My baby boy is 5 months old and I am getting back to work in a month and he will start the transition process to the krippe very soon. I wanted to and want to breastfeed him as long as possible.
Last week we thought I have roughly 4 weeks to get back to work and would be a good idea to start transitioning the baby to a bottle with EBM. He refuses it, no matter when we try it.
We tried giving him the bottle when he is not too hungry, when he is really hungry. I left the house so he does not sense me. My husband tried walking him, feed him on a bouncer etc.
We did not see this coming because our older son was quiet good with switching between the breast and the bottle.
We are using the AVENT (tried both Natural and classic)
I would love to hear some tips from the EFers, hear about your experiences
I feel for you! Out of six babies I've only had one that took a bottle without a fuss. One trick we used for when my mum was babysitting was having something like a t-shirt that breast milk had leaked on and have it draped over the side you are feeding so the baby can smell it and to hold the baby as close as you can while gently pressing the side of your hand to their cheek so they feel like they are next to a boob. It can take a while but they will take the bottle teat eventually - get the softest you can. Latex used to be a lot softer than silicone but I don't know if they still sell that kind, it's been a while since I had to do this!
Good luck!
I could be wrong (there's so much advice out there!) but I read a few times that a breast fed baby should be trained with the bottle at between 4-6 weeks and after this time it's extremely difficult (because they will be too attached to breast feeding). We tried to get our daughter to drink breast milk from the bottle for any times that I might not be around at 4-6 weeks and she would take it mostly but it wasn't easy (for my husband). We tried various brands of bottle and none seemed to make a difference. What we decided was that we didn't do it regularly enough. We tried with the bottle once or twice a week and it just wasn't enough. In the end we stuck to breastfeeding and I went back to work after 12 months so by then breast feeding was down to just morning and before bed so manageable around work. But that doesn't help you! I was regularly advised to use the website Kelly Mom. There might be some good tips on here. Website below. I'm sure it is possible to wean onto the bottle at this stage, will just be hard! Good luck!
http://kellymom.com
Sounds familiar! What did it for us was using the MAM brand and formula - my son never drank breastmilk from a bottle. Took us almost 2 months though...
It seems you've already followed advice normally given. My daughter had the same problem, and like you, it caused lots of panic and stress, so I really feel for you. In the end, it worked just in time- but dad had to take over morning and evening feeds- and she leave the room so baby could not 'feel or smell' her. Hope you find a way soon.
I was so lucky to be able to stay with ma babies until they naturally went to a cup, with just morning and evening top up. I do wish you could be given just a little more time- but guess this is not possible. Bonne chance.
BTW the law is on your side. Employer needs to give you time to BF your baby during the day if you are still feeding. So how far will your baby be from your work- would that be possible. I can't find the previous discussion on the subject, but get in touch with EF member Mélusine- as she knows exactly how this work.
www.mumsnet.com
may well be a much better Forum where to ask this sort of question than EF.
Thank you Odlie, I have already taken 2 months as a extension of my maternity leave but I cannot extend it anymore and for various reasons I do not have the liberty to quit and stay at home until the little one is weaned.
couple of other points I did not mention, this little one has been breatfeeding literally every 2 hours since birth and like so many breastfeeding sources described it was not until the supply met demand, he just wants to feed often and this has taken tremendous toll on my energy levels. I also have a older son to take care off. I am hoping for the bottle to work also so I can supplement in the evening to have atleast 4 hours break.
But something happened this afternoon, after an unsucessful bottle feed attempt by the dad the little one fell asleep and woke up hungry, then we tried spoonfeeding. He took it a bit reluctantly but drank about 50 ml.
I just hope he moves on to the bottle or the krippe agrees to feed him with cup and spoon
I would ask the krippe what they think. If the childcarer is very experienced, they won't be worried at all.
The connection "mum=breastfeed" can be very strong. My babies would breastfeed every 2-3 hours if they were with me, but go 4-5 hour with grandma and just 'hang out' until I got back....
Do not panic.... It will work out....I'll send you a pm.
You could try a sippy cup - avent makes some sippy tops to put on their bottels. One pf the few options my son accepted...
Try changing your brand of bottle. Avent is great, but it might not be right for your son. I used Tommie Tippie and it worked well for both my boys. They also did well with the Medela bottles that came with my pump. You might need to try several brands to see what works. Good luck.
One advice that is often given is, in fact, something you already tried - to use a spoon or a cup rather than a bottle. Some babies are more likely to accept these. Also it helps to avoid nipple confusion. Drinking from a bottle requires a different technique from nursing at the boob. Some babies refuse to make the (stronger) effort of nursing properly at mom's breast after the become used to the easier flow of the bottle.
You can also try contacting a La Leche League leader for support. They have an English website and offer English meetings in the Zurich area.
Good luck!
I was hesitant to write an answer as it won't be very comforting for you... I NEVER managed to convinced my two breastfed kids to use a bottle.
I was lucky that I could go back to daycare during the day to breastfeed, as it was close to my workplace. And the law was on my side anyway.
Since bottles were out of question, even with tea or water inside (babies can be VERY stubborn), we had to find tricks. We discovered that my daughter could use a straw very early on. Nubby makes a sippy cup with a soft straw, and for her it worked a treat.
With the third baby coming, I'll try pumping and introducing occasional bottles earlier, around 4-6 weeks. It might work!
Could you remind us of the Law re breast-feeding and work Mélu- as it might be useful for bindu, thanks.
The law stipulates that half the time needed to go breastfeed your child is considered as working time, thus not deduced from your breaks.
If the daycare is at your workplace or if you need to pump your milk, the full time is considered as working time.
These breaks can't be denied.
My first child never took a bottle. But with the second one (6.5 months old now) I managed to introduce the bottle 2 weeks ago. Gave him baby apple juice and not milk. He clearly got interested in a new taste, and on 4th or 5th attempt started to suck the drink. Then I started to introduce other drinks. Once he knew how to suck out of the bottle - there were no problems with drinking out of it. However, not every drink is tasty to him, so he doesn't always want to drink, what I give him.
Maybe this will be helpful.
Thank you all for the ideas and suggestions, I will try the sippy cup. I am not so sure that it is about the bottle as he is not even attempting to suck.
I wish I could go and feed him during the day but the krippe is roughly 25 mins from work. So each trip will be 1hr+. If all else fails I guess I will make couple of trips and work extra hours from home.
I read somewhere that brestfed babies have more bottles during weaning than formula fed babies
Keeping my fingers crossed for a miracle but ready to go the cup and the spoon way if it does not.
Try not to get too stressed Bindu,I am sure it will be fine.I had similar problems and in your post noted that your baby was feeding often.
I would try just giving him the bottle with a drink in and not milk and do try lots of different teats as some are not as soft as you. Babies sometimes cry not for milk but because they are thirsty. If he associates drinking from the bottle as a drink then he should get used to it and then as he should then be used to sucking from the bottle, you can then try him with a bottle of milk.
Crafty things these babies..