how did you manage to introduce a late night bottle in an otherwise breastfed baby?

[connyrabbit]

I need to make DS sleep through the night and he doesn't seem to be able to only on breastfeeding. He is 4 months old and I'd ike some sleep now. After having only needed one feed between 9pm and 7am, in the last 10 days he has started needing 3 and I am knackered (I also have toddler). He clearly needs more than I can give him. He's a big strong boy.

I have been trying for the past 5 days to make him take one day feed from a bottle of formula (can't seem to do breastpump), but it's just not working. He can't seem to work out the succion mechanism on a teat and he gets really angry. I have a nuk and a medela bottle, he won't accept either.

People say if I let him get hungry enough, he'll get round to it. Well I am concerned that this will mess up my milk production, and it just seems so cruel!

Has anyone got any suggestions? What worked for you?

The only way it worked for us was dh giving her the bottle. He gave her one a night, waking her about 11 to give as a "dream feed".

He found that the milk had to be quite warm, otherwise she wasn't interested.

Re supply I don't know really, I never had a problem but didn't give formula until she was 6 months, before that if we gave a bottle it was expressed.

Hope you get some sleep.

Even giving a bottle won't be enough to make him sleep through the night. It's very unlikely that you're not producing enough milk for him.

Could well be the four month sleep regression.

or have you considered weaning? 4months is not too early to start introducing food if he is starting to wake with real hunger?

My sister has the same problem re; not taking a bottle. let us know what works!

balloonballs, how old was your dd when you (your dh)tried the bottle for the first time? Did you practice using the bottle during daytime or did you go straight for the 11pm "dream feed"? And did that work right away? I'm just trying to understand what I am doing wrong...

Flisspaps, I don't remember that sleep regression zith ds1. If it is the case for DS2, what's the best way to deal with it? Put him to bed later?

Google four month sleep regression - very very common. You just have to sit it out - it will solve itself.

It is also a myth that weaning or ff helps with sleeping.

We managed to get DD2 to take a night time bottle from 14 weeks. DH gives it to her as she wouldn't take a bottle from me. It took about 5 nights to get her to accept it. She's gone from 3 night wakings to 2 (now 6 months and enjoying solids), but at least I sleep through the first one. I have a very lively 3 year old so I needed a bit more sleep. There has been no adverse impact on all her other feeds from me. She has quite warm formula from a Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature.

Good luck and I hope you get more sleep soon.

Has your baby had a bottle before? As my ds was bf and when I tried a bottle (around 5 months) he would not take it and went straight to a sippy cup when he was 12 months.

IMO 4months is very young for a bf baby to sleep through, I think you have been v lucky! Maybe he is going through a growth spurt?

Sorry, slow in extreme to reply.

She was about 3 months when we first gave her a bottle, maybe a little bit younger. We went straight to the dream feed business as I was desperate for a sleep longer than three hours.

I think it took three nights four at the most but she got the hang of it pretty quickly from what I can remember. It's all a bit sleep deprived hazy I'm afraid.

I don't think your doing anything wrong, just give it a bit of time would be my advice.

(I hated people who said that to me at the time but it's true)