Desperate mum! Stopping BF/bottle refuser!

[Jhun11]

Hi all,

I'm desperately looking for some advice/success stories of bottle refusers taking bottles/BF babies taking formula.

My daughter is 9 months and has been EBF from birth. She did take the occasional bottle of expressed milk but at 4 months refused it and has done ever since. It’s never been a huge issue until now.

I have loved breastfeeding and in an ideal world I would go to 12 months however for medical reasons I need to give up ASAP. Without getting in to details, the treatment I need can’t happen till I’ve stopped BF.

I have tried to look up the best way to do things but I’m just winging it! I’m on day 3 of attempting to introduce a bottle at every feed. I’ve tried different bottles/teets but as soon as she sees any bottle she hysterically cries. I’m keeping them around her for familiarity and she will play with it but it doesn’t go near her mouth. I’ve tried formula and expressed milk but she refuses both. Hubby has also tried but nothing.

I’ve cut her morning feed before AM nap which surprisingly hasn’t gone too badly. After a little fussing and crying she’s been going to sleep however that is without boob or a bottle! I have introduced formula into her weetabix/porridge so I know she’s having something in the morning but I’m concerned about her getting enough.

Current schedule is feed around 1500 before PM nap, feed to sleep at 19.30, a feed around 0300 then around 0600/0700.

If I continue to cut back on feeds without her taking a replacement I’m really worried about her having enough fluid.

I’m really trying to persevere but find it challenging seeing her upset/knowing she wants boob. I also think because I have always found BF easy and enjoyable and don’t feel in a rush to stop maybe that’s making it harder but I know I have to!

I’m desperate for any advice, tips or success stories!!!! Am I wasting my time? Do I cut more feeds so when she’s really hungry she’ll take it? I just don’t know how to go about it and am really feeling it!

Thanks a lot x

Mine were EBF until 9 months and always refused a bottle.

Try a cup. Worked for my fussy so and sos!

Do you have a fast letdown? I did so my DC refused all bottles until I just gave them an adult sports water bottle!

If you can pump build up some supplies to stock in the freezer before you stop so that you can have this on hand if she gets a cold when she starts nursery. I wish I'd done that.

Neither of my EBF children would take a bottle. But DC2 would have milk from a weighted straw cup.

I was in a very similar position. My daughter had a severe bottle aversion but I had to stop breastfeeding for medical reasons at 10months. She didn't eat more than 1 or 2 spoons of food a day so she really needed milk of some sort and with many food allergies she had a limited diet.
We stopped cold turkey as I was in hospital and she had to go home to dad. We couldn't hold her and a bottle as she tried to jump out of our arms to get away from the bottle. She went 26h without drinking anything but then accepted the bottle and formula and stayed on it until 2. She was 20 months before she ate enough to start reducing the formula. It was bloody hard!

I also had a bottle refuser and went back to work when he was 7 months. We found an open cup worked best, there were a good few spills to begin with but worked well until he was 12 months and we could switch to cows milk

Three kids, none had bottles, all stopped breast feeding about 10-11 mths, just go straight to a spout cup, all mine used them from 3-4 months ( tried first one on a bottle of water at doctor's recommendation at 8 weeks but he refused it so never tried with the others). Don't worry if she doesn't drink much milk, my first one didn't seem to like milk and had me worried so I gave him watered down pure apple juice in it but made sure he had cheese and yoghurt in his diet. He's 40 now and no fillings.

Cold Turkey. Switch to a cup and increase food volume, purées etc if you’ve started BLW. So she’s getting something. Mine started nursery at 9 months and wouldn’t take a bottle. Within a couple of week she was taking them there. Still refusing at home. Eventually started having them at home too

I deffo do! Thanks for that would never have thought of it!

Thanks for your comment! it’s so hard isn’t it!! That’s exactly what my little one is like- sees the bottle and wants to fight to get away from it. I’ve had a few people say when she’s hungry/thirsty enough she’ll take it but because I’ve only dropped one feed so far she’s just holding off till the next. Maybe I need to cut back more or consider cutting them completely in a few weeks. It’s horrible but when you need to do it there’s no choice is there, bet it was so difficult for you xxx

I think I may have to do it in the next few weeks! I’ve tried cups/beakers/straws and nothings working so maybe it’s a case of she’s not getting thirsty/hungry enough to make her accept anything else. They are so clever though, to take a bottle at nursery but not at home!! Lol. Deffo know what they’re doing!

At first she was in hospital with me to see if with the support of the staff they could get her to drink from a bottle. She screamed for 6h before I gave in and gave her a breastfeed.
She had probably 6oz in cereal the day she had none in a bottle. She was on allergy formula so the taste was also a battle.
At the time she didn't accept any drinks - water, oat milk or formula in any vesicle. We tried open cups, beakers, all sorts.

They tried to see if she could sustain herself on food too but she had maybe a quarter of a Weetabix and some peas and that was it all day which was nowhere close to being enough.

I am very glad and grateful that I wasn't there to see it. My partner took the battle on himself and it was when she nursery the next day that she started with the bottle

Just to jump on this thread my LO is 6 months old and EBF, had always refused a bottle although we kept on trying every day with different types of bottles for months. Now we've started weaning I bought a mam starter cup ( www.boots.com/mam-starter-cup-with-glow-handles-150ml-pink-10307143) and given her some formula at each meal. She will now drink the whole bottle - just two weeks later and it doesn't even have to be with her food etc. i think i have a fast let down so this type of spout works well for her.

Good luck!!