Breast vs bottle?

[LucyB.]

I'm just wanting your views on this really as I'm stuck in 2 minds haha. I originally was dead set on breast feeding as I know it's better for the baby and helps you to bond with them but my friend has recently had a baby and said that it really hurt and that she felt tied to having to feed him all the time and her partner also said he'd like to have a go! So now I'm thinking maybe breast feed once or twice and then put him on a bottle! Just so I'm not tied down and I can feed him easier of we're out in public and stuff! Also so my partner has no excuse for not doing night feeds haha. What are all you ladies planning to do? Xxx

 

[Simoneh00]

I expressed my breast milk and fed it to my kids from a bottle. I must admit not through choice as Id love to have breastfed, however, its a really good alternative. All the benefits of breast milk but anyone can feed your lil one. I think this should be suggested to more women by their midwives xx

Sent from my GT-I9100

 

[l_maclean]

Bf hurts to begin with, but it gets a lot easier. Also IMO bf is much more convenient, I believe that for bacteria reasons formula is supposed to be made to use, not in advance - well I certainly would hate to be doing that 3am, DH might be able to help, but it's a lot easier just up lift LO from the crib into bed to feed. Also less faffing around with bottles, sterilisers etc, especially when you go out. Bf in public is daunting, but once you've done it the first time you'll find that no -one really cares. Also as for others helping, once you have bf established, you can use expressed in bottles.

 

[Pickledonions]

I found it hard I must admit I exclusively breast fed for 4 weeks and then added bottles in. I now still have enough supply to do hip morning feed and night feed rest I do formula this has worked well for us. If you do choose to do this you Will still need to build a good supply up first which means going exclusively for a few weeks at least else you Will risk drying up. Why don't you start breast and just see how you go. for what its worth I didn't get any pain as long as your latch is ok you Will be ok on that front and the midwife will check this and keep coming til your happy. I only combi fed because I personally couldn't keep up with the demand when he had a growth spurt although I will add too they still eat more formula when having a growth spurt i have had a rough night with Lo due to it, so now looking back I don't know it makes an awful lot of difference. Doh at least I know for next time

Sent from my HTC Wildfire S A510e using Tapatalk

 

[l_maclean]

Also I certainly don't feel tied, my LO is 5 weeks, I've been out to a part and left her with DH, I'm back at my dance classes, and mil had her for a few hours so we could go out for our 1st wedding anniversary.

If you want some different opinions it might be good to ask in baby and toddler how other bf's have found it, not meaning to be rude but it kinda sounds like you've heard a negative experience. Xxx

 

[Em91]

I'm stuck for exactly the same reason. I know breastfeeding is meant to be best but there's so many pros and cons to both. x

 

[wifeywifey]

I breasted my first for 4 weeks but only bf my 2 nd for a couple of days, he is now just a week and a half and regretting not sticking with it. Im very for the idea why not try you can always switch to formula yoh cant switch to breast. X

Sent from my E15i using Tapatalk

 

[Karate Kid]

Hey Hun,

My mum bottle fed me as I was adopted and I think it is a mothers right to choose.

Personally, despite all the negativity I have read and heard I will without a doubt try breast feeding. My SIL has had such good experiences with BF her two babies and my best friend just hated every second.

If you are open to breast feeding why not try a 'see what happens when LO arrives approach' rather than making any decisions based on others experiences … you may surprise yourself and get on fine with it… if you don’t enjoy it or can't do it you can always switch to bottle feeding.

xx

 

[coco_cukoo]

I'm dead set on breastfeeding. So many benefits to baby and I don't care how much it hurts cos I want baby to get all the goodness from me hehe I'll probs be in agony, but like everyone has said it hurts at first and then the pain fades. It can't be as bad as pushing the baby out but if worst comes to the worst I will express but I really really don't want to bottle feed xx

 

[saralou5]

I'm gonna try and breastfeed, if it doesn't work out it doesn't work out . Just have to see how it goes. As long as bab gets some food in his belly I don't mind how it gets there haha!


Make a pregnancy ticker

 

[mrz85]

I am really hoping 2 breastfeed but sometimes it does not always happen for no reason of our own x

 

[frankie247]

I'm planning on breast feeding but will also express so others can feed her.

 

[babyem]

I'll be breast feeding unless I'm not able to. Breast milk is best, it builds their immunity and has so much more in it for the baby than you can get from formula.

 

[Pickledonions]

I'm dead set on breastfeeding. So many benefits to baby and I don't care how much it hurts cos I want baby to get all the goodness from me hehe I'll probs be in agony, but like everyone has said it hurts at first and then the pain fades. It can't be as bad as pushing the baby out but if worst comes to the worst I will express but I really really don't want to bottle feed xx

I was the same but the reality is very different. I tried expressing but nothin came out at all, even tho I would leak all over the place and had a good supply. My intention is not to put the op off breastfeeding its the most amazing thing and I still love doing two feeds a day, so I so hope you both succeed. I just wanted to say this because its worth remembering as I beat myself up so badly when I decided to switch to formula I felt so guilty and cried for days. I think It's defo worth asking new mummys to see how they are managing. As for not going back that's not entirely true. If you completely stop then yes it is but if I put baby on boob each feed now I would soon get my supply back

Sent from my HTC Wildfire S A510e using Tapatalk

 

[Hunnie]

I tried bf and it just didn't work for us after having to have a c section. It was very painful for her to be anywhere near my belly. I fed her for 3 days so she got the colostrum she needed and then formula fed. I find formula feeding much easier and it works really well for us as I also don't think I'd ever have the confidence to breast feed in public anyway. After I stopped bf I felt a complete failure as a mother for giving her a bottle and I personally think that although it's obviously better for you to bf your baby and the NHS has every right to promote this, they should also be saying to mothers that it's not the only right way to feed their baby and that what's most important is that both mother and baby are happy regardless if they are formula feeding or not.

 

[mrswarner87]

i breast fed my 2nd baby till she was around 6 months, it was most of the time convienient but there are times that it was annoying, once she went onto bottles i wished id of carried on feeding myself, washing bottles, sterilising, buying expensive formula and finding somewhere to warm the milk thru as i personally would never give my baby cold milk.. i would prefer them to have a warm belly not a cold one. unfortunately many women feel that breast feeding is hard and some lose faith in thier ability to do it. trust me it can be done and after the shortest amount of time you become a pro and feeding becomes no hassle at all.. be prepared for the first week being a bit of a learning curve then enjoy it after that.... GOOD LUCK SWEETHEART xx

 

[ISH]

It's always a good idea to try BF before you decide whether it's something you want to do or not. I was very close to giving up (it hurt and I thought it would never get better, but it did). Very glad I stuck with it. The thing which helped me go through the really tough first weeks was expressing milk and feeding him bottles. Gave my nipples a chance to heal and it was much easier afterwards, now I both BF and bottle feed him expressed milk.

 

[Fordee]

I was absolutely determined to bf with DD; bottle feeding wasn't even considered before her birth. However, I was being a little naive to say the least to assume it would be straightforward, I encountered a few major problems.

- I left the hospital within hours of the birth and had not managed to get bf established before being told to go home.
- When my milk came in on the 3rd night, my breasts became so engorged so quickly that DD could not feed for a whole night from me, this was by far the most distressing night of my life having a new born baby crying for milk and not having the knowledge or experience to be able to feed her.
- Week 6 I got mastitis. I had flu symptoms, engorged, hot & painful breasts and I had to take antibiotics & keep feeding through the pain to get rid of it.
- Week 12 the midwife had noticed DD had started losing weight despite me feeding her constantly at this stage. I don't know what happened and why, but my milk was drying up and within a couple of days she couldn't get a single feed from me. We had to resort to bottle feeding, I was absolutely devastated and made to feel like a complete failure by the midwife.

Essentially, the mistake I made was assuming it would be so natural that it would be easy. It left me exhausted and lonely (because I was so paranoid about feeding in front of anyone). My life became far easier once we had gotten into the routine of bottle feeding but I held onto a lot of guilt for months to follow.

Yet, despite all this, I fully intend to bf again and to be a success this time. For me, the benefits for the baby far outweigh the negative experience I had first time around. I think I'll be looking for more support this time though, I'm hoping it may help immensely rather than struggle through it on my own.

 

[ISH]

^wss. I wish I'd known it would likely be difficult and hardened myself; it was a huge shock discovering how tough it can be.

 

[Loula]

im going the total opposite and bottle feeding straight away x