Planning to breastfeed, but what bottles and stuff do I need??

[mishkamoo]

Am planning to breastfeed, but know that it may not be poss. Have been looking at bottles and things, and am totally confused!! If I do breastfeed, how many bottles will I need. What's the deal with all the different teat/bottle combos? Will I definitely need a breastpump? Do you have to make sure that your breastpump and your bottles are the same make, or can you mix and match?? Can anyone recommend a good breast pump-what are the important features to look out for? Can anyone recommend a good cold water steriliser?? Also, is there any difference between makes of breast pads, or should I just go for the cheapest?? Not sure why, but this appears to be this weeks fixation/source of anxiety-any help gratefully recevied!!

Am assuming you live in UK where shops/Boots etc are open 7 days a week. I would recommend buying nothing in the certain knowledge that someone can buy bottles/ milk etc for you if you feel you need them. Good luck with the breastfeeding

Sorry, apart from maybe breast pads but I never found I needed those in the first few days anyway

Oh yes, the "helpful" DH or relative giving your DB a bottle of expressed milk will involve - you running around like a crazy woman to get the pump and all the bits sterile, you expressing (which is easy for some, like pulling teeth for others), you packaging, labelling and freezing the milk, you sterilising the bottle, you doing stock control of said frozen milk and then the "helpful" person sitting down in a comfy chair with the bottle looking all smug because they are lightening your load. Not that I'm bitter or anything! Expressing does have it's uses, especially if you're able to get decent amounts out in one session (I never could), but it isn't all that great.

I use Lilypadz and have from week 2 - they are the only things that didn't aggravate my poor nips. 1 pair is still holding out at week 13.

I also agree with Houseofmirth, go to as many bfing groups as you can while you are still pregnant.

Baby Cafes

NCT

La Leche League

There may be others in your area too. I've always found the support of other bfing Mums invaluable.

I would not go to a NCT Nearly New sale to buy a pump. If they are selling them they are breaking the NCT rules on what they can and can't sell...naughty naughty!

am really confused - I heard that if you express and so use breast and bottle immediately (baby dependant obviously) then there shouldn't be any confusion, whereas later on they're more likely to get confused or not take to one when they've only had sole use of the other...what's right?

gonna have to bring up this thing about expressin with DH - hadn't considered all the extra work that would have to go into it! eek...

I wouldn;t use bottles when you're building up your supply (i.e. the first few weeks) as it could confuse things. Just feed, feed and feed again!

My understanding is that you do just breast feeding for at least 3 weeks to make sure that baby is feeding well and that your supply is sorted and then you can start expressing if you want to. If you express to early, you can end up over producing milk and putting yourself at increased risk of mastitis if you then suddenly drop down usage again. You could always offer a teat / dummy to baby between 3-4 weeks old?

Just chirping in.

Im planning to bf my baby but i also want to express for when im out in public etc so we just bought the Avent baby bargain box from Babies R Us. They're usually £59.99 but currently on offer for £49.99 and it comes with bottles, steriliser and breast pump

i totally need to get myself to one of those breastfeeding workshop things....am clueless

babylove there is no reason no to bf when out and about
Wait and see how bf goes for you but generally it is a lot easier than expressing, storing and then trying to keep bottles cold then warm them.

MouseyHair have you a Baby Cafe near you? They are v good sources of information if you have trouble finding a bf workshop.

I would second/third whatever all the advice abotu waiting a bit.

Getting BF established is quite enough to handle at first without worrying about expressing. Time enough to move onto that if/when you need it and have time!

You also have to be a bit careful about expressing in the v early days as your body is still "learning" your baby at that point, and you can sometimes send it confusing messages about how much the baby needs. It's much easier to let your baby and your body work it out first, and then move onto expressing when you need to.

MrsTittleMouse -- that made me LOL, so very true! I always found expressing to be such a pain that I just stopped doing it after a few goes. It was MUCH more work than just letting the babe have its milk straight from the tap.

Babylove, like mrsbadger says, there is no reason you can't bf in public, defeats the whole convenience object of bfing ! Seriously, it's scary at first, but once you have started you'll never look back!

I have these breast Shells (2 layers I think and the collect leaked milk...?) from Avent. Are these meant to be used in place of breast pads or as something different? Not sure what to do with them.

Rolledhedgehog, are the rules on NCT nearly new's selling breastpumps a recent thing? I did buy mine about 18 months ago but won't say which branch in case I get them into trouble

Babylove123, I'm intrigued as to know why you want to express for when you are out in public. Not a critism, just want to know why?

I didn't buy anything until baby was a few weeks old. Then went for Avent Isis manual pump, tried the Tommee Tippee one but didn't get on with it. I have loads of bottles now as I express for work, but in the early weeks 2 was ample.

Cold water steriliser (don't have a microwave), just use the Milton tablets as you have to rinse everything if you use the Boots ones.

breast pads - I don't get on with washable ones, they are simply not absorbant enough for me, and they have a habit of creeping out of my clothes and ending up under mt chin! Not good if you are trying to teach a class of 14 year olds and you realise there's a breast pad sticking out of your top! Tommee Tippee brilliant (though individually wrapped so not great environmentally) Mothercare and Sainsburys - awful, Johnsons - very comfy.

It's been said before, but bf is much less of a faff than bottle. I hate having to wash bottles, spend time expressing, waiting for bottles to warm.

i agree with EVERYTHING Mrs tittlemouse says about expressing so someone else can give a bottle. its a pain in the *, only do it if it suits YOU

Hi,

The reason i am not keen on bf'ing in public is purely a self confidence thing. Im sure when the baby is born i'll be more confident in myself but personally i'd prefer my bf'ing to be more of a home thing. Just a personal preference really. Plus its not like im gonna get out much, lol!

yes you ARE going to get out and about. just not so much for the first few weeks perhaps. Goodness woman, you are not entering a convent, you are just having a baby. once your baby is a few months old he/she will like to go out to be entertained

one of teh main points about Bf is how EASY it is when you are out

Babylove, you could build up your confidence at home, everyone is nervous at first. Once you are getting the hang of it you'll start feeding in front of visitors and then maybe you could go out to a bfing group and feed there?

Once you've done that a couple of times you'll realise that hardly anybody notices when you are bfing in public anyway, they just think you are cuddling your baby. Maybe you could find out about bfing friendly venues in your area while you are still pregnant.

I would have a sericus think about expressing before you go out. You'll have to sterilise the pump and bottles, pump off enough milk, remember to take it out, keep it at the right temperature, heat it up and then if your LO is anything like mine they won't have the bottle anyway. Your milk on the other hand, is just there, waiting to be drunk

Best tip I found on MN was to BF in front of a mirror before you BF in public for the first time. You'll probably be pleasantly surprised at how little is on show, and it's good for practising anyway.
Also, I liked to wear a little cardigan as I'm big-of-nork and I needed a bit of cover at the side.

babylove I used to feel that way - a couple of the girls I met on the baby group rounds were far more confident and being able to bf confidently and discreetly in a cafe makes your life so much better! I was convinced I would hate it too, but you get so used to it and nobody around has any idea what you are doing.
I will also say I agree about that expressing so someone else can feed - totally pointless. I did express to get a little stash so my husband and I could have a night out once a week. That was worth it!