Bf and bottle feed in harmony?

sugarangel77

Hey ladies! I'm 5 days PP and I think that I'm BF well. I seem to have more than enough milk and everything is going good now that i have a nipple shield and that my milk is in!

However,  I go back to work the beginning of August so Im worried that i wont have much 'supply' built if i start late. Also  I  would like to let DH feed him sometimes or other family members if we need to run out. 

People keep telling me that i should start my milk supply and pump now in between feedings. I was wondering what your thoughts are on nipple confusion?  Do you think its a good idea to start pumping now? should i wait? can a baby BF and bottle feed? 

mzsparklepdx

We've had to supplement since about 8 days ans LO switches back and forth just fine.  She actually learned to latch better and nurse better after doing both, so I don't think nipple confusion is a sure thing.

fluffybuns

I am in the same boat!

I went and asked the LC today, and she said around 4-5 weeks was a good time to introduce a bottle. And for pumping, to just pick a time during the day/night to pump. Eventually your supply will adjust to that extra demand and then you will have a stock of milk for back to work. 

sugarangel77

Do you think I should pump once per day (like said above) and just use it for storage and not add bottle until about 4 weeks PP? 

h2ojock13

sugarangel77:

Do you think I should pump once per day (like said above) and just use it for storage and not add bottle until about 4 weeks PP? 

Its up to you, if you are worried about nipple confusion then 4 weeks like fluffy said would be fine.. it wont hurt to wait. For DS we tried so many things so far and went through different bottles and back to the breast I don't see him confused about it.. He just learned if it has milk i'm gonna suck on it to get it out.

For us, it was worth the risk because i'm going back to work anyway so if he rejected the breast and only accepted the bottle I didnt care too much because he'll be getting the bottle anyway around 6 weeks PP. Just MO

alliejoe

mzsparklepdx:

We've had to supplement since about 8 days ans LO switches back and forth just fine.  She actually learned to latch better and nurse better after doing both, so I don't think nipple confusion is a sure thing.

Basically this- Ben's had no problem going back and forth.

Heather & Nayt

We are supplementing too, she she has been switched back and forth for almost a month and hasn't had a single issue.( FWIW, we use avent bottles.)

aimeecasey

I started pumping twice a day at 4 days pp. It was all storage until she was a week old, then we introduced the occasional bottle (we use Breastflow bottles). We've had no problems with nipple confusion.

kacelle

The lactation consultant I worked with said not to pump before two weeks (unless necessary) because the milk is developing during that time and it's best for Baby to have that milk from you right away.  I've read some things along the same lines on the Internet.  I started pumping at 2 weeks 1 day, and have already started a pretty decent freezer stash.  

The couple of times I've let DH feed her a bottle to test it out, she's taken it fine.  It hasn't caused any problems for breastfeeding. 

toadstool

I personally would wait to introduce a bottle until about 4 weeks, but that doesn't mean you can't pump. I had to supplement LO at 2 days old for her own medical reasons. I tried to get her to feed directly from the breast many times since introducing the bottle and she just gets frustrated and eventually pushes the breast away after a few min. I really think it just depends on the baby, but if it wasn't for the fact that my baby absolutely needed the bottle supplement, I would completely regret introducing the bottle too early.

Raquellyo

I was pumping from day 1 in the hospital because baby wouldn't latch -- she was super lethargic, apparently due to having jaundice.  We couldn't get her awake enough to latch on, so bottles were introduced very early unfortunately.  We continued to struggle with latching issues but she's been a superstar the past couple days latching on right away.

Overall, she's been pretty good going back and forth between breast and bottle.

kammmmay

alliejoe:

mzsparklepdx:

We've had to supplement since about 8 days ans LO switches back and forth just fine.  She actually learned to latch better and nurse better after doing both, so I don't think nipple confusion is a sure thing.

Basically this- Ben's had no problem going back and forth.

We had to supplement from the get go because she wasn't getting enough colostrum. My pedi said that nipple confusion is a joke and that we should do whatever is easiest for us. I have been pumping when I am engorged and DH is feeding the baby with that when I do not have the energy to feed her. She's had no problem what so ever and I think she has actually learned to latch better after taking the bottle too.