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Infant feeding

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

Hoping to breastfeed, where to start?

42 replies

River93 · 29/06/2018 22:40

I would love to try breastfeeding when my baby arrives but I really have no idea where I’d start.

What products would everyone say I’d need?
Would I need to buy a tommee tippee perfect prep machine just Incase I do need to bottle feed?
Any tips or pointers?
TIA Smile

OP posts:
NumbersLetters · 29/06/2018 22:43

No products needed initially. Feeding bras, nipple pads if you get leaky. But amazon. The joy of breast feeding is the lack of stuff. Hope it works quickly for you. I had difficulty but there was good support locally.

MissClarke86 · 29/06/2018 22:47

If you’re planning to breastfeed I wouldn’t buy anything other than perhaps a bottle or two, your choice of steriliser and a breast pump if you plan to express - and if you find you’re struggling or change your mind it’s very easy to get hold of perfect preps etc from Mothercare / amazon prime.

All the best - remember it doesn’t always come naturally to the baby so don’t blame yourself if you have a rocky start - and mixed feeding is absolutely fine and doesn’t create nipple confusion for most babies (they’ll tell you it does, but I know loads of people including me who gave some formula in the early days when baby was too sleepy to latch on - it helped them gain energy which then helped breastfeeding take off.)

mosessupposes · 29/06/2018 22:50

I have no idea what that machine is, so I'm going to say that you don't need one.
The only equipment that you need to breast feed is lasinoh, for sore nipples and breast pads, for leaks. I wouldn't buy anything 'incase', there are so many variables, not all babies seem to like all bottles!

Waitingonasmiley42 · 29/06/2018 22:50

I would buy a manual breast pump, a few bottles with smallest size teat, Lasinoh cream, nursing bras and a few oversized tops with vest tops that can be worn underneath.

I wouldn’t personally buy a perfect prep or formula. The first weeks can be hard/uncomfortable and I would have given up a few times if I’d had an alternative to hand. There’s obviously nothing wrong with giving up or formula if things don’t work out!

Read up as much as you can on cluster feeding and watch videos of how to latch baby on/positions.

Good luck

LastOneDancing · 29/06/2018 22:52

My recommendations:
Don't buy bras until your baby is here - maybe one to get you home from hospital but that's it - anything could happen to your bra size. I went up to JJ Hmm

Buy some lasinoh nipple cream (purple tube).

Don't buy it yet, but perhaps get an idea if which pump you'd like, in case DH needs to go on an emergency purchase run.

Get the contacts for:
your local BF support group,
the lactation nurse at the hospital and find out if there's a drop in group
A toungue tie consultant (ask the BF group if you don't know anyone who can recommend in RL)

If you do have problems - and hopefully you won't - it can be stressful, but having a plan & some experts numbers in hand can keep you calm & make all the difference. Good luck! It can be a wonderful thing watching that tiny person grow, just from the milk your body makes!

CelticPromise · 29/06/2018 22:53

Breastfeeding is hard to begin with, but it gets easier and it's worth it. Have faith, it works. Don't buy anything but find out about local support and go along to a group before baby is born if you can. Look up antenatal expressing and give it a go.

Greenwomanofmay · 29/06/2018 22:56

I bought a couple of bottles, some Milton tablets, couple of feeding bras and some washable breast pads.
You could identify what items you may need and just put them on an amazon wish list for quick ordering if you need them
Some where comfortable and quiet to sit and feed and someone to keep you well supplied with food and drink is very useful
I mix fed to start with and it was fine, within a month it was all breastfeeding (mix fed again later). As other posters have said there were no issues with nipple confusion.
The lanolin cream in the purple tube was vital I used it every day for the last month of pregnancy and only had slightly sore boobs when I started feeding

BertrandRussell · 29/06/2018 23:01

Unless you live in the middle of nowhere, you really don't need to buy anything-particularly now box sets are available on Netflix!

Things to bear in mind that you just might have to be a bit firm about HCPs about - assuming that your baby is full term and with no health problems. It is absolutely normal for babies to lose weight at first. It is absolutely normal for your milk not to come in properly til day 3. You will have colostrum, which is all the baby needs at first. Please don't try to express until breast feeding is properly established. Just put the baby to the breast as often as possible and for as long as possible. Give your baby's monkey brain the chance to do its thing! Good luck!

neighneigh · 29/06/2018 23:04

The best things have are nursing vests from H&M (bit hot for them now, but amazing in winter because you can keep them tucked in and stay warm while feeding, rather than lifting up your top!) and a lovely feeding tshirt from Mamma Feelsgood on Facebook. I wouldn't worry about anything else till you're a few days in. Just take your time, get comfy, and drink lots of water.. And eat lots of cake (I lost almost two stone just by bf, even with all the cake, it's amazing)

NameChange30 · 29/06/2018 23:09

A book called “The Food of Love” by Kate Evans

A list of local breastfeeding drop-ins and clinics (these will be invaluable if you have any issues)

Nursing vests, if you have a DD+ bust I recommend the Hot Milk nursing camis as they have a bigger cup version (my boobs fell out of H&M nursing vests)

Soft stretchy bras, the Kindred Bravely ones (Amazon) are good for sleeping and lounging in. And again if you have a DD+ bust, the Sugar Candy bra is pricey but worth it.

Lansinoh nipple cream

Haakaa breast pump (simple and easy to use for getting milk from one side while feeding from the other)

One or two bottles

A few bottles of ready-made formula as an emergency back up, I think this is worth it for peace of mind in case everything gets too much, and if you use one or two it’s less wasteful than opening a whole tub of powder formula then only using a few scoops.

You don’t need a Perfect Prep machine or fancy sterilising equipment. We sterilised the Haakaa and bottles in boiling water but you could also use a microwave steriliser.

If breastfeeding doesn’t work out you can buy all the bottle-feeding stuff you need, including a Perfect Prep if you want one, but it’s a complete waste of money if you do breastfeed.

Smurfybubbles · 29/06/2018 23:12

I'm currently BF'ing my 8 week old DS. We had the basics to begin with like sterilizing tablets, 2 bottles, nipple cream, nipple pads and a pack of the pre-made formula bottles. This covered all bases incase we formula or BF.
In the end BF'ing worked out and all we have added since is a hand pump and breast milk storage bags.
I'm not sure how long I will continue for but with Amazon Prime and a 24 hour Tesco nearby we don't need to worry if we need to get other equipment like a sterilizer/formula etc if needed! The sterilizing tablets are dirt cheap and all we need them for is my pump and the odd bottle when he gets an expressed feed, we haven't seen the need yet for a steam/microwave sterilizer. Don't bother with the perfect prep machine until you're sure you're going to formula feed, you can get one within 24 hours with prime if needed!

chipsandcurrysaucemonster · 29/06/2018 23:14

I'm due in a few weeks and plan to breastfeed - would people advice using thenlasinoh nipple cream pre birth to prep the skin and nipple? Thanks!

SoftSheen · 29/06/2018 23:18

Feeding bras, feeding tops (nice to have, though not essential), tube of nipple cream (Lansinoh), pack of muslins and a copy of 'The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding'. Don't bother with bottles etc, until you come to need them, which hopefully you won't. Good Luck!

elephantoverthehill · 29/06/2018 23:19

Nike Grin

ForeverBubblegum · 29/06/2018 23:19

Don't buy the prep machine. If you don't need it, it's is a total wast of money, and if you do end up FF you can always buy a bottle of pre-maid formula to last until the perfect prep arrives (next day from amazon prime).

If you have a 24 hour supermarket local to you I also wouldn't buy formula, you can always get it if you need it but it's not in the cupboard tempting you if you waver when sleep deprived at 2am . Unless it's an emergencies (eg. dehydrated baby) just wait until morning to go buy formula, 9/10 it won't seem so bad anymore, but if it does just switch to FF then, that's fine too.

I got the tommy tippy manual pump, which came with a bottle, some pads and mini steriliser. Only cost about £15 and had enough to get me through short term whichever way I ended up feeding. Once I was pumping for work I upgraded to an electric pump and bought more bottles, but you have plenty of time to see if BF's for you before needing to worry about it.

I got a couple of nursing bras towards the end of pregnancy when I had outgrown my normal ones, but would have needed new bras whether I was BF or not, so not relay an extra expense. Never saw the need for special clothing, just vest top and cardigan. If your self conscious maybe a baggie top over vest (one up on down) but I never bothered.

Camsie30 · 29/06/2018 23:20

The best advice I was given by my doula was to get some small sterile syringes from the pharmacy. In the first days I hand expressed colostrum onto a sterile spoon then into the syringe and into my daughter's mouth. Trying to work out latch too but this really helped to make sure that she was getting the colostrum and helped my milk come in. Good luck!!

SoftSheen · 29/06/2018 23:21

Chips The official advice is that this isn't necessary, but I used nipple cream for a couple of weeks before my baby was born, and subsequently didn't suffer from cracked or sore nipples at all. I may have just been lucky, but starting to use the Lansinoh antenatally certainly won't do any harm.

Verbena87 · 29/06/2018 23:24

Our local breastfeeding group welcomes mums-to-be as well as breastfeeding women. It was a real help to me in the early days (socially as well as for feeding advice and support), so it’s worth looking into what you have locally and going along in advance.

I made my commitment to breastfeeding clear on my birth preferences in hospital and got loads of support to establish feeding from amazing midwives.

mummmy2017 · 29/06/2018 23:26

You could be like most mums and it just works...
Don't stress, you don't need lots of stuff...

newmumwithquestions · 29/06/2018 23:27

What products would everyone say I’d need?
Lansinoh (make sure you put it on before your first ever feed)
Nothing else is needed. There’s things you might want. But really try to wait and see how it’s going then decide.

Would I need to buy a tommee tippee perfect prep machine just Incase I do need to bottle feed?
Nope. Really nope.

Be prepared that it’s often not easy at first. I had cracked and sore nipples. I also struggled with latch at first. There’s loads of support available - use it if it would help!

RubyBoots7 · 29/06/2018 23:35

The best preparation you can do in my experience is find out beforehand where you can get support. Whether that's a local bf group, HCPs or paying for a private lactation consultant. Because the biggest thing about bf is that it's bloody hard work. Babies do not know how to latch intuitively and nor do mums. latching and positioning can be a complicated business and it really matters that you have places to go for help if you need it. And straight from the get go rather than trying to find this stuff out when it's 2am, your hormones are going crazy and you have a screaming baby who won't attach themselves. Bf groups are great because someone will sit and watch a whole feed, not just the couple of minutes a midwife or whoever might have available to say oh yep looks fine and when 5 mins later it's not so much when theyve pulled seemingly for 'no reason' (there's nearly always a reason).

Learn about things like tongue tie and mastitis. They may not affect you but give yourself a heads up in case. Also loads of HCPs moss tongue tie so if you think it's an issue be assertive and know who to go to that is trained to assess, not just any old midwife or GP or HV, lots of whom really don't know. Don't leave mastitis or the early signs if it's brewing (engorged boobs, feeling a bit fluey etc). Know what to do to nip it in the bud so to speak. Otherwise get to the GP pronto.

on a practical level I really wouldn't bother With a perfect prep or any electric breast pumps (advice is not to express anyway for first few weeks until your supply is established so you have plenty of time to go and buy one if you want to). (you may also want to look at some of the hygiene studies of the perfect prep - bit gross). I would suggest getting a let down pump, such as the nature bond or hakka. These are cheap (£10 roughly) devices that suction on to your boobs. The idea is when you feed from one boob you bung it on the other and it catches the let down (leakage) that happens naturally when you feed even if there's no baby on that nipple. You can build up a fair whack of milk this way if it works for you (not everyone gets on with them) and it has less impact on supply. I've also got more out of my boobs with a let down pump than with a decent hand pump or a very very expensive medical grade electric pump. If it doesn't work for you, you've wasted a few quid. Not hundreds. Bonus is that it's hands free whereas manual pumps take two hands and electric generally one (unless you wear a pump bra). You really need your hands for babies and eating and other essential things so anything that gives you your hands back is great. You can just squeeze your boobs in your hands to get milk out but it's quite hard on them.

Second the advice about Amazon prime too so you can get supplies the next day.

What I would suggest beyond the above:
Your nipples will hurt in all likelihood. Get a good nipple cream. Lanisoh is the one most people swear by.
Also hydrogel pads. They are expensive (works out about £2 a day as you throw away) but my god if you have sore nipples they are worth their weight in gold. keep in fridge for extra cooling. lots of people haven't heard of these. They do not absorb milk so you will need some sort of breast pads over the top. They purely stop your nipples from feeling like they'll fall off.
I personally hate the regular breast pads like lanisoh ones as they ruck up in your bra over the course of the day and not very environmentally friendly. There's loads of reusable ones that are much smoother and softer on your nipples, you just stick them in the washing machine..

snacks. Bf makes you very hungry and thirsty. Keep lots of food to hand with things like cereal bars, chocolate, nuts that you can shovel in your face at 4am or when you're glued to the sofa. Also drink lots.

Get a decent nursing bra. Preferably one that doesn't make you feel like a sack of potatoes. You may prefer to be naked at home but if your boobs leak you either need a cloth under them or a bra to put the breast pads in.
bf out and about without a nursing bra would be a massive pita.

Muslins. Get more muslins that you think would ever possibly be needed. Babies sick all the time and you will be forever grabbing a new muslin after feeds (depending on how sicky your baby is or how high your tolerance is to the smell of baby sick). Cheap ones are fine. many are white which is boring and the colourful ones or ones with animals etc on cheer you up a bit when you're mopping vomit again.

Please remember what I said at the start though. It's so hard. Your milk won't come in for 2-5 days (you just have colostrum to start with) and the whole first few weeks can be a nightmare. There are very few a people who can't bf for a physical reason. Usually it's issues that would be fixable if only they had the right support. You can go back to bf even if you give a bottle initially.

Good luck!

RubyBoots7 · 29/06/2018 23:38

oh and if you do want to let down or any other way express - Get some bf bags (or you can do it cheaper with general food grade freezer bags) to store milk sealed in fridge or freezer.

Bottles wise you can get self sterilizing ones like the MAM ones. no need for a machine. You could get a couple in case you want to try a bottle and it's plenty if you go our for the day and leave baby. make sure you use newborn style teats as long as you bf because they have a slower flow so mimic breast better and easier for baby to go between the two.

PixieCutRegret · 29/06/2018 23:49

Echoing other posters on here, the best thing you can do is get yourself to a breastfeeding support group before baby arrives so you can build up a support network. I would also look into hand expressing, I found I got a bit engorged early on which made it hard to latch but expressing a bit off helps, haaka pumps are great for this too but hand expressing is free!

I really wouldn't spend all that money on a perfect prep machine, I had one and sold it for a fraction of what I brought it for a few months down the line even though it was still wrapped in it's box. Also having formula in the house is just so tempting when baby has been cluster feeding most of the night (normal!) if you really need It, there are 24hr supermarkets about.

I brought a load of breastfeeding products while pregnant that I didn't need. If I had my time again, I would have just brought pads (only a couple of boxes as you may not be a leaker) a couple of soft nursing bras, and my nursing vests. Save your money for some pretty nursing bras (nice ones cost ££££) when your supply has settled and you know what size to get.

All the best OP and congratulations!

Greenwomanofmay · 30/06/2018 09:16

chips I used lanisoh for a few weeks before birth and had no cracked nipples, they were only slightly sore. I did notice my nipples were a bit dry towards the end of pregnancy and I thought there's no harm in using it.

KitchenFloor · 30/06/2018 09:29

You need breast pads in case you leak (I still do, some never do!) lansinoh nipple cream in case you get sore nipples (never did), and clothes that permit access. You don't "need" anything else.

I prefer nursing bras plus tops with access bits, others do "one up one down" etc: can I breastfeed in it is a good Facebook group.

If you're planning to express, a pump might be useful and bags or bottles to store the milk in. I got on well with the Medela swing, but if I were buying again I'd buy a "closed system" pump. As it turns out mine refuse bottles so not useful here. The Haakaa is quite popular at the moment too.

Find out about local support groups and professionals who can help if things aren't working well, have their contact details and numbers available and use them if needed!