Did you breast or formula feed?

[ThatstuffCray]

That’s it really. Really curious as to what most mums did with regards to feeding

I've done EBF, combi feeding, exclusive pumping and formula feeding at different points. All fine. All difficult in their own ways. Breastfeeding didn't come easily to me.

If we had another dc (unlikely), I don't think I'd try as hard as I did with my existing dcs. I became quite obsessive about bf and I don't really know why.

Breastfed DD to 15months. Now breastfeeding DS who is 8 weeks and plan to do so until beginning to wean him off at 12 months (I found I'd had enough by around that point last time!)

For me breastfeeding is an easy option after getting through the initial couple of weeks. The financial benefit and lack of washing up are big draws too.

Formula after a couple weeks.

Wanted the freedom to share feeding, found it easier, and that it supported getting into a routine more quickly. Kids now hale and hearty eat anything teens.

If you want to know the stats, most women (about 80%) start off breastfeeding, the overwhelming majority then move to mixed feeding, past four months, the majority are fully formula feeding.

Unfortunately the stats are over ten years old because the funding was removed during austerity, so we have no idea whether they are still up to date, although it's likely to be similar.

@Perpop

Breast! You’ve to put the work in to prep/learn before to try and prevent pain etc.. but the bond we have is everything! I absolutely love it

@Perpop I’m genuinely delighted for you, but be careful how you word things like this - bottle feeding mums also bond brilliantly with their babies. (I am not sensitive to this, but some people really are.)

Tried to breastfeed, had to top up with formula and my supply never increased so stopped at 5 weeks and just formula fed. I found breastfeeding really stressful.

Formula. I didn’t find cleaning, sterilising, prepping bottles etc a hardship at all.

Breast.

1 dc, bf'd for nearly 4 years.

BF for first 3 weeks, then combi fed, 1 feed per day to allow for better sleep for me, for maybe 4 months, then just BF for 5 months, then FF for 2 then onto cows milk.

And so far for DS2, mostly BF with 1 FF every 2 days or so to allow me to catch up on sleep. He's only 5.5 weeks old and struggling with the 4th trimester

Breastfed for 15 months with eldest, and now breastfeeding my second too

I breastfed my ds and in a couple of months I'll have another who I'll also be breastfeeding.

Bf both. (11 months, 15 months,)

Statistically most start bf then switch to formula after a few eeeks.

Both

@Ragwort

Mix fed ... rarely talked about but best of both worlds ! Mostly breast fed - cheap and easy (after the first two weeks) but DS would also have the occasional bottle with ready made formula. Meant DH was involved in the feeding, I could go out without DS or just have a break from feeding if I wanted.

Same here almost exclusively breastfed with dh giving the odd bottle of expressed milk or formula

Both breastfed to 6 months then changed to formula. Happy mum, happy baby.

Child 1-2000- exclusively breast until 8 weeks, mixture until fully formula at 12 weeks.
Child 2- 2004-exclusively breast until 6 weeks then mixture and fully formula by 10 weeks.

Breast for both. No formula at all. Best thing i did. 2 years and 4 years.

Started out with both breast and formula. Went to breast only at 4 months when baby started refusing bottles.

Breastfed my first for 6 weeks then swapped to bottle, second and third would never take a bottle so breastfed them both for 2 years. I added up how much I would have saved on formula and kept buying myself little treats with the money saved!

@Perpop

Breast! You’ve to put the work in to prep/learn before to try and prevent pain etc.. but the bond we have is everything! I absolutely love it

You will bond the exact same with your baby if you formula feed or breast feed. Please don't listen to people who say this

Formula, the idea of breast feeding made me feel very uncomfortable to the point of finding it repulsive.

No issues with others doing it - just me.

No idea why, I've been very fortunate to not be abused at all or anything like that, just gives me a real ick feeling.
My midwife said it was more common than you'd have thought- just women who feel this way don't publicise due to others thinking there's something wrong with them

I felt that way too @UnreasonabIe

When baby was born the feelings sort of vanished, maybe a hormonal thing?

But now I’ve stopped they’ve come back again!

Not ‘disgust’ just a slight icky feeling, which I know is totally unreasonable & illogical.

Combi feeder here too. 1 bottle of formula per day given last thing in the evening by DH gave me the break I needed to carry on with Bf, especially in the early months.

I breastfed all my three.