I have a 15 week old boy who has been exclusively breastfed since birth and I plan on continuing BF'ing for another 6 months if I can. However, during the first 3 weeks my husband would do the last nighttime feeding with milk that I had pumped earlier that day so that I could get 3 hours of uninterupted sleep a day (which was fabulous) but since then we do only about 1 breast milk bottle a week when we are out of the house for any reason for dinner, visiting friends etc. The last two times we have tried to feed him with the bottle he has become very upset, crying, and pushes the bottle away from him, and just won't take it. This bottle time once a week in the past has been the key to getting out of the house but with him not taking it I am afraid to leave the house for more than 2-3 hours. One other bit of information is that due to difficulty with my son latching on in the begining I had to use a nipple shield which is very similar to the shape of a bottle nipple to fed from so I don't think it has much to do with the difference between a bare nipple and a bottle's nipple since I have always used the sheild. I am also not confortable BF'ing in puplic. Any advice on how to help me help him take a bottle once in a while would be greatly appreciated.
You could try formula. It worked for us. DS #1 would take milk when left with a sitter,but not from me.
Sorry to hear you're having troubles! They say that someone else other than mom should give the bottle, because they would probably want the breast more if it were mom. Also, I would check to see if the milk is still good. I had several bottles over months of breastfeeding that would go bad - maybe they were left in the fridge or freezer too long (I would try to do 48 hours in fridge or no more than 1 month in the freezer & stored in the very back-not in the door). Sometimes smelling the milk doesn't always do the trick - I would take a teaspoon out and taste it. Trust me, you'll know if the milk is bad!! Sometimes, babies just go through phases where they won't accept a bottle. You just keep on trying!! On a side note - I know BF can be somewhat uncomfortable in public, but once you've done it for a while you seem to not care as much. There are ways of being discreet: a blanket specifically for BF (like Bebe au lait) or a light-weight blanky thrown over the baby; or just putting down your shirt as much as possible after your baby has latched on and putting a burp cloth or something across your mid-section to hide your tummy. I wish you all the luck in the world!!! I've breastfed two boys (one for 12 months and one for 15 months) and plan on doing the same for my next little one! It's a wonderful to do for and share with your baby! :)
Babies often will not take a bottle from mom. . . you may trying having someone else give the bottle when you're not even in the house. . . they know you're there. I would encourage you to attend a local la leche league meeting to find other moms who support breastfeeding might have suggestions for ways to help you feel more comfortable with nursing in public, or ways to "hide" nursing in public if you feel comfortable with even that. good luck. if you're really seeking uniniterrupted sleep, bring baby to bed with you. .. . i know it sounds crazy, but it's actually a great decision, i thought I'd NEVER make that decision, and yet here we are. . . .
You may try and have someone other than your self give him the bottle, while you step out of the room. We had to take this route for my daughter as she wouldn't really take a bottle, especially for my husband. It was a bit tough to hear her unhappiness about the situation, but evenutally she got over it and it gave her and daddy some alone time (and time for me to relax for a precious few moments).
good luck!
Have someone else feed your baby the bottle but make sure they have something that smells like you. my Daycare provider had my husband and I sleep with a blanket or burprag of my babies. The item then smelled like us and they used that at daycare to get her to take the bottle. There were several times when I was out that my husband had to use a shirt that I had recently worn, between him and the baby to get her to eat.
AS far as the Breastfeeding in public.. safety pins.. I used to take them everywhere. You can pin a blanket in place so a squirmy baby can't expose you. also try bathroom stalls (not the most comfortable but some even have chairs or couchs), back seat of the car and other secluded places
Good Luck!
He's not going to starve, even if you're gone for a few hours, without taking the bottle. He may be really grumpy. Or he may give in and take the bottle if he's hungry enough. Either way, you deserve to go out once in a while - it'll help you destress, which will be better for him too.
As far as feeding in public, there are some great cover-ups that velcro around your neck and cover you completely so that you have both hands to help him feed. And most states have laws that allow you to breastfeed in public without being harassed. You may want to practice a few times in more private situations to see how it works.
I'm in the same boat. My 13 weeker will NOT take a bottle. We've tried EVERYTHING. My husband has been a very good help. It was really hard because I had to make a cd recording the other day and I had to be gone for 6 hours. My husband syringed milk into his mouth, but basically, my baby was mad. He was fine though. My husband just had to hold him and comfort him the whole time. When I got home he was happily cooing and talking. I fed him and he was fine. I say he was fine, even though it was really hard for me. I will not leave him for that long again, but I figured he wasn't starving. If he was, he would take a bottle out of sheer desperation. Anyway, there are a lot of tricks, but they didn't work for us. The only thing that really worked was having him suck on our finger or a binky and then syringing milk into his mouth. Even though he got mad, my husband got food down him.
I had hoped he would take a bottle, for when we went out to public places. But he won't. I just nurse in the car or in a bathroom. I also bought a nursing cover from eznursingcovers.com. It's really nice and BIG, so it helps a TON.
My only advice is keep at it!!! Even if they cry for an hour it is what needs to be done. I know that sound harsh, but you are holding your little one and comforting them, so it isn't like they are alone in this struggle.
AND you need to do one bottle EVERY day from now on!
My lactation specialist told me to start doing one bottle a day between 4-6 weeks just to get my little one used to it and we have been doing that ever since. She is 4 months now and has no issues at all. Of course she still prefers the breast, but will take a bottle from anyone at any time.
For now our routine is that her bed time feed it bottle and in a way that also lets her know it is bed time!
For all new moms I highly suggest this method. It is better to do this then have to deal with the trauma later on down the road when they start to fight it! It is still a good bonding time and it is still has breast milk in it... just gives me the peace of mind that I can be gone and someone else can comfort her and give her the nutrition she needs.
Also as for feeding in pubic... they make wonderful covers that allow you to fully cover yourself while still be able to look at your baby through the neck opening! Google breast feeding covers and see what is out there. Mine is a life savor. I don't do it often, but in a pinch it is there for me to use! Good luck
http://www.nursingcovers.com/
This is the site I used!
my son began taking bottles at 6 months. that's our fault for not training him on the bottle after 3 weeks after birth. if nothing works, some ideas about breastfeeding in public are bathroom stalls and the car.
One thing I wanted to add was that nipples allow milk out at different rates. It could be your baby isn't getting enough milk fast enough from the bottle. My daughter has to have her milk just the right temperature and she won't take a bottle from me. Good luck! (Neither of my boys would ever take a bottle. I hope you have better luck than I.)
Just keep trying. He will take it just make sure he isn't overly hungry as he will want immediate food if hungry, just maybe toy with it giving it to him at a different time other then feeding. Once he gets how to do it and what to do he won't even notice. My son alternated back and forth for the first few months until I stopped breast feeding when he was 4 months old, due to supply and demand, hee hee. He went straight to a bottle after all the time, with no problems and believe me, he ATE A LOT so I went more to formula after four months as I couldn't keep him full enough! :) I just know if they are really hungry they do not want something new then, just try during the day giving him a bottle. Your hubby sounds like a saint doing that for you! I hope you get some rest soon.
If he doesn't like a bottle, you could try a spoon or eye dropper.
If you could feel comfortable breastfeeding in public, it would be more convenient. Some suggestions I've heard are practicing in front of a mirror at home so you know what people would see. Also, look at different clothing styles. "Nursing shirts" have an underlayer with holes for the breasts - you could try something similar like wearing a tank top or a tube top under your shirt to cover your belly.
I am not sure but I know that my son was super picky with bottles. So maybe simply trying a new bottle will help solve the problem. Or a different nipple for flow will be helpful. Just some thoughts.
Most of my suggestions are already noted, so I won't restate them. However, on the Public Breastfeeding thing... South West Plaza (at Wadsworth & Bowles) actually has a 'nursing' room next to the Family Bathrooms. It's a small room for one Mommy and baby and has a chair - might even be a glider if I am remembering correctly. The door locks so no one will walk in on you. I believe that it is large enough to accommodate a stroller too. I've used it many times. You might call the malls local to you and see if there is anything like that.
Nursing in public areas was most vital to my mental health since neither of my boys would take a bottle until 6-9 months. I used blankets as cover ups AND used to wear my husband's Tee Shirts. They were so big that I could just pull it over my baby's head and not have to bring extra blankets.
Good Luck!
it may not be the feel of the nipple, but how fast or slow its coming out. For my oldest, we took a needle and poked 3-4 additional holes in the nipple and then he was happy (so long as I wasn't the one feeding him). It could also be a temperature thing. My youngest, it had to be EXACTLY my body temperature or she refused it - drove our nanny nuts to no end.
Please reconsider nursing in "public." It makes your life and your baby's life so much easier. AND, it makes it much more likely that you'll nurse for a longer time. By 15 weeks, you should be able to get latch on w/out much exposure, if any. try a blanket (neither of my kids would tolerate it, though). Start w/situations that are low exposure to build your confidence - the back booth of a restaurant, a park bench far from any paths, etc. And nursing shirts are wonderful - no showing of that lovely roll of the "muffin" top that you get w/a regular shirt. Of course, I'm sure you don't have the muffin top! :)
Before long, you'll be just fine. More than once, I had people ooh and aah over one of mine being asleep - they were actively nursing when this occurred!
Classic nipple confusion. My daughter did this. I was surprised - I'd always thought nipple confusion meant the baby had trouble nursing. Apparently it can work the other way, too - trouble latching on to a bottle when switching between the two.
Try a different shaped nipple - something un-breast-like.
