Mixed feeding - how long did you manage to keep it going ?

[ataraxis]

DD is nearly 10 weeks old and I started mix feeding her at around 6 weeks as she wasn't gaining weight despite constant feeding. I know her latch isn't great but BFC has told me positioning etc is fine so not sure why. I struggled with both my other DCs and ended up mix feeding them as well but can't remember how long for.

Anyway, DD currently gets 2 formula bottles a day, and the rest is BM or expressed top ups. I am aware that mix feeding will affect/has affected supply.

I would love to continue with a reasonable amount of breastfeeding until 6 months but don't know if this is a realistic proposition with a ff/bf combination. Has anyone managed to successfully mix feed for a long period of time?

Twins. Lasted only 4 months then fully formula fed

I have nothing but admiration for anyone who manages any length of bf with twins! Can I ask why you stopped? Sorry, should have put that question in my post.

You struggled because your baby was having a growth spurt. In that situation if you go with the flow for a few days and feed day and night, your supply catches up and then it all settles down again. you could still drop the mix feeding and do this now if you wanted to. Take it one feed at a time.

There is no reason why you couldn't keep on mixed feeding forever. Your breasts will make as much milk as is taken from them. if baby feeds more often, they make more milk. Supply and demand.

kathryn I have to disagree with you. Not everyone can mixed feed successfully - I introduced formula at about 4 months with ds1 and struggled to get to 6 months before bf fizzled out - I needed to feed frequently to keep up supply and once I wasn't, it didn't. I had the same with ds2 but less dramatically. Not everyone can manage the indefinite once or twice a day breastfeed.

I agree with you, elliott. Two formula feeds a day can be very risky to breastfeeding indeed - it is usually fine with very well-established breastfeeding, but formula introduced at a matter of a few weeks (which is what happened with the OP) can have a major impact on the body's ability to make sufficient milk to sustain a supply long term.

I dont think you are right about mixed feeding forever, kathryn, sorry. What happens in some cases (obv not all) is that the mum keeps up an adequate supply for a while but then it falters unless breastfeeding increases in frequency. The mum ends up giving more formula in response to the faltering supply and goodbye bf

OP - if you are keen to return to full bf, then you can - you will need to breastfeed more often, using both breasts (at least) at each feed as far as possible.

No one can predict how long you could continue doing what you are doing, but breastfeeding direct, expressing, giving ebm and giving formula is in many ways the hardest way to feed a baby!

Thanks for your replies. Just to clarify, DD had put on 1oz in 2 weeks (wks 4-6) despite demand feeding, and she was beginning to look unwell so I don't think it was as simple as a growth spurt.

She fed well for the first 3 weeks and then simply stopped latching as well - she opens her mouth wide and I have been told that the positioning is fine, but she doesn't create a vacuum and isn't feeding efficiently (a similar thing happened with DC2). Any suggestions on how to address this? I would love to re-establish full bf.

I mix fed successfully.

Dd - formula at 6 wks (under similar circs to OP - though she was always a reliable latcher) - last bf at 8 months

Ds - formula at 4 months, last bf at 10 months

It wasn't straightforward though. I had frequent personal campaigns to boost up my milk supply including babymooning, pumping, breast compressing and dabbling with galactogues (herbs and stuff that help milk production).

Hi ataraxis, I'm exactly where you are. My dd is 7 wks and I mix feed. Direct breastfeed, EBM, formula, you name it I have it

Actually more TBH, I'm gutted I don't have enough milk. It's just impossible for me to express all the while. DD had tongue tie snipped and it improved for 3 weeks but gone down now.

I have meetings (work) during day, preparing another move and will travel twice for 4d each without dd so I guess I'm at the end of the breastfeeding road.

Oh, and dd sleeps through the night, 7-8.30 h since 5 wks old. I don't express at night.

2 years so far! I am aware that I was very lucky, and a very particular set of circumstances led to mixed feeding. I am pregnant again and will be aiming for exclusive breastfeeding for as long as possible.

Kif & llareggub, good to hear that it is possible to mix feed for longer periods amount of time, thank you.
Kif - what is breast compressing? and did you find any of the herbal stuff actually worked?

Alexa, . I don't know whether it is true, but a HV told me that night feeds are important for continued milk production when the babies are young, if that is the case, it might be worthwhile doing a late evening express if you can.

a year with both. one bottle a day. no problems.

DD was mixed fed from 5 months to 11 months very succesfully. DS was mixed fed from 3 months to 6 months equally successfully.

Mixed fed all three babies after various problems. I did always bfd babies at night unrestrictedly, 1 or twice a night even after 4 months. Mixed feeding kept things going for me, but I was always trying to get them back on breast and away from bottle. Had no probs with formula as such. Very good luck Ataraxis just keep your baby close.

4 months. He'd been on nursing strike since 9 weeks though.

I mix-fed easily - dd1 had 2-3 formula bottles a day and the rest breastfed from 4-11 months. dd2 similar from 5-9 months.

dd3 was fully breastfed much longer but that was cos I knew it was the last time.

I couldn't have carried on breastfeeding dd1 without mixed feeding, I struggled a lot with her, and if I'd given up with her I would probably not have tried with the others either as it was all so traumatic the first time. So for me mixed feeding led to all 3 children getting a lot more breastmilk overall.

breast compressing - google it together with the name 'jack newman' I'll post a link if I have time. basically you squeeze your breast when bub stois sucking, which makes more milk come out (so bub restarts sucking). Then when he stops again, release the squeeze (which also releases more milk) . It encourages bub to drain the breast.

Herbs - yes, they worked fanrastically well. I use More Milk Plus from Mptherlove corp on and off . I also got Domperidone on prescription (can also buy OTC ) which really got me restarted with my Ds . Got some slightly odd symptoms with Ds2 though which may or may not hve been related, so decided to park that one!

We are at 14 weeks, since introducing formula on day 6 (due to 20% loss of birth weight).

Two bottles of formula a day - no sign of b/feeding tailing off (dd did b/feed constantly to about week 12 though.)

You will always keep bfdng one way or another if you enjoy it. That's my theory anyway.

These posts show a predictable individual variation - but there is no way of predicting what will happen to an individual.

swanriver - what you say is just not true. I am sure you meant well, but your view will be hurtful to women who desperately wanted to breastfeed and found the experience disappearing from their control.

If all that was needed to keep breastfeeding was to enjoy it, then we'd have fewer problems!

Well I don't enjoy it, but I'm still going!

Actually, it has grown on me a bit...

Sorry, I haven't had time to read the whole thread. I mixed fed from 7 weeks because of low supply/no weight gain and managed to keep it going for ten months.

It was hard work though, and I really had the worst of both worlds. I would feed her for 20 minutes each side and then give her a formula top up every feed for the first 6 months.

Only bfing, no bottles, at night, and when she started sleeping through, I would get up at 4am to pump!

I was on Domperidone to increase supply.

When I went back to work, she had bottles in the day and I fed her in the morning and at night.

HTH

I mix fed my ds from 4days as i had been told by my DH and DMIL that he was starving i mean, wtf do they know about it?? Why did i listen to them?? Anyway....i got some fenugreek seeds and some mothers milk tea, and gradually tailed off the formula until at 10wks he was EBF again. So its perfectly possible. Have you had a look on the kellymom website? Its brilliant for all BF related questions. Good luck.

I managed to get to 21 weeks, just about still bf. Ds had not put any weight on at all in the 1st 3 weeks so had to top up. My supply just gradually dwindled. I never though I would formula feed at all, but he is now completely ff If you can avoid it, I would advise you not to ff if you want to bf.

I mixed fed from the beginning with my DS, up until I gave up breast feeding when he was 7 months old.

luckily I had no problems with supply so this was not an issue.

But I felt that he had the best of both worlds, he had the goodness from the breastfeed along with the closeness with me,
as well as he was able have a bottle without any fuss i.e. I could get some sleep while my partner gave him a bottle, or he could be left with my mum, and later the child minder when I went back to work, because they could give him a bottle.