What do bottle fed babies do all day?

[lizzlebizzle33]

I have 2 sons both EBF, my youngest is 10 weeks and it seems like he still bf's all day long, has very short periods of being awake and happy before getting upset again and wanting boob to soothe him.
I'm just wondering what parents of bottle fed babies experiences are and what their young babies are like when they're not feeding or asleep, what do they do?
This might sound like an odd question but with both babies I have used breastfeeding as d way to soothe them when they are crying and not just when they are hungry so I wonder how you soothe a bottle fed baby other than feeding?

After reading how dummies prevent SIDS we tried to force one on ds2. He would not take it. He found it annoying. It made him cry. Is nipple confusion a real thing? Both my dcs rejected dummies as no milk came out. Babies do cry and need to learn to settle themselves. I'm not sure at what age though.

Your HV might be able to get you a double buggy or help towards one of you ask them. Do you have any mum FB groups you could put a request on?

It sounds like he is over tired which happens quickly at this age, which might be why he's crying and unsettled.

Thank you so much to those who have replied seriously and understand where I am coming from.
I want to continue to breastfeed and I am in no way under the impression that bottle feeding is easier, I just want my baby to be happier 😄

I do have a sling but he cries when I put him in it, I will persevere with it a bit longer though, and I will be giving a dummy a go tomorrow.xx

I moved to mix then FF for similar reasons. BF was just too demanding with older chn to care for too (I'm sure much more skilled women than me have done it, but I couldn't.)

And tbh it did deliver what I hoped it would in a time sense, but I do miss the bond of BFing.

So if you're considering it, there are pros and cons.

Is your oldest old enough for a buggy board?
Do you have a garden you could turf them out into?
We live on a quiet lane so we do bike riding out the front with babies in pram when Going Out doesn't look achievable. Would you try that?

Good luck with dummy tomorrow!

My 4mo DS is bottle fed. He enjoys his playmat a lot, his bouncer, starting to be interested in grabbing toys etc. I've just started reading to him those first baby books and I think he likes them, it seems to keep him amused for a little bit. I try and do a little activity after every feed then he seems to settle well into a nap. Other than that lots of cuddles and just being silly

Another downside of bottle feeding: I had no free hand whilst feeding

I've seen a few people say this on Mumsnet and I find it really weird?! I always had a hand free when bottle feeding. Baby in one hand, iPhone in the other

I fed my last one until she was 3yo and she basically never cried ever for more than10seconds and it was much easier!

You offered your breast within 10 seconds every time a child up to the age of 3 cried?

Ok....

Must be hard not being able to head out. I did find however with the second that it got a lot easier at the 12 week point. I found that Dc2 loved going in his bouncer and watching DC1 play. You are almost at that point!!!

I've seen a few people say this on Mumsnet and I find it really weird?! I always had a hand free when bottle feeding. Baby in one hand, iPhone in the other

And which hand was the bottle in? Unless you can feed via an iPhone?

A bit like this.
It's v easy to bottle feed one handed

..

According to my mother, they sit in their prams at the bottom of the garden where you can’t hear them so they can get “fresh air”. You bring them in every 4 hours for exactly 8oz, no more, no less.

She was utterly perplexed by bf and thought a) i was spoiling the baby and would raise a clingy toddler that I would never be able to leave- rods and backs were mentioned many, many times and b) If baby was feeding so often then either i didn’t have enough milk or it wasn’t “rich” enough, and i was starving him (as opposed to refusing to feed until it was “time”).

Cuddling ruins babies apparently. They need to be taught independence or they learn to manipulate you.

Also when they hit that 3 month more active phase you just start weaning, so they do that rather than need cuddled or played with.

And which hand was the bottle in? Unless you can feed via an iPhone? grin

Either something similar to the pictures posted above, or with the iPhone in my left hand, baby's head in the crook of my left elbow, and bottle in my right hand.

I literally did this for every feed for six months and didn't even consider that it would be an issue. It's really not hard. Bottle feeding is pretty easy anyway, in terms of positioning etc.

I never had a hand free when bottle feeding, and I don't think it's recommended to feed your baby facing away from you, also, surely anyone can be phone-free for the time it takes for a feed to finish. Tuck baby in, feed, enjoy the closeness. No earthly need to feed baby facing away from you whilst being on Facebook, christ.

With my first, bf didn't work out, and I believed when it didn't work out that I'd failed and that I'd lost the right to bond with my baby. With my second, bf again didn't work out but I still cuddled him to me in the same way, tummy to mummy, only he had a dummy. Both babies demand fed, in between times I sang nursery rhymes, when they were old enough to sit up unaided I put a washing up bowl of warm water in front of them with some of their plastic toys and they sat and splashed about, great fun. Babies don't need that much when they're young, just cuddles.

iPhone in my left hand, baby's head in the crook of my left elbow, and bottle in my right hand.

I did this, or the other way round. Plenty of cuddles and eye contact but the odd bit of reading the news/MN/FB.
Or both hands feeding and a box set on.

Mine was the same either way. Feeding, cuddling, sleeping. That's really it. At 10 weeks, she had just switched over to being bottle fed and it really was no different. They still feed, cuddle, and sleep and not much else at that age, with occasional breaks for quick tummy time. It really wasn't until about 4 months that I could put her down somewhere to play on the mat or entertain herself for a bit, which I suspect is the same for most babies. I did a lot of snacking under a baby in front of the tv all day.

So this happened today

Still a little unsure on the whole dummy thing but if it makes my life easier I'm all for it.
Unsure on how often to offer it, what age to stop etc though 😬

My bottle fed twins were and are fed on demand. No different really.

My older dc didn’t take a dummy, but ds2 took one at 4 weeks, he’s also bf. No confusion etc, I give it for all naps and bed time. I don’t know how I coped without it with the other 2.

He’s 5mo and still feeds 10-12 times in 24hrs. It’s exhausting.

Beautiful baby ! Keep going your doing a fab job

Beautiful baby you are doing a great job.

I tried to read up about pacifiers and how they might threaten breastfeeding. I found one very good (rigorous) review article, I think it was in JAMA. They found no strong evidence that pacifiers had any effect on breastfeeding. While on the other hand, there is good evidence that they reduce SIDS risk. So I introduced it, even though breastfeeding was far from established and was still able to establish breastfeeding. The pacifier was a lifesaver. I don’t know anything about weaning off of it as we’re only at 4 months now, but I notice he’s already less reliant on it.

About the sling - my DS cries when I put him in it, but as soon as go outside, he looks around happily and then falls asleep. With any luck, maybe your DS will do the same and then you could leave your house more!

Glad the dummy seems to have settled him. They can be an absolute lifesaver. With ds1 he had it for naps and during the day if unsettled - if your baby is sleeping well at night already then perhaps don't offer it then - and I allowed him to have it until he was 3, although the older he got the less he was allowed it iykwim. He then gave it up happily by himself. So if it's working now, just go with it and worry about the giving up bit later.

Some babies really find the sucking soothing. Ds2 wouldn't take a dummy and I found that much harder!

Cute baby😊 my ds is 8 weeks old and feeds loads too but can easily go a couple of hours in the sling and pram so I make use of that regularly to keep me sane. We try giving him a dummy particularly when my nipples feel like the are going to disintegrate but he’s not keen and rarely takes it and if he does he won’t have it for long.i often wondered changing to ff because of exhaustion and thinking it might give us more defined breaks but have stuck with bffor now taking it a day at a time. Had the same thoughts as you hence why I read your post and commented. Good luck op x