What do you feed? formula, breastmilk, both?

KnockMeUp

Just curious as to what the majority of people do.  I am pumping and get about half of what they need so I supplement the other half with formula.  I also breast feed in the wee hours of the morning when I'm too tired to get out of bed and pump or make a bottle.  I like pumping so I know how much they are getting but this is all so over whelming- using 3 different ways of feeding them.  We don't have a dish washer so I'm washing my pump and bottles my hand ALL day long.  I'm tired and stressed over this!

heathb21

I exclusively pump for them.  I have enough bottles so I only need to wash them once a day.  But I have to wash my pump more often, I only have 2 shields. 

heathb21

I should have said that I also feel like my entire day revolves around their feeding schedule.  It takes me an hour to an hour and half to feed both and pump.  I usually pump after I feed them and the milk I get is for their next feeding.  This works best for me, so I always know I already have their milk/bottles ready instead of frantically trying to pump while I have screaming babies. 

Pumping takes a lot of time and is a huge commitment.  I'm surprised I made it this long.  My orginal goal was 2 months, then I switched to 3, now I'm shooting for 4.  I do feel guilty about thinking about quitting, especially since I have enough of a supply, but it does wear on you. 

KnockMeUp

heathb21:

I should have said that I also feel like my entire day revolves around their feeding schedule.  It takes me an hour to an hour and half to feed both and pump.  I usually pump after I feed them and the milk I get is for their next feeding.  This works best for me, so I always know I already have their milk/bottles ready instead of frantically trying to pump while I have screaming babies. 

Pumping takes a lot of time and is a huge commitment.  I'm surprised I made it this long.  My orginal goal was 2 months, then I switched to 3, now I'm shooting for 4.  I do feel guilty about thinking about quitting, especially since I have enough of a supply, but it does wear on you. 

 

Do you mind me asking how much you are getting?  My babies are one month old today (yay!) and I pump about 24 oz a day but each baby eats that much.  I have tried everything to up my supply but nothing has worked.  

KnockMeUp

MrsLee04:

And honestly, after I got over the guilt I was a much happier, better mommy because I only had to focus on 1 thing with feeding. 

I'm not saying any of this to encourage you to stop nursing.  I'm just saying what I did in a similar circumstance, so in case you are thinking of this already that you know it's ok to do this and not feel guilty about it. 

This is how I feel- so guilty if I switch to formula.  I never thought I would feel this way because I was open to formula feeding when I was pregnant but now that they are here I feel different about it.

Mrs.BKP

Until very recently we did all of the above also.  The thing that has totally saved my sanity has been having enough pump parts and bottles.  At first that meant having enough to get me through the day.  Now we have enough bottles to make it through 4 days.  It feels SO much better.  Granted, our boys like the Evenflo bottles that only cost $1 each. I wash them all and put them in a big plastic crate (egg crate?) where they can dry. We have a dishwasher, but it can't get off the milkfat well enough so I do it all by hand.

 We also make all the bottles for the next day the night before. I do a big batch of formula in the blender.  I also figured out how many scoops of formula fit in a 1 c. measure so I didn't have to count all the scoops. (I have major guilt over not producing enough so counting to 20 scoops was just killer.) I mix bm and formula, but always leave the last feeding of the day just bm so it can be used the next day if they don't take all their feedings. 

I luckily asked for another set of pump parts at the hospital so I had 2 and then I bought 2 more.  A great way to reduce pump part washing is to put them in the fridge between pumps and just wash them at the end of the day. Another random thing I read was to get a salad spinner to wash pump parts.  I guess it acts like a mini dishwasher.  Maybe you could put bottle nipples in there also?

 I'm back at work now, but when I was home, I would feed the babies while I pumped.  I'd set up my pump and then put them in the boppies next to me on the couch.  If I didn't do that I'd stress the whole time I was pumping.  At my max, I pump about 40 oz a day and our guys eat about 72 combined.

 I have kept my toes in the "nursing" pool until recently.  One baby with 4 teeth and one bite later I decided to be done with that part!  The convenience is awesome (especially at the time you're talking about!), but now that they don't wake at night as much I'm giving it up unless it's an emergency.

 I'm also starting the weaning process.  I'm down to 2 pumps a day and that feels great.  I'm going to stay there for a while.  I'm still able to pump about 30 oz a day and I'm much more sane knowing I don't have to haul my pump everywhere. Never in a million years did I think I'd make it this far.

Sorry this got so long!  This is the one area where I worked really hard to streamline our life.  No matter what you decide your babies will do great!

groovygrl

Ditto MrsLee- it was just too time consuming. I also did not have my milk come in by week 2 and finally decided it just wasn't for me. GL deciding what to do, it is tough but don't feel guilty no matter what route you decide to go!!!

Rinnie

My boys are breastfeed.  They are close to 9 months.

I give you credit, because one of the reasons I continue to BF is so I DON"T have to wash bottles.  I couldn't do it plus everything else I have to do.

Within the last week I was finally able to drop a feeding.  They were up at 8 am and back down again for bed at 730.  With 2 nap a day which were 2 hours each.

I was nursing them every 2 hours. 

I am going to stick to this schedule for a week or two and then work on dropping another feeding.

I also have s 2.5 year old DD.  I feel like all I am ever doing is feeding someone.

I can't wait until we are down to 3 feedings a day and they are feeding themselves!

 

jettagurl

MrsLee04:

T And honestly, after I got over the guilt I was a much happier, better mommy because I only had to focus on 1 thing with feeding. 

I'm not saying any of this to encourage you to stop nursing.  I'm just saying what I did in a similar circumstance, so in case you are thinking of this already that you know it's ok to do this and not feel guilty about it. 

 

This self-inflicted guilt is my problem right now!  I just had my babies 6 days ago, and I really had every intention to at least do breast with formula supplement.  That lasted the three days I was in the hospital.  I literally broke down in the pedi's office Wednesday when he asked what we were doing for feeding.  I had put so much pressure on myself that I didn't realize that it just simply doesn't matter in the whole scheme of life. My kids will grow up just fine on formula.  I have a 3.5 yr old that I nursed for 9 mos, and a 21 mo old as well that got BM for 2 mos (had major spitting issues).  I knew that it would be tough to BF twins with 2 toddlers around, but I didn't realize how much pressure I was putting on myself.  Like the pp, I'm not trying to encourage you to quit.....that bond you get with baby while nursing is amazing...but just know that you are not 'failing' your babies if it just doesn't work out.  

And in regards to a low supply, with my son I would never get more than 2-4 oz per pumping session (total of both sides).  I never was able to build a freezer supply.  

rmsquire

I'll start by saying, I know exactly how you're feeling and you should make whatever decision works for you & your babies. It is all extremely overwhelming without outside pressure, so do what makes you feel best. Have you seen or talked to an LC?  I had the same concerns around how much they were getting when nursing. I was not producing much with a pump and thought I should supplement with formula. My LC actually told me to stop pumping and just focus on nursing for a while and pay attention to the wet diapers and weight gain. Eventually, I was able to get them on just breastmilk and am still nursing, however it took many weeks of self-doubt and confusion if I should continue or not. I'm sure whatever you decide will work out, just trust your instincts. Good luck!

ncsubride

I pumped exclusively

gumiberg

i breastfeed during the morning, pump in the evening/throughout night and feed that, along with formula.

my supply is meh.  could be better, but good enough.  about 75% of their feedings is milk.

DEP

Some tips on continuing all 3:

1.  You can put the horns in the fridge after you pump so you don't have to wash them each time, but maybe once a day.

2.  Keep only 2 bottles.....no more. The more bottles you have the more there is to wash.

GOod luck, I know it's stressful, but it's just  a phase that will pass very soon!

seattlestef

I did the exact same thing as OP up until about a week ago. I have been pumping for about half of what they eat and then mixing formula for the rest. They have always been on different formulas and I have to fortify Elise's milk to make it higher calorie. I seriously felt like a mixologist.

I just started weaning off the pump last week and am now almost done. I cry every time I talk about it with DH because I feel so guilty, but at the same time, I have so much more freedom and time in my day. Making the bottles is taking half as much time also.

I don't really have advice, but to say I completely understand where you are. Set small goals and be proud of what you have done for your babies so far.

macchiatto

I EBFed for all of 2.5 days, then nursed, pumped and supplemented the 1st month, then all formula. I have MS and my doctor strongly encouraged me to go back on my meds after my first month since otherwise I was at high risk of another MS attack (which could lead to permanent disability). It sucked but it was the best decision for our family.

HisLobster

I pump 4-5 times a day for my girls. They are exclusive bm babies.