HELP moving hungry baby from BF to bottles

[Emilycmx]

I was previously ebf my ds who is 9 weeks round about 7 weeks I introduced bottles of formula at night to give me a rest as was struggling after intense growth spurt which I spent two days in breastfeeding.

I have found breastfeeding difficult and was glad of the relief by giving bottle.

Been put on strong codeine based painkillers this week due to ongoing medical problem so have switched to bottles and am pumping and dumping breasymilk whilst on tablets with the view to return to a couple breastfeed a day after.

DS is big healthy boy currently around 12lbs plus and I have put him on aptamil hungry baby 5oz 6 times a day so every 4 hours
About 2 to 3 hours after bottle he starts intense crying and mouthing normally I would respond with breastfeed but due to painkillers I can't.

I manage to soothe by giving a dummy and rocking close to me. Should I be feeding more? And will this pass?

Does he finish the bottle completely? My midwife gave me good advice to put an extra ounce in and ideally they should leave a little dribble/ounce at the bottom, because then you know they are full.

What is his sleeping like? It could be he is tired and not hungry. Is he having a good morning nap, lunchtime nap and afternoon nap? Do you have a rough routine going now?

He is finishing it completely and tbh think he could do with more but worried about going over what they recommend on side of carton.

Will try extra ounce and let him leave little dribble.

Trying to get into a good nap routine we are only really guaranteed a good daytime nap of an hour or more if we go out in car so it isn't every day.

He was due another bottle at 3 but he seemed so hungry gave him one at 2 and have put him down for nap and all going well so far.

Is there any reason you’re using hungry baby milk? Just thinking that it’s not normally advised for such a young baby, it’s less close to breast milk than regular stage 1 formula so usually isn’t reccomended for mix feeding and it contains more protein so can potentially be harder to digest. He sounds like a hungry chap but giving him more of a regular formula might be better. If you haven’t already I’d discuss with the HV. And all babies are different, don’t worry too much about the feeding guidelines, they are just guidelines and if he’s draining a bottle offer him an extra ounce at the next feed. And as a PP has said, don’t let him drain the bottle as the last bit in the test is mostly air and could be giving him wind and may be contributing to the crying. Keep persevering with the dummy too.

Good luck and hope your medical issues are sorted soon!

It was recommended by a family member as he was constantly looking for a feed. Will consider other formula and check with HV. HV has been great but is on holiday this week so once she is back will get her thoughts.

Is there any signs of trouble digesting I could look out for ? He isn't overly gassy and has been passing bowel movements which seem normal. He has pooed more since going on fornula but I read that was to be expected.

Thanks I hope so too! Even just so I can bf him for the comfort factor.

Definitely don’t change his formula milk without chatting to your HV, it may be he is best on hungry baby, just thought I should mention it as my doctor told me it wasn’t recommended as it can be harder to digest (it doesn’t contain more calories but more protein which takes longer to digest), particularly for young babies or if you’re mix feeding. The crying 2 hours after a feed could be a sign he’s got tummy ache, then again he could just be hungry. It’s so difficult to tell with little ones! And if he’s not gassy and nappy output is normal I wouldn’t worry. It’s good that you have a supportive HV though, hopefully she’ll be able to give some advice. And I wish you well on your recovery

Easiest thing by far is to make larger bottles and feed him whenever he seems hungry. At this age, 6 bottles in 24 hours shouldn't really mean exactly for hours apart, he would normally take them more frequently in the day and perhaps a very large feed in the evening, then have longer stretches of sleep at night. To be honest, he just sounds hungry from what you say.

The daily quantities in the formula can are a guideline, not an instruction. If as you say he is larger for his age and has always been taking a lot, then it would seem quite normal for him to take formula above the guideline amount.

With mine, if they drained a bottle more than twice in one day, I'd take that as a sign to start making all the bottles with one ounce more from then on.

I would also be hesitant to use the hungry baby milk unless specifically advised but maybe you are right to talk to Hv about that.

Best wishes and I hope the painkillers work well for you.

I would say only a 1 hour nap a day when they are little might is the reason for the crying. I Remember someone saying to me aim for 90 mins of awake time. After that they should be winding down for a sleep. But I can’t remember how long that is for.

What time does your LO wake up? If for example its 7am, I would be feeding, nappy change, playing a little bit and aiming for a nap about 9:30am-10am. Then up bottle, nappy change play a bit and down for another nap at lunchtime 12:30ish.

If he is going several hours of awake without a nap that crying is likely over stimulation and tiredness. Annoying with a baby they can’t tell you. But a 9 week old I think should be sleeping quite a lot still.

Google 9week sleep routine/sleep requirements and it will give you lots of different routines you can try.

4 hours is too long between feeds especially if he is asking for food more frequently. I wouldn't have given hungry milk at that age either as its got the same calories but is harder to digest. I would have given first milk and fed him on demand which would probably be closer to 3 hourly rather than 4 hours.

My DS was mostly formula fed and he didn’t go 4 hours between feeds during the day until he was firmly on solids at about 8 months.

In fact I know a lot of babies at the moment, as all my friends have just had their second one too (my DD is 6 months but breastfed) and none of them, formula or breastfed, go more than 3 hours between feeds during the day.

I’d offer a bottle every 3 hours. Earlier if he seems desperate. And the formula tin is just a guide. Your baby may need more food. My DS did and he wasn’t even particularly large

Formula feeding should be on demand - so give as much as baby wants and as often as baby wants.

The information on the bottle is just guidelines not rules.

Hungry baby milk is not recommended.