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breast to bottle

Deborah - posted on 01/22/2009 ( 3 moms have responded )

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Hi all,



My little angel has been exclusively breast fed up until now, however I go back to work in one months time and need to get him onto a bottle as he will be going into daycare. Howerver,he has never even had a dummy/pacifier up to this point and is now refusing the bottle, even with expressed milk in it....Any advice? I have tried the tough love route & just refused him the breast but he just gets distraught and eventually cries himself to sleep......breaks my heart but I dont want to send him blindly into daycare.

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3 Comments

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Stefanie - posted on 01/23/2009

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You could try alternative feeding methods: http://www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/alter...

I don't know if the day care could do them, but at least it might help him learn that food comes from other places than mommy. I know it isn't normally recommended, but maybe a faster flow nipple? I would use caution with that, as baby might get used to the fast flow of the nipple, and refuse the breast. But maybe the slow flows are too slow, know what I mean?

I wouldn't try the "tough love," he might resent bottles even more and refuse them harder. Make bottles a fun thing.

Also, have someone else give him a bottle. He will not understand why mommy is giving him a bottle instead of breast, and that could be why he is rejecting it. Don't even be in the room, if he can smell you, he might reject it. If I come into the room while my husband or my babysitter is feeding my son a bottle, even if I don't talk, he immediately looks at me, like "how is the food over here if you are over there?"

Deborah - posted on 01/23/2009

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Thanks for the reply Zoe! I bought a different type of teat and a different formula - gonna try him on that tonight. I've heard that some babies will do away with drinking milk during the day & feed more at night to make up the missed feeds, when moms go back to work. So if all else fails maybe Josh will be one of those. Poor little guy, makes me feel really mean when I have to deny him. Anyway, good luck to you too!

Zoë - posted on 01/23/2009

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I know exactly how you feel!!!! My bubba doing exactly the same except he used to take the bottle and is now refusing it! I decided to feed him a bottle at 11am feed as thats when he's the most hungry and he took it (well 110ml - which I was very happy with) so Ive decided I will try every day at that time and hopefully he will get used to it again! I think it also helped that he wasnt going for a sleep straight after so there were no tears and he actually grabbed the bottle himself - I did however try again at the 10pm feed and he flatly refused so I will keep trying and hopefully it works - good luck

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