HELP emergency need to spend afternoon away from BF 9 week old, refuses bottle- any tips?

[crumpette]

Hi

Need to go to an urgent urgent meeting at work, very serious implications for firm. DS is 9/10 weeks old and exclusively breastfed.

I can express, but I do so only to throw it away I have never given him any

I have someone to babysit for 3, max 4 hours, but I am worried that if I can't make hhim feed just before I go he will be screaming and hungry. He feeds quite frequently.

Have tried loads of bottles since Monday, panicking, tried expressed milk in tommee tippee closer to nature (disaster) and glass bottles and avent bottles and NUK wide neck bottles

best result was NUK (less screaming) but he won't feed, he doesn't know how to feed from it, he choked, didn't suck it once, and got angry and screamed and screamed for ages and kept hitting me. I can't see that the babysitter will cope if he wants a feed, but I can't avoid leaving him

So my question is- how do I introduce a temporary bottle? Thanks!

Btw he feeds on demand so I have no way of predicting when he will want a feed, really, it's pretty random

what about a cup? I think that's easier for BF babies isn't it?

any of your friends bf'ing?
wet nurse type thing would work fab I reckon
I would do it you were near

how long before your meeting, and have you tried someone other than you giving him a bottle, or giving it to him when he is not too hungry?

have you tried wome one else giving the bottle. they often wont feed from mum. my dd2 was just the same. at about 9 weeks i had to rush to the hospital 50 miles away to see my uncle so i had no choice but to leave her with mil, she did not really take the bottle still but did not scream while i was gone. she just made up feeding when i got back. she started to take bottles when she started sucking her thumb

about halfway down, is a bit about HOW to do it

good luck

at Trinity's kind offer of bosoms

I did try someone else giving the bottle I've tried 2 other people to no avail, he just gets even angrier (though he does see me hovering nearby and glares at me)

thank you for cup feeding link, do I need a special cup? I think he may take a cup easier if he is hungry, v good idea

not sure about which cup to use, but someone more knowledgable will be along soon, I'm sure

How far away is your meeting? Could someone (DH, your Mum, whoever) come to the building or general area with you with the babe, and then you could feed just before and immediately after the meeting? Or would that be impossible?

Could you not take the baby? I've seen lots of babies tucked away in meetings where attendance has ben unavoidable. Use a sling or wrap and nobody would notice. If you have someone with you waiting outside, you can hand over the baby if he starts screaming.

My DS2 would not take a bottle from me, but was fine with other people.

Second suggestion of trying a cup, DD was a bottle refusenik but had more success with cups. I had some success with this but DD was a few months older than your DS. I have also heard of lots of people using the lid of a bottle. I think it's quite messy but if it got the job done it'd be well worth it. Trinity's idea is good too, I'd definitely do that for a friend

Cuops are better for non bottle babies- mione never ever did take one (ds4), he's shaly with beakers in fact but at 2 he has to have one sometimes now.

The best cup I ever found was the sterilised lid of a feeding bottle, that's all you need, something like that (DS1 had to be cup fed for a bit)

Any BFing volunteers in SE London?!

Plum sadly can't take baby

Thanks for all suggestions, armed with a sterilised bottle lid I shall go forth

also ordered playtex trial bottle with 'naturalatch' nipple ? on recommendation of PN thread mummy..

feel really guilty leaving him! Thank you for help!

I have had similar problems but have found in emergency that baby would take milk from a sterilised nurofen syringe! It's quite slow as it's only 5mls at a time, but does get some milk into her.

I wish I'd been more aware of this problem, as would have given a bottle a day from 2wks onwards! It can feel very constricting knowing they can never leave your side, and I'm quite worried about work as well.

good luck

I wasn't joking
sorry if I offended

my DS will only drink out of the Nuk bottles with a latex teat and it upside down in his mouth (so anti colic hole underneath) IYKWIM.
Maybe worth a try. Good luck

Thanks for tip raindrop, I have some of those already.

Trinity, you didn't offend at all!!! I wish I lived nearer to you, I think I remember you live in Scotland> it would be so much easier to know he'd be OK if he needed feeding iyswim

I kind of envy those that can easily do combined breast and bottle feeding, I have no idea how they manage it but it would avoid panicked situations like these!

Thank you for suggestions, MamaG et al, he apparently took some EBM from a sterlised bottle lid when I was out, he pulls a funny face but can manage it.. and for future reference I have tried him with the playtex naturalatch bottle and although he doesn't feed properly from it he does take some milk without screaming, so I recommend.

Thanks again

Breastbottle?