breast or bottle??

caz3006 · Mar 6, 2011 9:17AM

So have you all decided on bottle or breast?

with ds I bottle fed, I really didn't want to even try breast feeding but this time round I really want to give it a go. I know it won't be easy but I won't know unless I try! and It will save us a fortune on baby milk

Funshine · Feb 19, 2011 4:08AM

i breast feed dd1 for 10wks then, my milk supply vanished, dd2 a combination fed from wk 2 till wk 4, dd3 i breast feed for 3 wk, then bottle fed this time as i know he will be our last i want to try breast feeding for longer but i know iv never had a massive milk supply s will take it as it comes. xxx

Jen_and_ERB · Feb 19, 2011 5:47AM

I breastfed DD for 3 1/2 months then did combination feeding as she'd started loosing weight and then after 2 weeks of that I changed to bottle. I really didn't get on with breast feeding and kept saying to my HV that DD wasn't getting enough milk from me. In the end I got so stressed with it that I stopped but I think that was more to do with a useless HV than the actual breastfeeding.

This time I'm going to give it another go and see what happens although I'm not going to stress myself out about it this time.

Baby_on_Board · Feb 19, 2011 11:51AM

I plan to breast feed but haven't ruled out supplementation if need be with formula - as long as she gets what she needs then I will be happy

- hopefully I can pump though as I have brought it and it was expensive!

kcee30 · Feb 19, 2011 5:32PM

me too, i plan to breast feed, but with my daughter i fed her for 6 weeks, got hellish bad mastitis and was on antibiotics, hubby was away working so i gave up, felt like id failed but this time round if it happens again i will just go to formula feeding again x

Corinne_Wardle · Feb 21, 2011 10:27AM

i exclusively bf dd for 5 months and then combination fed until 7 months then formula.

Hoping to do the same again. I expressed alot too and froze it which was helpful when going out but took a while to get up enough supply to express a decent amount.

It was really hard as at 1 point i was bf every half hour as i was poorly and couldnt eat. Had trouble getting dd to latch on properly too so it was a stressful few weeks but a great mw helped x

CountryMummy · Feb 24, 2011 8:51AM

My first little bump so I will try and breast feed x

babiseren · Feb 24, 2011 9:11AM

i breast feed my ds for the first 2 weeks and then combined for the 3 & 4th week and then formula fed after that. I did not really enjoy breastfeeding but felt i had given ds the best possible start by giving him colostrum and am planning to do the same this time round but i am unsure how i am going to cope with the school run etc whilst bresfeeding as ds was permenantly stuck to me for the first 2 weeks!!

my advice to anyone would be to try and if it doesn't work out don't feel guilty. I felt very guilty for wanting to stop breasfeeding but my mum, midwife and husband were very supportive.

caz3006 · Feb 28, 2011 9:37AM

yeah there seems to be a lot of pressure sometimes to breast feed and not to 'give up too easily'.

I remember going to see my sil in hospital after she had given birth, she was in floods of tears all because the midwife wouldn't get a bottle for baby, she had been trying all day to breast feed but couldn't do it and her nipples were quite sore when she told the mw she was told to persist!!! she was made to feel really bad, In the end I went and asked someone different and they were fab went and got a bottle and had a chat with sil to see if she wanted any help to latch baby on when she said no that was it.

I think it's a very personal choice, and I think that's how it should be.

so is there any advise from you experts!! silly question but will baby need bibs? I have stocked up on muslin clothes but only have a few bibs?!

babysiren - I am dreading things like the school run, having visitors, and going out and about!! will be sending visitors out the room while I get me boobies out

and I totally agree about not feeling guilty if you don't want to or try and don't want to continue!!!

Corinne_Wardle · Mar 2, 2011 10:16AM

It is sore and there no avoiding it but i swore by the lasinoh cream! the pain goes after a few days too and it takes a while to get to grips with it and the frutration is awful

I spent ages in tears and worried that Leah wasnt getting enough but a good mw/hv is worth their weight in gold!!! If they are willing to spend the time with you to help CALMLY then it really gives you confidence.

I didnt use a bib for Leah until she started eating. Muslin squares are fab things. Think i had about 10.

I was so nervous doing it in front of ppl, such as friends, family even DH to start with! But it got easier and you find ways of doing it discreetly once you and bubs are used to it! x

caz3006 · Mar 3, 2011 8:28AM

thanks for the advice corinne, will defo get some of that lasinoh at the ready!

I'm sure once we get the hand of it it will be fine xx

HJS2 · Mar 6, 2011 6:40AM

I breast feed my first for 16 weeks. He had a lactose problem and I had to express before each feed give him Colief. I found it hard work but extremely rewarding.

For any first time Mums I also found the helplines VERY useful as I didn't have a network of experienced Mums to ask. In fact if it hadn't been for the helplines I would have given up around day 10. I am really please I carried on.

HJS

mrssept · Mar 6, 2011 9:17AM

I'm really hoping to be able to breastfeed though planning to combination feed after a while. Its my first so will just have to see how it goes xx

breast or bottle??

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