19 wk old going to nursery and has taken against bottle feeding

[aquavit]

My breastfed daughter used to take expressed milk quite happily from a bottle (from me, her father or her grandmother - never tried anyone else!). But for the last few weeks I've been freezing everything I've expressed in preparation for my return to work this week, and so she hasn't seen a bottle for a while. She started nursery (a couple of afternoons a week) a couple of weeks ago and now seems very grumpy about bottle feeding - taking very little or even nothing at all while she's there. Since then, when we've tried her with a bottle at home we've had mixed results - sometimes she's fine (especially if it's me feeding her), sometimes she yells.

She's otherwise very happy at nursery but I'd really prefer her to be feeding there too! It also makes me a bit apprehensive about introducing other foods at 6 months, which I'd been looking forward to because the expressing is a bit of a nuisance.

Has anyone else had a similar experience, and is there anything that I can do to help her get used to it again?
Any thoughts would be really welcome, thanks.

What sort of bottles and teats are you using?

The nursery thought that might be the issue - we used to use the Medela ones that came with the pump, but switched to Tommee Tippee as that's what they use at the nursery. It didn't seem to make any difference tbh as she has now quite often fed happily from the TT ones at home (although she can make more of a mess with them!).

I'm probably fussing about nothing important - at least she seems happy when she's there (and for some reason doesn't come home ravenous even when she hasn't fed well) - but it makes me a bit sad to think she's doesn't feel confident enough to feed.

er...she doesn't feel?!

Does she take small amounts and then cry? Could she be teething so it's uncomfortable to take more than a bit at a time?

That's an interesting thought - yesterday she fed with them quite happily at her normal times, but only v small amounts. I didn't know that might be a consequence of teething, thankyou for the suggestion!

Would it only be with bottles that teething was an issue? She's feeding normally from me.

DS did something similar - we hadn't used a bottle for a few weeks before he started nursery, and then he refused one there. I went in to feed him in my lunch hour a couple of times, and we made sure we gave him occasional bottles at home, and he gradually got the hang of it. I think it was the combination of a new place, plus new people, plus a bottle, that threw him, so it was a case of getting him used to everything.

He kind of built up the amount he would take from them - so he'd only drink 30ml, say, and then refuse any more, and then he'd drink 50ml, and eventually built up to proper feeds.

He was on solids by then so the nursery also used to give yoghurt occasionally to top up his calcium, and make sure he got plenty of water.

that's reassuring, thankyou - I think that she may be getting used to it as she did feed with them twice yesterday. Hopefully she'll build up the amount soon!

v grateful for your responses - thankyou.