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Support for mommas deciding to stop pumping /BF

Rach8672Rach8672 member
in January 2016 Moms
I thought it might be nice to have a place for moms who are deciding not to BF or to discontinue BF / pumping to share stories , feelings and get support without guilting each other.  
 I'm really looking for a little support today. I'm deciding to stop pumping and it makes me really sad.  From the get go LO would latch but it would be very painful. I stuck it out for the first week and supplemented heavily because she wasn't getting enough.  I noticed when I would BF she would fall asleep after 30 minutes (painful 30 minutes) and wake up very hungry. At this point I didn't realize I should be pumping after feedings to up my milk output because I figured my milk just hadnt come in yet.  By the time I added pumping in my milk supply was very low.  I also have hoshimotos which doesn't help my milk supply . 

I hated being hooked up to the pump, confined to my room with visitors or being milked endlessly in front of my husband. The pump was very time consuming without the gratification or bonding you get with BF. It was very hard to keep up with especially once my husband returned to work.  I'd be hooked to the wall and when the baby would wake or start to cry I feel I could barely interact because you can't hold her with a pump strapped to you. After all of the stress trying to pump and now only getting maybe 0.5 ounce per session   I'm not sure it's worth the stress. I'm already heavily supplementing . I did not opt to breast feed on demand 1. Because of the discomfort but 2. She's a great sleeper , I really don't want to take the little rest we do get and toss that out of the window to BF every hour to half hour. I know that sounds selfish but I don't think it would be good for my mental health either. 
Today I woke and my breasts are barely tender ,I'm sure this means my milk is even less.  I'm deciding not to pump today and enjoy time even more with my baby girl. 
No shaming please this is a very tough decision , thanks in advance 
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Re: Support for mommas deciding to stop pumping /BF

  • teachmegs817teachmegs817 member
    I began supplementing formula because when I return to work, I didn't want to ever run into the situation where I didn't have enough backup milk in my fridge or freezer for LO. Also, if I didn't get an opportunity to pump at work, I didn't want to be a crazy person, with rationing what I did have left. At first I thought, I'd just stop breastfeeding and go strictly to pumping because I really just wanted to be able to give LO my milk.  That lasted for a whole week before I went strictly to formula and phased out pumping and breast milk all together.

    I'm a school teacher in a very high needs urban district.  I work an extended school day 8:00-4:30 and only have 1 hour total for my planning period and lunch.  I knew that I would not always have the opportunity to pump at work, let alone did I want to become a bag lady with 2-3 school bags and a pump in toe every day, to and from work.  My son got about 2 1/2-3 weeks worth of breast milk from me and I am happy that he was able to get that much.

    We also ran into several issues (still dealing with some) with formula.  DS is now on Enfamil's Nutramigen, as he had a horrible experience with Enfamil Supplementing, Gentlease and Similac Sensitive.  He is now being treated as if at this point he has a cow's milk intolerance. I am looking at switching to formula as a blessing in disguise, because had I returned back to work and began this switch over 2-3 weeks back into my work routine, I would be pulling my hair out dealing with what we've gone through so far with the formula switches.  I return back to work next week and I am so relieved knowing that we've got a good routine set up with the formula feedings.  DH can contribute equally with feeding him now and I too was always in a pickle when he wasn't around and I'd be pumping, only to hear 3-4 minutes later DS crying out. 

    You're not alone by any means. Formula feeding for us has helped to create a better routine for our family, predictability and knowing exactly how much DS is getting at each feeding without the guess work of, "Did he get enough out of the boob?"
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  • Rach8672Rach8672 member
    edited February 2016
    @teachmegs817   thanks for sharing , I'm glad to know I'm not alone :). Every post I Google about DCing pumping was flooded with moms talking the poster into why she should bite the bullet and continue. 
    I appreciate your story ! 
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  • cali1710cali1710 member
    edited February 2016
      Thank you for starting this thread. I am two weeks postpartum and honestly have barely been able to breast-feed or even get much out of pumping. I feel it has been very stressful because of the pressure society puts on you to do it.  I feel horrible throwing in the towel after only two weeks but the stress and anxiety it has put me through I think is more worth it in the long run.  My little one not only had trouble latching from the get-go but I also have inverted nipples and had to use the shield which I found made it way more difficult. Not only that but I do not have a good supply even though I would try and feed her and then pump. When I did feed her she would literally latch on for about a minute and then start screaming. And then when I pumped I only got about half an ounce. I too feel that I was always constricted to pumping and my husband has actually enjoyed being able to feed her her formula in a bottle as opposed to sitting there feeling useless.  She started off using formula in the hospital because she had Jaundice and they needed it to get flushed out of her system. I find she is happy and very healthy but I still feel guilty about not breast-feeding.  I do feel I did try I went to clinics to get help and I pumped as much as I could 

    my husband is being very supportive of formula feeding as he was a formula fed baby from day one. He has turned out to be a very healthy very smart man. Down the road I feel like if you put 2 30-year-olds together you would never know who is formula fed and who was breast-fed
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  • amandavan83amandavan83 member
    I am debating stoping pumping. My DD was born at 32 weeks and has been getting my milk ever since. She is almost 11 weeks. We have to supplement two bottles a day of special formula for preemies so I am pumping way more than she is eating. She eats about 3oz every 3hrs and I pump 3oz from each breast every 3 hrs so I have built a large freezer stash at my house and my parents house as well! I love providing her with milk but sometimes it is so time consuming and I have anxiety that I won't be able to use my stash before it spoils. I am also a teacher and worried that I won't be able to pump as much at school. So I will have to decide before I go back in March. 
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  • KFrobKFrob member
    edited February 2016
    I'm EP and thinking about stopping as well. I breast fed for a week before my nipples were cracked and bleeding bc while LO was waiting for my milk to come in she became desperate and too aggressive. I decided to pump so she wound still get my milk and do my nipples could heal and my husband could participate in feelings. Now I'm also running into the issue with always being tied to the pump. My husband didn't have any time off work so it's just me all day and I feel awful when LO is crying and I can't pick her up. At this point she's been so fussy the last couple of days she's making it increasingly hard for me to get time to pump and I'm falling behind since the amount she's eating is increasing so fast.  We've supplemented a couple of times a day the last few days. I also feel like I'm missing out on baby snuggles and bonding with LO before going back to work. I managed to pump 4 weeks. My husband is also supportive of switching to formula. 
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  • babybluubabybluu member
    I'm kind of in the same boat. My baby is producing enough pee and poop diapers, but she JUST got back to birth weight at 3 weeks old. And that was only because I was supplementing with formula. And when she nurses most of the time she keeps pulling away and crying after the milk stops flowing quickly. She's not getting any hind milk because it's like she doesn't want to work for it once it gets harder. Everyone keeps telling me to keep nursing on demand and that will tell my body to produce more milk. And that's exactly what I'm doing... But my body can barely keep up. I've tried fenugreek, nothing. I tried power pumping once and that hurt so bad I'm not doing that again. I also pump after every feeding and barely get anything and it hasn't helped my supply at all. Im so frustrated. I want to be done with breast feeding. But I can't make myself make a decision so permanent. I would be so heart broken if I couldn't breastfeed. And I would feel guilty quitting by choice... But I don't want to feel that way. I just want to be okay with formula feeding 
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  • cali1710cali1710 member
    KFrob said:
    I'm EP and thinking about stopping as well. I breast fed for a week before my nipples were cracked and bleeding bc while LO was waiting for my milk to come in she became desperate and too aggressive. I decided to pump so she wound still get my milk and do my nipples could heal and my husband could participate in feelings. Now I'm also running into the issue with always being tied to the pump. My husband didn't have any time off work so it's just me all day and I feel awful when LO is crying and I can't pick her up. At this point she's been so fussy the last couple of days she's making it increasingly hard for me to get time to pump and I'm falling behind since the amount she's eating is increasing so fast.  We've supplemented a couple of times a day the last few days. I also feel like I'm missing out on baby snuggles and bonding with LO before going back to work. I managed to pump 4 weeks. My husband is also supportive of switching to formula. 
    I understand about the bonding and snuggling part. I felt that breastfeeding was such a negative time and didnt feel like the nautral bonding they say it should be. I find I bond more with her when Im feeding her bottle and snuggling. She looks up at me with her cute eyes and its so special. She didnt do that with breastfeeding. We now snuggle all the time and its just a better bonding experience for me
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  • krrpe99krrpe99 member
    Thank you for starting this thread! It's good to hear others are in the same boat. My milk was delayed coming in, so we had to supplement from day 4. But when it did come in, i didn't have much supply.  I've tried the herbs and foods and pumping... Nothing has helped much. I get so discouraged reading these threads where moms are pumping ounces... OUNCES!  I've never gotten more than 1/3 ounce. 
    I'm definitely stopping pumping, and I hope to just breastfeed and supplement as long as I have some supply. I love my time feeding her and don't want to give it up, but I know the day will come too soon. 
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  • babybluubabybluu member
    @Wicked4589 I feel like this definitely sounds just like me. Last night every time baby woke up (which was very often because she doesn't get full or satisfied off my milk alone, but I was told to keep nursing and not to supplement if I want to increase my supply) I would get angry and I didn't want to
    wake up and nurse her. Just the thought of breastfeeding her is mentally exhausting. The only reason I'm still trying to breastfeed is because everyone keeps saying it gets easier. So far it's just getting harder 
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  • mrscammackmrscammack member
    This is exactly what I needed today. Baby girl breastfeed amazing at first, latched so well and it was an amazing bonding experience I honestly loved it. But then she started getting very aggressive because she wasn't getting any milk, the poor thing was starving and I felt like there was nothing I could do. She damaged my nipples so badly the nurse said I shouldn't put her back on and needed to try to supplement. She was losing a lot of weight and needed something. From the first second I gave her the bottle she was a different baby, so content to finally be eating. I planned on pumping and doing a combo of formula and breast milk but I have almost zero supply and I hate losing time with baby trying to pump and getting no where. All I want is to enjoy my baby, and with formula we have amazing feedings and my husband also gets to bond with her, it's one of his favourite things to do. 

    I know it's the right decision for our family, she's literally so happy sleeps amazing, and has the right number of diapers but despite all this the guilt I feel about not being able to breast feed kills me. Not to mention the shame from others. It's good to know I'm not alone! 
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  • cali1710cali1710 member
    Guilt and shame is the hardest part. But its not like we are feeding them poison. We are good moms and do whats best for everyone. We shouldnt feel ashamed. I think theres more people out there that formula feed then we think but no one says anything bc of shame
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  • Rach8672Rach8672 member
    I had no clue there was this huge expectation to BF before I had my LO until I started reading mom boards. Going in I thought I'd try breastfeeding and if it doesn't work then no biggie . After reading all of the boards and talking to other moms I realized there really is a ton of pressure to BF and keep trying even if it isn't working or what's best for my family and sanity. 
    Thanks for sharing your stories , it has helped me a ton today :) 
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  • cali1710cali1710 member
    Rach8672 said:
    I had no clue there was this huge expectation to BF before I had my LO until I started reading mom boards. Going in I thought I'd try breastfeeding and if it doesn't work then no biggie . After reading all of the boards and talking to other moms I realized there really is a ton of pressure to BF and keep trying even if it isn't working or what's best for my family and sanity. 
    Thanks for sharing your stories , it has helped me a ton today :) 
     When I first got pregnant I always said I would try breast-feeding and if it didn't work not a big deal I would formula feed. Until it came to reality that I was having trouble breast-feeding. I also didn't realize the pressure that came with stopping to formula feed. 
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  • alisong10alisong10 member
    Wow this has been a life saver today. I have been considering supplementing and slowly switching to fully formula. LO is 2 weeks today. It's so hard on me. She feeds fine but her latch is too shallow - went to LC and they helped some but it's still not right.  I feel such resentment towards everything ( her and my DH) when I'm feeding every hour. I have the baby blues and am barley eating and crying a lot. and i know I'm not eating enough to cover the calories I'm burning BFing. I just feel it's the right choice that will allow for me to be a better mother to my baby. But DH is NOT fully supportive which is making the discussion to switch so much harder.  So glad this thread popped up today ladies. 
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  • karynste19karynste19 member
    A very quick synopsis of my story: BF didn't work for me. I was in excruciating pain from an autoimmune disorder. I thought I would EP for at least three months. I lasted three weeks. I hated it. I felt myself spiraling downward. I resented pumping every 2-3 hours. I was massively sleep deprived. I wasn't able to bond with my son while pumping and that was a significant portion of the day.

    Last week I decided to stop. DH was extremely supportive. I'm down to pumping once a day and will stop entirely in the next day or two. I couldnt be happier with the decision.  I feel human again. I have a much better relationship with my son and myself. By far the best decision I could have made. 

    Good luck to all the mamas out there going through this decision. Make the best choice for you and don't look back!
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  • mrhargrmrhargr member
    I EPd with DD1 for about 5 weeks. It just got to be too much. It was such a relief when I stopped. I didn't feel guilt when I stopped but I definitely got side-eyed when I would make her a formula bottle in public. I just kept reminding myself that she was healthy and we were doing what was best for our family. Screw the haters. You guys are great moms! Keep loving those babies. In a few years they will all be eating food that they dropped on the floor anyways. 
    image
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  • BarrettJ89BarrettJ89 member
    I'm still having a really hard time with this! Baby girl latched right away, which got me so excited since DS had such a horrible, lazy latch that it never worked out. Not only did DD latch, but, she would nurse forever! The LC was all about it. Everything was great. But 3 days after leaving the hospital, she nursed for 3 hours straight. She was completely inconsolable if she wasn't attached to the boob. She napped for maybe 30 minutes that night, then woke up and latched for another 2+ hours. My nipples were bruised, cracked, and bloody. I couldn't let her touch them. I ended up with a thick scab covering the entire nipple (every duct was blocked). I ended up engorged. I started supplementing, but continued to nurse whenever I could. Fast forward 2 weeks to a baby who is now 3 weeks old, horribly colicky, and absolutely miserable. She can barely make one, small bowel movement in a 24 hour period and is suffering from awful gas pains. After contacting the pediatrician, they switched her formula to soy and asked me to make drastic changes to my diet. I decided to eliminate variables and stop breastfeeding... I want to BF, it was soothing to her, has known health benefits, and has helped me already with weight loss. I've been pumping and freezing it in hopes that eventually we can figure out what the problem is and maybe I'll be able to continue. At this point, I suppose it is what it is. I'm glad to be able to sleep (when DD isn't screaming) and let SO get in on the feedings. But I miss the option of being able to have that time to myself with her. 
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  • babybluubabybluu member
    BarrettJ89 said:
    I'm still having a really hard time with this! Baby girl latched right away, which got me so excited since DS had such a horrible, lazy latch that it never worked out. Not only did DD latch, but, she would nurse forever! The LC was all about it. Everything was great. But 3 days after leaving the hospital, she nursed for 3 hours straight. She was completely inconsolable if she wasn't attached to the boob. She napped for maybe 30 minutes that night, then woke up and latched for another 2+ hours. My nipples were bruised, cracked, and bloody. I couldn't let her touch them. I ended up with a thick scab covering the entire nipple (every duct was blocked). I ended up engorged. I started supplementing, but continued to nurse whenever I could. Fast forward 2 weeks to a baby who is now 3 weeks old, horribly colicky, and absolutely miserable. She can barely make one, small bowel movement in a 24 hour period and is suffering from awful gas pains. After contacting the pediatrician, they switched her formula to soy and asked me to make drastic changes to my diet. I decided to eliminate variables and stop breastfeeding... I want to BF, it was soothing to her, has known health benefits, and has helped me already with weight loss. I've been pumping and freezing it in hopes that eventually we can figure out what the problem is and maybe I'll be able to continue. At this point, I suppose it is what it is. I'm glad to be able to sleep (when DD isn't screaming) and let SO get in on the feedings. But I miss the option of being able to have that time to myself with her. 
    If you are able to/still want to pump and freeze the milk, I have heard most babies grow out of sensitivity to our breast milk from what we eat. 
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  • BarrettJ89BarrettJ89 member
    babybluu said:
    BarrettJ89 said:
     
    If you are able to/still want to pump and freeze the milk, I have heard most babies grow out of sensitivity to our breast milk from what we eat. 
    At this point, I just felt it was best to eliminate so many variables. I'll be the first to say that my diet sucks. We're tight on money, I'm running around all day chasing a 13 month old, consoling a colicky baby, I'm under crazy stress with my stepdaughter coming to live with us, and let's be real, I love chocolate. So, they suggested that it could be dairy, but it was no guarantee. So in my head, I kept thinking "how many things will I have to eliminate? How long will it take for my poor baby to feel better?" So since I was still producing (although not much) I've been pumping for my own comfort, and like I said hopefully I can integrate it back in later. I just want my poor girl to feel better. The sounds that come out of her are absolutely heartbreaking. 
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  • Rach8672Rach8672 member
    @BarrettJ89   I'm so sorry that you are going through this . it sounds like you are making the right decision, its the only way to figure out what might be causing it. It's great that you are pumping and freezing , you are doing All you can do. Don't beat yourself up ! 

    Does anyone have experience on drying up your milk supply ? I'm weaning down my pump sessions and I'm only pumping. I really don't want to get an infection.  My questions are. 1. Are lumps in the breast normal during this and do they go away or need to be pumped out ?    2. I'm decreasing the number of sessions but do I also decrease the time on the pump ? I usually pump 25 to 30 minutes. Yesterday I pumped 15 and one less session.  Today I woke up with some discomfort but not bad , but very full. Do I pump longer to get the milk out or just long enough for relief?   My worry is leaving the milk in the breast and getting mastisitis but I'm sure you do just have to leave it in there to dry up eventually ?  Any help would be appreciated. I've already googled but it doesn't give specifics. 

    Funny side note : last night I was super tired and pumped and I forgot to attach the bottle portion to the pump .... Made it 12 min and realized all the milk had gone on my robe and lap .... Wowww 
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  • rah938rah938 member
    Lumps can get uncomfortable. Try to pump just long enough to soften the breast a little at first. Once your breasts are getting the message and not filling as much, decrease a pump session. Going slow best way to decrease chance of infection. 
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  • karynste19karynste19 member
    @Rach8672 I am very familiar with weaning as I'm almost done!  The dr suggested to continue the same amount of time for pumping but drop from 7 sessions to 5 immediately then 3 after a few days of pumping 5 then one a few days later eventually stopping after about a week and a half. This didn't make sense to me or my husband so we did something else that I would highly recommend since it worked out well for me. 

    Instead of dropping two sessions every few days I slowly increased the amount of time between pumps every day. I was averaging 3 hours between pumps. Day one I did 3 hours 15 minutes. Then 3 hours 30 minutes and so on. While this meant waking up at odd hours in the morning and my Drs plan would have avoided this, I was never in pain. When I did have a lump I would massage it while pumping and take ibuprofen. After the pumping no more lump or pain. My husband created a spreadsheet for me to remember when to pump (sounds like overkill but seriously helpful since I can't remember time to save my life with DS). We had a plan to adjust if I had two pumps that were uncomfortable but that didn't happen. 

    When end you very gradually increase the distance between pumping your body adjusts well. It doesn't know the difference of 15 minutes. You can go at a pace that is comfortable for you and works for your schedule. Happy to help if you want to message me. Good luck with weaning!
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  • EC2016EC2016 member
    edited February 2016
    alisong10 said:
    Wow this has been a life saver today. I have been considering supplementing and slowly switching to fully formula. LO is 2 weeks today. It's so hard on me. She feeds fine but her latch is too shallow - went to LC and they helped some but it's still not right.  I feel such resentment towards everything ( her and my DH) when I'm feeding every hour. I have the baby blues and am barley eating and crying a lot. and i know I'm not eating enough to cover the calories I'm burning BFing. I just feel it's the right choice that will allow for me to be a better mother to my baby. But DH is NOT fully supportive which is making the discussion to switch so much harder.  So glad this thread popped up today ladies. 

    This is me to the t. Every day I say idk if I can keep doing this and my DH says I can. I cry every day and feel completely inadequate most days. My anxiety is thru the roof which makes it hard to eat. The last 2 days my LO has been cluster feeding non stop and cries if she's put down and only wants to be on the boob. I keep reading the cluster feedings usually stop around 4 months but idk if I can make it that long. I feel like a crazy person with no sleep and BFing just hasn't been the bonding experience I thought it would be. I haven't supplimented yet and I do pump so my DH cam help here and there but right now she just wants me and it's so demanding. I feel so much guilt over considering switching to formula because I hadn't considered the possibility before. Idk what the right thing to do is. 
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  • EC2016EC2016 member

    babybluu said:
    @Wicked4589 I feel like this definitely sounds just like me. Last night every time baby woke up (which was very often because she doesn't get full or satisfied off my milk alone, but I was told to keep nursing and not to supplement if I want to increase my supply) I would get angry and I didn't want to
    wake up and nurse her. Just the thought of breastfeeding her is mentally exhausting. The only reason I'm still trying to breastfeed is because everyone keeps saying it gets easier. So far it's just getting harder 
    Again someone with my exact feelings. She wakes up every hour and wants to be fed. Everyone says it gets easier but every day just seems to be something new. To mom's who switched to formula did you encounter other problems? The LC trying to deter me from quitting told me of constipated babies and projectile vomiting from formula. 
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  • danasphillipsdanasphillips member
    EC2016 said:
    alisong10 said:
    Wow this has been a life saver today. I have been considering supplementing and slowly switching to fully formula. LO is 2 weeks today. It's so hard on me. She feeds fine but her latch is too shallow - went to LC and they helped some but it's still not right.  I feel such resentment towards everything ( her and my DH) when I'm feeding every hour. I have the baby blues and am barley eating and crying a lot. and i know I'm not eating enough to cover the calories I'm burning BFing. I just feel it's the right choice that will allow for me to be a better mother to my baby. But DH is NOT fully supportive which is making the discussion to switch so much harder.  So glad this thread popped up today ladies. 

    This is me to the t. Every day I say idk if I can keep doing this and my DH says I can. I cry every day and feel completely inadequate most days. My anxiety is thru the roof which makes it hard to eat. The last 2 days my LO has been cluster feeding non stop and cries if she's put down and only wants to be on the boob. I keep reading the cluster feedings usually stop around 4 months but idk if I can make it that long. I feel like a crazy person with no sleep and BFing just hasn't been the bonding experience I thought it would be. I haven't supplimented yet and I do pump so my DH cam help here and there but right now she just wants me and it's so demanding. I feel so much guilt over considering switching to formula because I hadn't considered the possibility before. Idk what the right thing to do is. 
    Talk to your doctor. Your feelings sound less like an issue with BF and more like you might be experiencing PPA (I had it bad with my first).
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  • Becky012016Becky012016 member
    EC2016 said:

    babybluu said:
    @Wicked4589 I feel like this definitely sounds just like me. Last night every time baby woke up (which was very often because she doesn't get full or satisfied off my milk alone, but I was told to keep nursing and not to supplement if I want to increase my supply) I would get angry and I didn't want to
    wake up and nurse her. Just the thought of breastfeeding her is mentally exhausting. The only reason I'm still trying to breastfeed is because everyone keeps saying it gets easier. So far it's just getting harder 
    Again someone with my exact feelings. She wakes up every hour and wants to be fed. Everyone says it gets easier but every day just seems to be something new. To mom's who switched to formula did you encounter other problems? The LC trying to deter me from quitting told me of constipated babies and projectile vomiting from formula. 
    Sure, babies can get constipated and projectile vomit (no matter if they're formula and breast milk fed) but if you make sure to not over feed your LO you should be able to avoid projectile vomit so long as LO isn't allergic to something or have a cold. As for the LC trying to deter you from fromula, just own your decision as a mom and tell her that you choose formula because it's what is best for you and your family. Any sane person would respect your decision as a mother and not give you a hard time about it. 
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  • Wicked4589Wicked4589 member
    Babies shouldn't be projectile vomiting from formula. I have to say, LCs are really getting on my last nerve. The scare tactics they use is enough to drive a woman into depression. I left birthing class one night crying because I knew if I failed at BFing (because remember if it isn't working, I am doing something wrong) then my son would die of SIDS, would be sick all the time, would have health issues later in life, we wouldn't have a good relationship, and he wouldn't have a smart bone in his body. And it's all my fault. Then the next LC told me the excruciating pain I was feeling was because I needed to move his head to the right or left. Then the next told me that if I tried to pump or formula feed then he'd never go back to the breast and he would become lazy. It really drove me into depression. 
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  • BabyRut2015BabyRut2015 member
    I love this post!!!  I am exclusively pumping, and had even worked into a very reasonable pumping routine (every 4-5 hrs with great supply).  Then I got sick and I'm starting all over again.  Supply dipped, having to pump every 2-3 hrs... dipping into freezer stash.

    I do NOT enjoy it.  I feel I miss out on so much time with LO...I definitely miss out on sleep because after I feed her and get her back to sleep, I have to get up and pump.  It sucks.  If I did formula I'd be much more free. 

    I am going to continue, only because my LO is a little sensitive and I feel breastmilk is our best option for now.  Highly doubt I will make it the year everyone else strives for.

    The guilt placed on BF is unreal and I am so glad this thread was created.  I woukd like to add I also feel better bonded with LO bottle feeding.
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  • EC2016EC2016 member
    My LO was feeding every 30 to 45 minutes with BFing and did a lot of comfort nursing. Today she's fed every 3 hours and we snuggle and engage in between. It's so nice not having her attached at the boob 24/7 and has helped my anxiety some. Today we bought this for my kurig contraption that will hopefully make night feeding easy as its on my dresser in the bedroom. For the first time I don't dread feeding her. 
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  • KimberlyainKimberlyain member
    This post comes at the perfect time. My LO had a lip tie that was fixed plus reflux. She was constantly pulling off my nipple at each feed and it was causing pain plus she wasn't getting enough milk at each feeding and needed to be fed constantly. I felt like such a failure because I dreaded breastfeeding and did not have a magical bonding experience. There is already so much mommy guilt and my twice weekly LC appointments were only making me feel worse since she basically said the 1oz of formula that we would suppliment was baby poison. This weekend we went to EP and both her and I are so much happier. She is not fussing as much and sleeping longer and I love looking into her eye when I feed her the bottle. I go back to work in 3 weeks so I am hoping that I can keep up pumping, but in the words of my doctor I am going to "just make sure she is fed" 
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  • EC2016EC2016 member
    @Kimberlyain my LC also made me feel that way but after talking with many other mommies I decided my mental health waa more important not only for me but also my baby. If ep works for you and your family that is great. There are plenty of formula fed babies that grow into healthy adults. 
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  • karynste19karynste19 member
    I find most of the LC I worked with placed a lot of pressure on me to continue something I knew wasn't working. The Drs and pediatricians Ive spoken with have had a much different reaction.

    Keep in mind LC income is based on you continuing to breastfeed using their services. I'm sure there are fantastic LC out there, but they need you to continue on trying to get paid and some of their tactics include scaring the crap out of you. Some of these posts make me so angry.

    Please know your love will fulfill your child in ways that far exceeding the type of food you choose to feed your child. F anyone who decides to judge you one way or another. 
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  • ctmamaoftwoctmamaoftwo member
    ive been struggling with a low milk supply for the last three weeks. My LO was still 1lb under birth weight and I tried everything to get my supply back up. I love nursing and my baby does a great job with it, I just can't ever produce more than 1oz per feeding. My LC and Doctor were really supportive about supplementing in trying to get my supply up. I was a lot harder on my self not wanting to jeopardize my supply even more. I was contemplating starting a pill to help increase my supply when I started to break out in horrible hives every time I breastfed. My LC came over and noticed the hives and told me it's rare but she believe I'm actually allergic the hormone released while breastfeeding. She encouraged me to stop breastfeeding and transition to formula. It was a very hard thing to hear... but as she said if my reaction keeps getting worse it's much better for my baby to be on formula than me not be here to feed him. I'm sorry for all you who had less than supportive LC. As a medical advocate they should def all be looking out for baby and moms health. 
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  • Rach8672Rach8672 member
    @Kimberlyain   I think my LO has a lip tie too I actually just discovered it today . , did your LOs look like this ?? 
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