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Parenting

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Original poster

Can you do breast and bottle?

31 replies

alsoliviax · 14/12/2018 21:39

So im a mum to be and would love to know if any other other mums combine breast and bottle?

OP posts:

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winc · 14/12/2018 21:43

Yes- I did with ds from the start more or less. He was quite jaundiced and the hospital basically told me I had to to flush it out of him. Worked fine for 6 months. With dd1 and dd2 I combined from around 3 months and it worked too. Whatever decision you make, as long as you are happy with it, that is all that matters. The first few months go so quickly, you have to try to enjoy it and go with whatever works for you and baby.

OnlyFoolsnMothers · 14/12/2018 21:45

Yes- after a while
Breastfeeding is a game of supply and demand- so in the beginning it’s good to try and exclusively bf to build your supply but then yes the odd formula bottle was a godsend

user1493413286 · 14/12/2018 21:46

Yes; I started at 6 weeks when my supply was well established though and DD was latching well

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FixedIdeal · 14/12/2018 21:47

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donajimena · 14/12/2018 21:47

Yes you can. But, if you plan on mixed feeding it does no favours to your supply. I mixed fed and I gave up breast feeding sooner than I would have liked.
I could never express enough to make a full feed which is why I used formula.
Only you know what your long term aim is. If you feel you need the break from breastfeeding my advice (non research based) DO NOT leave the bottle until 6 weeks as is often advised. My friends and I never experienced teat/nipple confusion but my friends who breastfed fully post 6 weeks could not get their babies to accept a bottle. I am aware that this advice may get me shot down but I stand by it.

Girliefriendlikesflowers · 14/12/2018 21:48

Yes you can but it does depend a bit on the individual baby, I was fortunate that dd was happy to take milk from me or a bottle but not all babies are.

I would say try breastfeeding for the first couple of weeks and then (if you still want to) try a bottle for one feed.

bellsbuss · 14/12/2018 21:54

Yes I have will all of mine so OH could help with night feeds

Original poster

alsoliviax · 14/12/2018 21:56

thanks for everyones help really appreciated x

OP posts:

EATmum · 14/12/2018 21:57

Definitely. Took me to DD3 to get this right for us though. Starting around 4 weeks, we introduced one bottle around 6pm. My DH could give her that feed, I could relax and (literally) recharge, and evenings were so much more chilled than with the other two. I breast fed her for just as long as the others, but was much happier. It’s all about what works for you, but in my experience it does work and it can be really positive.

Oct18mummy · 14/12/2018 21:58

Yes so my husband can give a late night feed to enable me to get some sleep. I feed baby at 9 then go to bed, he feeds baby bottle at 12 and baby sleeps till 3/4 making me have at least 6 hours sleep and feeling human 😊

ARiverInEgypt · 14/12/2018 22:01

Yes because DD wasn’t gaining enough weight at 4 weeks and then because DS was clusterfeeding at about 3 months and not gaining enough weight. It was fine, and carried on mix feeding both until 8 months. Wouldn’t have done it from birth.

InDubiousBattle · 14/12/2018 22:03

Yes, dd had one bottle of f a day from around 3 weeks old and just bf the rest of the time. She stopped bf when she was around 11 months.

gallicgirl · 14/12/2018 22:04

It would be interesting to hear how long mixed feeders breastfed for.

Theweasleytwins · 14/12/2018 22:06

I give my lg a bottle of formula before bed, so she sleeps a tiny bit longer. Bf rest of the time for convenience

Started with a bottle in hospital as she was too tired to latch, and hadnt fed in about 18 hours due to c section and still having mucus in her stomach

SadMummy231 · 14/12/2018 22:07

Yes, DS was jaundiced so he had formula from day 2. I struggled to get him to latch during the day, and couldn't express enough. But he bf during the night and around naps. It wasn't by choice but on the plus side I had a lot more freedom when DH did feeds, and they have a lovely close bond.

At 8 months or so, DS suddenly "got it" and loved breastfeeding!

MaFleur · 14/12/2018 22:07

Yup. I did it for 18 months.

Waterlemon · 14/12/2018 22:07

When my dc were babies, this website was always well recommended on here. It is all research based information/advice about BF. It was such a lifesaver for me!

kellymom.com/category/bf/

Mixed feeding with DC1 pretty much depleted my supply because I bottle fed at the wrong times. With DC2 I had such a better understanding from reading the kellymom articles that bf was a breeze!

SadMummy231 · 14/12/2018 22:09

@gallicgirl

It would be interesting to hear how long mixed feeders breastfed for.

Still going at 17m! I'll try to make it to 2y.

harrypotterfan1604 · 14/12/2018 22:10

This is all so good to read :) thank you OP for asking this question.
I’m 37 weeks pregnant first baby and have to go back to university when baby is 6 months old so I need baby to take a bottle and this thread has given me hope x

donajimena · 14/12/2018 22:14

3 and 6 months (two children) I say I would have liked to have breastfed longer but now they are teens it doesn't really matter to me now.
I do know that mixed feeding really helped my mental health.

Girliefriendlikesflowers · 14/12/2018 22:22

I mix fed for a year.

From 11 months was just doing one or two bfs a day (and two bottle feeds.)

Valkarie · 14/12/2018 22:56

Ds1 had a bottle probably a couple of times a week when I was on maternity leave. Then had bottles in the day when I was back at work. Introduced about 6 weeks and he was happy with both. However he would refuse a bottle from me despite taking it happily from everyone else.

Ds2 we introduced the bottle later and of course he flatly refused. I didn't need to introduce so early as he slept much better, but wish we had now.

Lazypuppy · 14/12/2018 23:35

I always planned to breastfeed up to 6 months which i did and we started bottle feeding expressed milk at 2 weeks old.

Changed her to formula at 6 months with no issues

BlackeyedGruesome · 15/12/2018 00:26

from 3 days old with ds. boobs hurt so much. rotated, left side, right side and bottle so that each side had a rest for 12 hours. it was the only way I could endure the pain. and kept my supply going. built up the frequency of breast feeding more after wards,

midwife said ds woudl give up breast feeding if i fed a bottle of formula.

he did. two and a half years later.

BlueMoon33 · 15/12/2018 04:15

I wish I had tried to introduce a bottle sooner with either expressed milk or formula, I tried at 8 weeks and baby would not take to it, tried again at 3 months and 6 months and still refusing. I would love to be mixed feeding.

From watching my friends who have mixed fed and stopped breastfeeding earlier than they’d have liked, I would say have the set times you want baby to have a bottle and stick to this, don’t be tempted to add another bottle in if they seem hungry (unless you want to cut the breastfeeding back of course). A baby can gulp a bottle down nice and quick whereas breastfeeding takes time and a lot more muscle work, breastfeeding in the early weeks takes the baby a long time to feed and it will seem like they’re not getting enough from you, but trust in the wet nappies that they are, and eventually feeds will take less time and get more efficient.

Congratulations and enjoy feeding your baby in which ever way works best for you both!

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