To start pumping after 7 months EBF?!

[mumma2girlies]

My daughter has been EBF since birth. We dabbled with an occasional formula feed for a few days when she was 5 months old but it wasn't successful so didn't persevere. I am starting to feel a bit trapped though as she is with me 24/7 which is lovely, but I also have a 3 year old daughter who apart from nap times, I don't really get any 1 on 1 time with any more. Let alone being able to go out and do things for myself.

We are also struggling with baby not going to her Dad very easily. He can hold for around 5 minutes before she's hysterically crying, which is also taking its toll. I rarely leave the house without her because of this, so I'd love to just know that if I wanted/needed to be apart from her, that at least he or someone else could feed her if necessary!

I haven't pumped this time around, due to not having the time/patience/willpower with the toddler in the mix as well! Is it too late to express? Do I need to, or are there any formulas that are tolerated more than others? And do I go for bottles or cups now she's a bit older?! The couple bottles we tried to give her previously were the Lansinoh ones with Aldi formula, she wasn't a fan!

Sorry for the long post and I'm grateful for any words of wisdom!

What is EBF stand for?

Definitely not too late to pump! You can pump any time. That’s what I would do in your situation because presumably your little one is drinking less and less milk now that they’re weaning? And you can always put it in a cup if they’ll take it that way. No harm in a bottle if they won’t.

Exclusively Breastfed.

Personally I wouldn’t bother with bottles. EBF babies take on average 25 Floz a day up to the point where solids are introduced, then it can reduce a little. So if she’s feeding every 2 hours a full feed will be 2 or 3 Floz, which is fine from a cup.

EBM or formula is fine. The brand really doesn’t matter, just get one that is easily available in your area. You can even use full fat cow’s milk if it’s just for an occasional feed. It’s just not recommended as their main milk.

I think if you’re feeling a bit trapped I would concentrate on DH building up his relationship with DC2. So start by him taking her out for a couple of hours at the weekend, swimming, the library and the park, anywhere really. He needs to spend time with her so that she realises other people can provide the things she needs and DH can learn how to entertain and soothe her. It will do them both good.

It's a really personal thing of course, but I hated pumping and found it really hard (much harder than breastfeeding). And it just adds another thing to your to do list! In your position I'd give formula another go, and spend a bit more time persevering with it.

I was the same. With DC1 I thought it was something I had to do. I was so much happier when I realised it was making my life so much harder and stopped. It was easier the with DC2 though as they were such a chilled baby and I had a hospital grade pump.

I almost exclusively pumped for my child. Just give it a go and see how much you produce. I think it’s good to have a freezer stock of breatmilk for when they have stopped breastfeeding but get a cough or cold.

Nothing wrong with trying to pump, but anecdotally I found when I tried to pump when my DC were older I just wasn't very successful and rarely got anything from doing it.

If DC does not take formula then it is probably also the bottle they are rejecting and I would imagine expressed milk might not be much better. At 7mo though solids might be increasing a little bit? Which could help. I would be OK to leave for about 2-4 hours in this scenario, giving a feed before leaving. Have you tried this at all?

Your DD might settle better with DH if you are physically not there. Does she settle with anyone else at all?

Same here. I never got much and DD wouldn't usually take it anyway. Ditto formula.
OP I think it's a bigger issue here about baby not settling with dad, I'm not sure the feeding is such an issue. At that age I could leave my baby with my husband for a few hours, also EBF, I'd just feed before I went and she waited til I got back. I think you need to try leaving her with dad more, on their own, to give him a chance to figure it out himself without you hovering.

It’s really personal but I think you’ll just be trapped to a pump. And dd won’t be getting the comfort element that she will like from bf. My dd wouldn’t take it then id be stressed about wasted milk
Why didn’t formula work? Could you try formula from a cup with a straw if the bottle was the issue? You can absolutely try pumping though, if you already have one you’ve got nothing to lose. It works great for loads of people

Just to add for balance I couldn’t leave dc for more than an hour at that age (without a lot of stress and tears) they’re all different but you’ll get there eventually whatever you decide to do.