How to get EBF baby to consider formula

[Corilee2806]

Help! I’m absolutely exhausted and really wishing I’d brought in a bottle/combi feeding sooner.

My DS is 5 months and I am really pleased to have EBF to this point - he got breastfeeding quickly and has gained weight well, which has been a pleasant surprise after really struggling with BF my DD two years ago, with issues with poor supply, weight gain etc.

However he still feeds very frequently and wakes a lot in the night, so I’ve not had more than 2 maybe 3 hours in a row since February. I’m just so tired and struggling to cope looking after him and my very energetic toddler.

I know all about combi feeding, formula etc as I did it with my DD and while I appreciate it is no guarantee of better sleep (although I do think it helps) I would love him to just have one bottle at night which my OH could give him, which means I could get a decent chunk of sleep and start to feel more sane.

He currently is not great at taking a bottle of expressed milk but will reluctantly, but he feeds so much I struggle to find the time/energy to express enough - just enough for a bottle here or there. And he just won’t take formula, have tried a few types. He actually pushes the bottle away and spits it out! I know this isn’t surprising and I may just have to ride it out… until I don’t know when.

Any thoughts or suggestions?!

One thing they do with reflux formulas (which apparently taste vile) is to add some vanilla essence to the bottle.

I would say call the national breastfeeding helpline, they're very good. I called them just today for a different issue, they were fab!

How close are you to 6 months?

I found that 5 months is a bit of a 'wall' with breastfeeding. The sheer physicality of it can really get to you.

But once weaning was getting going both mine dropped breastfeeds quickly and life got easier again. Especially after 9 months when I night weaned.

However, if you do want to try, you can mix breastmilk and formula together. Start with 90% breastmilk 10% formula and then gradually swap the percentage

Thanks for the advice! Not very close to 6 months - he’s just 5. Although only a few weeks away really. Yes, completely on the physicality of it, I feel like the life is being drained out of me sometimes. Try to eat well, drink lots and get as much sleep as I can (haha) but it just feels like I can’t keep up. I am hoping something will change when weaning and it’s not too long away really.

In the meantime I will definitely try giving him a bottle of mixed breast milk and formula - hopefully it will work!

@Corilee2806

Thanks for the advice! Not very close to 6 months - he’s just 5. Although only a few weeks away really. Yes, completely on the physicality of it, I feel like the life is being drained out of me sometimes. Try to eat well, drink lots and get as much sleep as I can (haha) but it just feels like I can’t keep up. I am hoping something will change when weaning and it’s not too long away really.

In the meantime I will definitely try giving him a bottle of mixed breast milk and formula - hopefully it will work!

That's the feeling, like they are sucking the life out of you. That's the wall. I compare it a bit to mile 20 of a marathon. The end is almost in sight now but it feels like such a mountain to climb.