Pressure to stop BF

[fluffacloud]

Hi

DD2 is 6.5 mo old and since she turned 6 months, my DP and DM have been pushing for me to introduce formula and give up BF.

I realise how awful that sounds but its meant to be well meaning advice eg. 'she should be putting on more weight, why don't you give her a bottle?', 'you're always feeding her, do you think that she's getting enough?' or the classic 'she should be sleeping through by now, why don't you give her a bottle?'. I know that they're not trying to be hurtful.

I am returning to work in three weeks, doing 9-5 a few days a week. I will be giving some formula as I don't feel that I'll have time to express enough for her to have two hourly feeds.

My question is can I still BF at night or on the days when I'm at home? I will be working in a 3 day block and I'm worried I'll lose my supply.

Could anyone please advise on when/how to introduce a bottle and what feeds to drop etc?

I really don't want to give up on BF.....

Apologies for the epic post

Hiya - yes all will be fine. I continued to BF fed both DD's after returning to work FT (at 8 months & 6 months). It just kind of sorts itself out.

I did express for a while but neither DD got into drinking my expressed milk. Nor would they drink formula. I just made sure they had calcium rich food during the day (yoghurt etc) and BF mornings, on collection and evenings & nights (Ie at all other times).

BTW you don't have to use bottles - at this age it is advisable to use a sippy cup rather than bottles. This worked well for us both times.

Best of luck.

There is great advice over on Kellymom. Your supply should be established now and you will definitely be able to keep feeding when you're at home. You may also find it helps to express at work, perhaps in your lunch break, or if you have a supportive employer, you can do what I did and break your lunchtime into 20 minute blocks throughout the day and express then. This will help ease any discomfort in your breasts too. I breastfed to 15 months, and went back to work fulltime when DD was 14 weeks old - and when I say fulltime, I mean out of the house from 6.30 a.m.- 6.40 p.m. 5 days a week. It can be done, if you have the support.

If you haven't already shown it to your DH and DM, there is a great piece called "101 reasons to breastfeed". Hopefully that might make them a bit more supportive.

Thank you for the replies and sorry it's taken me so long to acknowledge

Expressing at work isn't really an option, I've requested that I don't have a lunch break so that I can leave a bit earlier. I'll eat at my desk but I'm sure my boss would draw the line at pumping!

I'm glad that others have found it possible and it gives me hope that I can make it work - because a) I don't want to give up completely and b) I'm a contrary cow and will carry on because others have advised not to

How early will I need to start reducing the day time BF to prevent leakey boobs at work?

TIA

You have the legal right to paid time and privacy to express at work.

I'm not sure about the leaky boobs. Mine naturally stopped leaking at around 5 months, but would still become uncomfortable if I didn't express. I don't think you need to do anything, just wear pads if you're worried, and take a change of outfit for the first couple of days just in case. Boobs are remarkably adaptable. You may even find your baby does something called "reverse cycling" which is when they adapt to mum being away in the day and just feed more in the evenings and night time.

fuffacloud, there's some good info here already, and I'd just add that however kindly meant, your DP and your DM have to stop undermining your decision. They may have a view - you have heard it, more than a few times by the sound of it. Draw a line under it and tell them you have had enough.....otherwise every time you say you are a bit tired, or tell them that your little DD woke up, or every time you have a sniffle or a headache or anything at all in you life does not go 100 per cent smoothly, you will hear the same old boring comments again about switching to formula :(

Enough! What on earth is your mother still telling you what to do for, anyway! :)

Ignore them all and keep going.
You will be fine to return to work and carry on bf. your supply and leaky boobs will just adjust without needing to express at work.
I went back to work 3 days when ds was 9 months and am still bf now and he's 16 months. He just had lots of yog, food, juice whilst I was gone then made up for it on my days off.
Oh and this 'your baby should be sleeping through by now' thing really winds me up. IMO babies / toddlers are simply not designed to sleep through until a lot older. I only know one baby that sleeps through that is bf. if you went to Africa for example, where people live in a more natural state, the babies are strapped to their mums day and night and have access to the Breast all the time. They feed round the clock well into toddlerhood and beyond. This sleeping through the night thing is a western modern society thing. Some of my friends have been putting rusks into 3 month old babies bottles to get them to sleep through!! It's very rare you will find a fellow bf who tells you that a 6 month old should be sleeping through.
Ignore them. Sounds like you are doing a fab job

You have the legal right to paid time and privacy to express at work.
^^ this! (if you are in UK that is)

Thanks again for the lovely show of support!

I feel a little more confident now. Half my problem is that I'm anxious about going back to work and I've latched on (pun intended) to the BF issues. I was the same when I returned after DD1, I know that we'll all adapt quickly and that by Christmas I'll wonder what I was worried about.

tiktoc your post in particular hit the nail on the head. I've stopped mentioning any night feeds, tiredness and worries now - it's just adding fuel to the fire. DP thinks that I'm being a martyr and that I should just make life easier for myself - by getting up 3 times a night to make and cool a bottle? No thanks, that's not for me. I'd rather stay in bed where it's warm thanks

I did this for about six weeks after I returned to work- no issues. Would have went longer only daughter went on strike and there was no convincing her!