am not setting this decision in stone at all, part of the reason to try now was so that we did have the option to go back to exclusive BF if it really didn't work out. And thanks for being nice how you said that!

Some of what has made me a bit nervous of bottles is that as a "true" demand feeder I have always fed according to his signals ie before he cries, so I'm concious that a) he tends to snack feed in the day and b) we just go with the flow. It's all been complicated by the fact that I think his first tooth is coming through today!

I dunno, we'll get there somehow, i was just hoping for sympathy from a few people who had managed to transition from boob to bottles with a reluctant baby.

When he's eating more food he will reduce BF. dd3 was like this & I went back at 11 months, she ate and drank water while I was there & guzzled milk all night when I was home.

As he's 6 months already and you are not going back to work for another few months. I'd just try and preserver with a cup, it may take him most of that time to start taking a resnable amount but he'll get there. Let him play with it as much as possible.
Another option maybe a straw type cup some Baby's seem to get the hang of these quit early on.
Your doing a fab job.

Thanks Harriet, he does eat with us in very small quantities (purees and finger food to play with/gum), you're right that in three months he'll be a different baby entirely and will probably be eating more.

Thanks mig, I'd not thought about a cup with straw, will get hold of one, at the moment we mostly use avent flexible with the valve removed, he did have some water from that at lunch time.

I think we're going to try a mix of feeding for the next few days and I will BF him morning, late afternoon and maybe overnight too (as I could continue that pattern when back at work if needs be). If that doesn't work I'll take a potty training approach (as in drop it and try again a few weeks later!) ta for your replies girls!

Yes, try a straw cup - mine couldn't figure out bottles or feeders, but took to a straw immediately, and still uses a straw cup on preference to anything else (can't use the normal feeders - he just can't seem to figure out that you need to tip before you suck!)

Lots of sympathy here. I would have liked to mix feed from 6 months but DD was having none of it. I know his frustrated you can feel.

At 7.5 months she is down to just 4 feeds a day as she has taken to food well so BF is not as demanding as it used to be plus I can get her to take 50ml from a cup and I'm hoping to increase this over the coming months before I return to work.