Should I buy bottles etc when planning to breast feed?

[SkyeOneDay]

I'm 5 months pregnant and really hoping to bf baby when he/she arrives. I don't know many people with young children, but of those, none have managed to bf over a few weeks/months (most have given up straight away). This worries me as although I really want to do it, presumably they did too, but couldn't manage it for whatever reason. So first question is, how can I best prepare to bf successfully? (I'm not planning on going to NCT classes btw).

Second question is, is it worth buying a breast pump, steriliser and bottles etc? My thoughts were if I struggled initially, at least I could give the baby EBM rather than formula, hopefully to take the pressure off a little and maybe help if it's really tough. But obviously if all is going great, it'll be a complete waste of money!

Thanks for any help, and sorry if these are silly questions, this is all very new to me.

Hi - I think it's unnecessary to buy bottles. if you do end up needing them you can always buy them when you need them (even if it's the middle of the night you can buy bottles in the supermarket) If you need a pump (although you can express by hand) you should be able to borrow one from the midwife or hv or baby cafe. Or buy a manual one from the supermarket. you can sterilse in a large pan of boiling water on the hob.

Success with breast feeding is down to two things IME:

1. your own determination to succeed (obviously occassionally even the most determined of bfers have to throw in the towel because of a difficulty that is truly insurmountable, but this is quite rare) When I started bf I had problems with very sore nipples, but I really wanted to do it (and fortunately had no other problems) so I gritted my teeth and eventually it stopped hurting.

1. The right support from your partner, family, midwife, hv, and any other agencies you choose to use such as la leche league or your local babycafe. I found the advice of bf experts invaluable, and when I really needed help I managed to get an nhs midwife / bf expert to visit, who changed how I was latching my baby on so subtley yet it made a massive difference to those sore nipples. So DONT be afraid to demand the professional support you are entitled to.

In preparation, try to see as many people breast feeding as possible. There are videos you can watch online (try googling biological nurturing) but real life is better. Later in pregnancy you might want to drop in to your local baby cafe (possibly at you nearest sure start centre?) which is a support group for breast feeding with lots if bf advisors on hand.

Firstly not a silly question, well not to any mum anyway LOL

I unfortunately fell into th catagory that couldnt successfuly BF only managed 8 days, but yet i could express perfect!

As for buying the bottles/steraliser/pump etc i would say def as even if you can ( fingers crossed) BF at some stage you will find expressing useful and also baby will use a bottle even if not for 6 month so it wont be a waste of money.
I personally cant imaginge BF when baby starts to get teeth lol

I do know from friends/family who have BF for months they have all daid that you need to get baby used to a bottle as well as breast a couple of months in or will be a complete nitemarelater on to get baby to use 1 so even if you just use it for water.

Forgot to say, congrats on your pregnancy and good luck!

I have breastfed 2 boys, ds1 until 16 months and ds2 10 months and still going. Both times I have used bottles for expressed milk and for juice at first. I used Avent first time round and First Years Breastflow this time. Also I have used pump enough to make it worth buying.

I prefer the position the breastflow put his mouth when younger but I now use the Avent with the spouts for juice and water so they have other uses than just early milk.

The best advice I can give to prepare is relax, relax, relax! Ask for help from the community midwife once home and don't worry if baby doesn't feed for the first 24 hours.

Good luck.

I've BF 3 children.
When pregnant with my 1st I did buy bottles, sterislers, pump etc but I have no idea why.
I didn't use any of the stuff until DC1 was approx 4 months (I think), DH to put him to bed with a bottle of expressed breast milk, some father son time as it were.
I didn't do any NCT classes either but you need to be well informed as to what breast feeding entails.
I believe Kellymom to be a very informative site.
Just a few things but please promise you'll do your homework:
Golden Rule 1 - At the point of delivery or as very soon after as possible have skin to skin contact and feed. Your baby's naked body is lain on your bare chest. Your skin warms the baby, your heartbeat calms him. He is aware of your nipples and you latch him on to suckle.
Golden Rule 2 - Latch is the name given to the baby's position at your breast, it is very specific. If it hurts its not right, don't put up with the pain, it should not be painfull In my personal experience BF Councillors, BF Peer Supporters are far more informed than MWs or HVs.
Golden Rule 3 - Most women fall down at the 6 week mark. Newborn baby's breast feed constantly and you should be prepared to feed your baby as many times as he asks for it. At 6 weeks there is a growth spurt so baby feeds even more and ill informed mothers (usually egged on by ill informed mothers and mothers-in-law) unfortunately are led to believe they are not producing enough milk, offer a bottle of formula and there begins the slippery slope to the end of breasfeeding.
Long term with confidence it is so convenient, no bottles to wash and sterilise, no stumbling around in the middle of the night boiling the kettle, waiting for the water to cool, blah, blah, BF is free, going out with baby and not having to worry whether you've packed enough feeds.
Oh and BF can do wonders for you figure its a highly calorific activity.
Congratulations on your pregnancy but honestly don't fret it, please go with the flow, when the baby comes give yourself permission to just stop and the let the world revolve without you, just for a while, it passes so unbelievably quickly.

I'm sorry to disagree with Nicola but your baby doesn't necessarily ever need to use a bottle. My baby has never had a bottle because I breast fed her until she was able to use a cup. Still do breast feed her (she is 16 months). If you plan to go back to work after 6 months then yes, you might want to use bottles then, but if you are at home with baby for a year and then bottles are unnecessary unless you want to go out without baby for more than a couple of hours in the first few months.

I feel it neccessary to add after reading post by sawdust, i had ALL of the things apparently needed to be succesful but unfortunatly it was not from lack of trying that i had to resort to bottles after 8 days.
Sometimes ppls comments can make you feel that it is all down to you and its your fault if you fail, i honestly think that if uou can you can and if not its not the end of the world as long as bby is healthy x

Oh, and teeth make not one jot of difference btw!

Fair point nicola- I certainly didn't intend to make anyone feel bad or like not being successful at bf is their fault. You and your baby's health is the most important thing.

Dont worry i thinks its great that you have been so sucessful and really hope skyeoneday is to, its just that from my experience ( possibly a little harmonal at the time) i would always say to ppl you can only try but i know a friend of mine really took it bad that she couldnt BF so from her experience i told myself beforehand that if it didnt go to plan it was ok xx

I have bf two kids and I must say I love my electric pump. I was lucky enough to be able to take to bf stright away (apart from the first week with DD1, when I expressed in hospital and the midwives cup fed her until a lovely midwife came and helped at every feed for a day and we cracked it

With my pump (I beleive it is called a first years breastflow, it was the cheapest electric one on the mothercare website) I can decide I want to go somewhere, spend 10 minutes or so pumping and get two feeds worth, giving me an average of about 6 hours until I need to feed her again, although I do try to have more in the freezer in case she has a mad feeding day. I just use the cheap normal bottles that they sell everywhere, as I tried posh ones with DD1 and she rejected them. To me, being able to pump has been a major factor in helping me BF as sometimes I just need a couple of hours break. With DD1 I used it so I could go out gallanvanting, this time I seem to be using the time to get housework done or have a bath.

My recommendation would be to buy a 3 pack of cheap bottles and a steriliser as you will use them with any method of feeding, and get a cheap hand pump to try it, or borrow an electric one from a breastfeeding group or wherever. Don't buy any formula as you can get hold of that easily if need be and it will be too tempting otherwise. Also make sure people around you (ie DP and anyone who might babysit, but also MIL and so on) understand that you really want to bf and that they should not give the baby formula lightly.

Bf is the best thing, don't beat yourself up if it doesn't work out, but it is well worth giving it a good try if only for laziness purposes It may well be hard to start with, so get loads of support and keep reminding yourself that it does get easier. If you can get through the first bit, things are brill.

What has really helped me is the "forth trimester" idea, that the first three months of the baby's life are basically like being pregnant with the baby on the outside, you will be tired, you will still be out of shape, but the baby is easier to look after on the outside than inside and hopefully you will get little breaks When they are running about and you are worrying about them eating mud all this will be a distant memory.

When I am exhausted, sat on the settee on mn with DP bringing me brews and a baby attached to my boob, I just think how much more tired I would be if I had to make up a bottle for each of the endless feeds.

I bought bottles before my baby was born because I knew at some point I would leave him with a babysitter and I thought it would be easiest to leave a bottle of expressed milk. It is up to you though and you definitely don't need them before the birth because you can always buy some later.

Breastfed babies don't need water until 6 months and most (though not all) babies can manage a lidded cup by this point. Also I don't think you need to introduce a bottle early to necessarily prevent bottle rejection later - all my friends whose babies rejected bottles had introduced the bottle before 3 months and it didn't seem to make a difference.

Good luck

I introduced a bottle at about 2 or 3 weeks with both of mine and had no problems.

I think Butterpie has a good point - if you do buy bottles don't buy formula too as you may not be tempted but your DP/DM/DMiL may find it tempting to 'give you a rest'.

FWIW - I've BF 3 (2 still going) DS1 had the odd (about 7-8 in total) bottle of EBM as I was doing an evening class when he was born.
The other two have never had a bottle and I can now get away for 4 hours or so. (I don't want to do longer than that because I don't want my periods to return [grin)

My DD (DC2) is 3 weeks old and so far I have used my manual pump just once last week to help relieve engorgement. I never got the hang of manual expressing, even in the shower and I was getting sore red blotches on my boob so it was a massive relief.

I have 2 bottles for EBM so I can still do my monthly meal with the girls once we've got BF totally established.

I would say start with nothing and buy as you need. Most people are near enough to a 24 hour Superstore that you could get whatever you needed at 2am if necessary...

No don't buy anything. If you have it in the house you will use it! Supermarkets are open 24 hours these days if you really have an emergency...

The question is, do you plan to express even if you take to breastfeeding like a duck to water? If so - why not? But I agree with the others about not buying formula.

None of my five have ever had a bottle in their mouths! (Though youngest is only 12 weeks) - People who mean well often say 'you'll need bottles eventually' but my oldest is 17 and hasn't needed one yet!

If your family has no experience of breastfeeding you may get lots of comments along the lines of 'Are you feeding that baby again?' It is very important not to let these comments get you down. Very frequent feeding is normal and healthy especially in the early days.

After happily feeding four (including twins) my husband began to worry while I was pregnant with the fifth that due to advanced age (40) I might not have enough milk and even though I should know better I had a few doubts myself. Of course all went well!

People will say to you 'I had to give up as I was feeding every 2 hours!' Just look sympathetic and go on feeding every 2 hours -or less- yourself. It doesn't have to be a problem.

My first is 10 weeks old and while I was pregnant I bought a starter pack which had a sterilizer, two bottles with new born teats and all the bits for cleaning them and so on. I also got a Medela electric pump at a huge discount, would have got a hand one otherwise.

We've been lucky enough to have no issues with breastfeeding apart from a bit of panic when she had a growth spurt, she latched on with determination when we were in the recovery area of theatre (I had an elective CS) despite still being swaddled up and not getting skin to skin and she feeds well and happily now. Unfortunately she has reflux and needs Gavescon after every feed so the bottles and kit have been essential, as has the pump (we mix in the Gavescon with EBM and feed that with the bottle). Hopefully as she gets older the reflux will improve and I'll be able to use the bottles and expressed milk to leave DH with the baby while I go out for a few hours.

If you're really budgeting what you buy, it's not an essential, as other people have said you can get them at any point if you need them. But you've got a few months to go, keep an eye on Boots/Babies R Us/Mothercare and wait until they have a deal on - I got the whole kit for 20 pounds. Then it's not a huge expenditure and you don't end up spending too much when you have to buy it in a rush. Even if breastfeeding is easy for you there might be times when you want to leave the baby with someone and you'll need bottles and so on then.

Thanks so much for all your advice.

I've read a lot on here that has really helped, particularly about it being normal to feed every couple of hours and also skin to skin after birth.

I'm lucky that DH is a star, and I know will do everything to help, I've also been trying to explain to him that feeding all the time is normal which he was surprised at it, but understood more when I explained how small babies' tummies are. I think I will have to explain how important it is to keep at it though if it's tough - definitely not buying formula just in case, there's plenty of 24 hour supermarkets around!

I'm lucky that I'll be off for a year after the baby is born, so think on your advice I will leave buying the steriliser kit/pump etc for the time being unless I see a bargain. I'm not desperate to pump so I can have me time, it was more just in case I can't do it myself.

As for negative comments about Bfing, I am definitely prepared for them! Not sure what MIL's views are, but she's a nightmare so wouldn't be listening to them anyway! My family all live a drive away, so won't see them too much anyway.

Oh and lastly I suppose one good thing is I have very low standards about housework!! So definitely won't be worrying about that sort of thing whilst trying to establish breastfeeding!!

I have bottlefed my first two and partially breastfed/bottlefed my third. I was really pleased how the breastfeeding went with my third and now my fourth is due in August I wont be buying any bottles for the new baby as I want to have a go at JUST breastfeeding (eep!). (ok we will still have a sterilizer from our older one but that doesnt count!) I know if I have bottles here I will just think "Oh just one" or whatever because I know what its like when your baby wont sleep or stop crying you will do anything!.

If I do change my mind for whatever reason tesco here is open 24 hours so its unlikley the baby would starve while I get some bottles.

I have no idea how well this will work but I have decided that I really want to give it a proper go this time

oh I forgot I have a pump already as I used it with my last baby! I didnt end up using it much though since I couldnt seem to get much with it (prob doing it all wrong i think!)

Good luck with it all fernie

Don't bother buying anything now, as the other posters have said, you can get stuff if and when needed.

What I found most helpful was reading this topic - learning what problems others have experienced helped me to be prepared. I think a lot of women are surprised by just how much a newborn feeds, and they can panic (just my impression based on the threads here, and I know I would have were I not expecting it). I'd also say don't bother expressing for a couple of weeks at least.

It isn't necessarily easy but it's totally worth it - good luck.

Hi, Treadmillmom has hit the nail on the head about why most women quit. When baby hits the growth spurt they feed constantly and most people assume that the baby is hungry because they don't have enough milk. This is not true! It's baby telling your body to make more milk, it lasts about 3 days and then goes back to normal.
As everyone else has said, make sure you get lots of support and advice if you're finding it painful. If you buy a manual pump it normally includes a couple of bottles and should only cost around £20.
Good luck!
x