Breastfeeding moms who are supplementing

HeartLikeMine3 · June 2016

I breastfed my DS for over a year so I am shocked that I am leaning towards formula. Breastfeeding is very easy for me and LO this time as well so I feel like a failure to be giving up. I'm just feeling unhappy and missing my time with DS who just turned 3. It's always me with the baby and my husband with DS it's breaking my heart. I'm thinking of supplementing in the evenings when DH is home and through the night so I can get some help. Anyone do both what formula should I try?? I'm so clueless

purplefan1 · June 2016

Haven't tried formula but good luck!! You could try asking the pediatrician if there have any recommendations on where to start.

Tawny87 · June 2016

I pumped and supplemented with enfamil with my twins for 8 months and then went formula only. Am exclusively pumping this time around but am debating going mainly formula and pumping once in the morning and once at night for this baby when I go back to work in August. I need my sleep too much and it is hard to be mommy to everyone all the time.

Tawny87 · June 2016

Also if you look on the main manufacturers sites they will send you a sample pack, also your Dr's office can give you samples. My Dr's office always gave me a ton as they knew I was feeding twins.

adiaz132003 · June 2016

Is pumping an option? If you start now you could build a nice stash. I think there was another thread where someone asked about formula and I had found a really good one you can get online e from Europe that isn't full of sugar, whey protein or other crap Americans put in their food.

ETA: Found it. The brand is Holle

amangels2 · June 2016

My milk never came in, so I am exclusively formula Feeding, which isn't what I wanted, but I've made my peace with it. At least he's being fed. My pediatrician recommended enfamil newborn.

HeartLikeMine3 · June 2016

Thanks ladies, I guess I can call the pedi and get a recommendation. She's pretty gassy so I would like something gentle. I don't want to regret this but I'm just very unhappy about breastfeeding this go round and feel poor DS is missing mommy big time. I hope the relief of occasional supplementing helps the whole family's well being.

HeartLikeMine3 · June 2016

adiaz132003 said:

Is pumping an option? If you start now you could build a nice stash. I think there was another thread where someone asked about formula and I had found a really good one you can get online e from Europe that isn't full of sugar, whey protein or other crap Americans put in their food.

ETA: Found it. The brand is Holle

Ever heard of high lipase in breastmilk? I'm blessed with a high amount so it goes bad very quickly. I found this out the hard way I had a huge stock pile with DS that I had to throw away.

adiaz132003 · June 2016

HeartLikeMine3 said:

adiaz132003 said:

Is pumping an option? If you start now you could build a nice stash. I think there was another thread where someone asked about formula and I had found a really good one you can get online e from Europe that isn't full of sugar, whey protein or other crap Americans put in their food.

ETA: Found it. The brand is Holle

Ever heard of high lipase in breastmilk? I'm blessed with a high amount so it goes bad very quickly. I found this out the hard way I had a huge stock pile with DS that I had to throw away.

Oh no!! I hope you find a good solution! Read those ingredients carefully when picking a formula. Avoid fructose and fillers. I get iffy about asking pediatricians for recommendations cause those formula companies send them free goodies so they may be biased. Good luck.

HeartLikeMine3 · June 2016

@adiaz132003 thank you!!

purplefan1 · June 2016

HeartLikeMine3 said:

adiaz132003 said:

Is pumping an option? If you start now you could build a nice stash. I think there was another thread where someone asked about formula and I had found a really good one you can get online e from Europe that isn't full of sugar, whey protein or other crap Americans put in their food.

ETA: Found it. The brand is Holle

Ever heard of high lipase in breastmilk? I'm blessed with a high amount so it goes bad very quickly. I found this out the hard way I had a huge stock pile with DS that I had to throw away.

How did you find out you had high lipase?? That sucks to have to throw away a stock pile! I would have cried.

alcermack · June 2016

My milk didn't come in til the night before day 5 so I had to use formula before I even left the hospital cuz I had nothing at all. I'm 7 days pp and still only able to pump 1oz combined so I'm trying to pump more often to see if I can build up more. The hospital gave us enfamil newborn and the pediatrician said to keep her on what she knows. I give the breastmilk first then formula after she finishes.

AmberLiz99 · June 2016

With my second I found that pumping and supplementing worked better for me. I would pump before the kids were up in the morning, and several times throughout the day while my oldest was occupied with something, and after they were in bed, than I could bottle feed my daughter easily and quickly whenever she needed it. I used formula at night. It was a lot of work but I did better with that than actually breast feeding. My supply did drop due to some medications I had to go on, so I switched to formula only around three months.

Do what makes you and your family happy. In my opinion breast feeding is not worth an unhappy mom or kid. We use Similac Organic, that was a decision we made after a lot of research. Everyone has different priorities with formula, so I say do some reading on what's available and make a choice based on that.

HeartLikeMine3 · June 2016

June2016BabyW said:

HeartLikeMine3 said:

adiaz132003 said:

Is pumping an option? If you start now you could build a nice stash. I think there was another thread where someone asked about formula and I had found a really good one you can get online e from Europe that isn't full of sugar, whey protein or other crap Americans put in their food.

ETA: Found it. The brand is Holle

Ever heard of high lipase in breastmilk? I'm blessed with a high amount so it goes bad very quickly. I found this out the hard way I had a huge stock pile with DS that I had to throw away.

How did you find out you had high lipase?? That sucks to have to throw away a stock pile! I would have cried.

I was defrosting some and it smelled really bad and soapy. It tasted horrible too and DS would refuse it. I had tons stock piled so I'm not bothering pumping at all this go round.

HeartLikeMine3 · June 2016

Thank you @AmberLiz99 that means a lot. I do think I would be a lot more happy with more flexibility and a more equal time with both of my kids.

purplefan1 · June 2016

@HeartLikeMine3 I agree with @AmberLiz99. Do what is best you for and your family. Feeding is such an intimate time between caregivers and baby. Breast, expressed, or formula, doesn't matter just fed and love.

mom2beEbby · June 2016

I breastfeed through the day and she gets a formula bottle at night. I go back to work on Tuesday so she will receive formula during my work hours and breast over night going forward. I felt bad for supplementing at first but I needed the help. It's so hard to be the only food source, you never get a break. The formula is helping me sleep a little(not now) and take showers and eat during the day sometimes. It also helped my little 5 pound cutie pick up some weight. Do what you feel is best.

HeartLikeMine3 · June 2016

@mom2beEbby what formula are you using and did you notice a change in gas/constipation?
The think I'm most worried about is upsetting her sensitive tummy and making her gas worse? How did everyone's babies tolerate the change and how slowly should I introduce it?

AmberLiz99 · June 2016

HeartLikeMine3 said:

@mom2beEbby what formula are you using and did you notice a change in gas/constipation?
The think I'm most worried about is upsetting her sensitive tummy and making her gas worse? How did everyone's babies tolerate the change and how slowly should I introduce it?

We did one bottle of formula at night from the beginning, and switched over one bottle at a time as we transitioned. She never had a problem with it. Actually she was more gassy after a bottle of breast milk (go figure).
A friend of mine had terrible has issues with her baby and switched to similac sensitive, which worked for them.

HeartLikeMine3 · June 2016

AmberLiz99 said:

HeartLikeMine3 said:

@mom2beEbby what formula are you using and did you notice a change in gas/constipation?
The think I'm most worried about is upsetting her sensitive tummy and making her gas worse? How did everyone's babies tolerate the change and how slowly should I introduce it?

We did one bottle of formula at night from the beginning, and switched over one bottle at a time as we transitioned. She never had a problem with it. Actually she was more gassy after a bottle of breast milk (go figure).
A friend of mine had terrible has issues with her baby and switched to similac sensitive, which worked for them.

Good to know I've been researching formulas for days, I'm going to pick one and start today. I'm going to start with something sensitive or gentle just to be on the safe side. Thanks for all your advice!

snowhite12 · June 2016

HeartLikeMine3 said:

Thanks ladies, I guess I can call the pedi and get a recommendation. She's pretty gassy so I would like something gentle. I don't want to regret this but I'm just very unhappy about breastfeeding this go round and feel poor DS is missing mommy big time. I hope the relief of occasional supplementing helps the whole family's well being.

I am supplementing with Similac sensitive bc DS is fussy and a bit gassy. I already tried Enfamil newborn as advised by my ped., he took it ok, but was still fussy. I then tried Gerber gentle for supplementing. Yet again, this was ok but he was still fussy and gassy. Similac sensitive has been the best. I also had my first on this formula bc she had horrible gas, she would literally scream in pain after every feeding.

I am still able to feed LO breast milk most of the time. Sadly I just don't produce enough for LO. he eats every 2-3 hours, 4-5 oz, even at night. he's a big boy, so different from my first who was always and still on the smaller side.
DS is also horrible at latching, not only is he tongue tied but always falls asleep within minutes on the boob. I still try every morning to put him on the boob but he lasts about 3 minutes.
I'm going back to work in 2 weeks and plan on pumping every 4 hours even at work and my MIL who is watching DS can give him formula during the day. I plan on feeding him what I pump during the day to him in the evenings.
one thing I learned with my first is if you don't pump/bf as much as you were, your supply will start depleting quickly.

adiaz132003 · June 2016

snowhite12 said:

HeartLikeMine3 said:

Thanks ladies, I guess I can call the pedi and get a recommendation. She's pretty gassy so I would like something gentle. I don't want to regret this but I'm just very unhappy about breastfeeding this go round and feel poor DS is missing mommy big time. I hope the relief of occasional supplementing helps the whole family's well being.

I am supplementing with Similac sensitive bc DS is fussy and a bit gassy. I already tried Enfamil newborn as advised by my ped., he took it ok, but was still fussy. I then tried Gerber gentle for supplementing. Yet again, this was ok but he was still fussy and gassy. Similac sensitive has been the best. I also had my first on this formula bc she had horrible gas, she would literally scream in pain after every feeding.

I am still able to feed LO breast milk most of the time. Sadly I just don't produce enough for LO. he eats every 2-3 hours, 4-5 oz, even at night. he's a big boy, so different from my first who was always and still on the smaller side.
DS is also horrible at latching, not only is he tongue tied but always falls asleep within minutes on the boob. I still try every morning to put him on the boob but he lasts about 3 minutes.
I'm going back to work in 2 weeks and plan on pumping every 4 hours even at work and my MIL who is watching DS can give him formula during the day. I plan on feeding him what I pump during the day to him in the evenings.
one thing I learned with my first is if you don't pump/bf as much as you were, your supply will start depleting quickly.

Are you trying to increase supply. Maybe every four hours isn't enough since he eats so much. I heard pumping ever 2-3 hours while at work is best for keeping supply up.

purplefan1 · June 2016

snowhite12 said:

HeartLikeMine3 said:

Thanks ladies, I guess I can the pedi and get a recommendation. She's pretty gassy so I would like something gentle. I don't want to regret this but I'm just very unhappy about breastfeeding this go round and feel poor DS is missing mommy big time. I hope the relief of occasional supplementing helps the whole family's well being.

I am supplementing with Similac sensitive bc DS is fussy and a bit gassy. I already tried Enfamil newborn as advised by my ped., he took it ok, but was still fussy. I then tried Gerber gentle for supplementing. Yet again, this was ok but he was still fussy and gassy. Similac sensitive has been the best. I also had my first on this formula bc she had horrible gas, she would literally scream in pain after every feeding.

I am still able to feed LO breast milk most of the time. Sadly I just don't produce enough for LO. he eats every 2-3 hours, 4-5 oz, even at night. he's a big boy, so different from my first who was always and still on the smaller side.
DS is also horrible at latching, not only is he tongue tied but always falls asleep within minutes on the boob. I still try every morning to put him on the boob but he lasts about 3 minutes.
I'm going back to work in 2 weeks and plan on pumping every 4 hours even at work and my MIL who is watching DS can give him formula during the day. I plan on feeding him what I pump during the day to him in the evenings.
one thing I learned with my first is if you don't pump/bf as much as you were, your supply will start depleting quickly.

Any chance a nipple shield would help him latch better?

ashkee05 · July 2016

First off just remember FED is best!

do what is best for your family. I supplement some formula due to low supply. Started with enfamil as its what my first had and had no issues. However my baby does not like it. Thankfully I signed up for enfamil and similac so I had samples of both. I found my dude likes similac sensitive. I also spend the extra couple dollars for no gmo. Also in my research I found wal mart to be the cheapest! Good luck

mom2beEbby · July 2016

@HeartLikeMine3 I am using similac. She has had less bowel movements so I added gas drops and she's been fine now.

arteduc8 · July 2016

For mamas giving a pumped bottle or 2 a day, how many ounces in a feeding does you LO take?

DH is giving DD a bottle at night and she's eating what seems like a lot to me. She's a month old today and took 4.5 ounces last night. She then wouldn't settle for an hour and 40 minutes and acted hungry so I took over. I fed her fur 4 minutes on 1 side and 6 minutes on the other then proceeded to throw up. It took me then another hour to get her to settle and finally fall asleep. So we can't figure out why she wants to eat so much and if she actually needs that much and if she doesn't why she still acting hungry and proceeding to spit it all up. And why she won't settle after GH gives her a bottle. Anyone have any thoughts? Thanks!

adiaz132003 · July 2016

arteduc8 said:

For mamas giving a pumped bottle or 2 a day, how many ounces in a feeding does you LO take?

DH is giving DD a bottle at night and she's eating what seems like a lot to me. She's a month old today and took 4.5 ounces last night. She then wouldn't settle for an hour and 40 minutes and acted hungry so I took over. I fed her fur 4 minutes on 1 side and 6 minutes on the other then proceeded to throw up. It took me then another hour to get her to settle and finally fall asleep. So we can't figure out why she wants to eat so much and if she actually needs that much and if she doesn't why she still acting hungry and proceeding to spit it all up. And why she won't settle after GH gives her a bottle. Anyone have any thoughts? Thanks!

I pump and give DS a bottle or two a day and he takes anywhere from 2-3.5 OZ per feeding. He will be 4 weeks on Thursday. We burp him every ounce and watch for cues that he is satisfied so we don't idk he spit up.

egirl1025 · July 2016

My thought is that your little one was probably still looking for the soothing of sucking on his mama.... The extra milk was just an added bonus. This happened to me once. I still have the congested, milk out the nose problem...

I prep the bottle for 3.5-4oz, but have to make sure he eats it very slowly. I am using Avent bottles with preemie nipples (0). I also try to burp halfway through. He only gets bottles on average once a day, but I am considering feeding him more bottles to combat my fast let down.

huskypuppy14 · July 2016

I do about half and half ( pumped milk and breast feeding) and my LO takes anywhere from 2.5-5 ounces at a time. Sometimes he will breastfeed and then take another 2 ounces of expresses milk.

My guy needs a pacifier. He has a strong need to suck at times and it seems that he is hungry when he really just wants to suck on something. We have also had the milk coming out the nose problem at times.

HeartLikeMine3 · July 2016

arteduc8 said:

For mamas giving a pumped bottle or 2 a day, how many ounces in a feeding does you LO take?

DH is giving DD a bottle at night and she's eating what seems like a lot to me. She's a month old today and took 4.5 ounces last night. She then wouldn't settle for an hour and 40 minutes and acted hungry so I took over. I fed her fur 4 minutes on 1 side and 6 minutes on the other then proceeded to throw up. It took me then another hour to get her to settle and finally fall asleep. So we can't figure out why she wants to eat so much and if she actually needs that much and if she doesn't why she still acting hungry and proceeding to spit it all up. And why she won't settle after GH gives her a bottle. Anyone have any thoughts? Thanks!

Word for word my LO. She is one month and no matter how much she drink out of. Bottle she isn't happy until she nurses from me. I don't have a supply issue I'm doing this for a freedom and happiness lol so far its not working. Also my LO screams and fight the bottle is there is even a tiny bit of formal in there but if it's breast milk she's will suck it down. She's already super spoiled boob baby.

mrsbubsie · July 2016

We supplement at night one or two bottles, it's hard to tell if she's hungry or comfort sucking, sometimes she drinks from the bottle and is hungry an hour later. I worry about over feeding her if we give another bottle. We increased an oz, now she gets one 3 oz bottle at night and that seems to keep her happy. She cluster nurses in the afternoon and evening too. She's two weeks. Supplementing is harder than it seems!

AOliveira11 · July 2016

So our DD had her first sleepover tuesdY into weds at grammys house. I dont have a supply of pumped milk yet since when i pump hubby has been helping with feedings while i recover from the c-section. So while at grammys house she got similac formula and did about 2-3pz every 4 hours or so. She was there from 7pm to 11am the next morning. When we got her home, our baby was gassy, fussy and generally not feeling well. She had so much diahrea and gas, and was pushing so hard to poop she was making herself projectile vomit. This has never happened with breast milk and i believe it was partially the heat yesterday making her uncomfortable. We ended up swaddling her and rocking her where she was passing gas that sounded like a grown man. She slept til about 4 am after falling asleep at midnight and had the grossest diaper ive ever seen. Has anyone else had this experience with similac formula? She has another check up tomorrow and im gonna talk to our doc about it, but im thinking it's better to avoid formula all together if thats how shes gonna physically react

AmberLiz99 · July 2016

AOliveira11 said:

So our DD had her first sleepover tuesdY into weds at grammys house. I dont have a supply of pumped milk yet since when i pump hubby has been helping with feedings while i recover from the c-section. So while at grammys house she got similac formula and did about 2-3pz every 4 hours or so. She was there from 7pm to 11am the next morning. When we got her home, our baby was gassy, fussy and generally not feeling well. She had so much diahrea and gas, and was pushing so hard to poop she was making herself projectile vomit. This has never happened with breast milk and i believe it was partially the heat yesterday making her uncomfortable. We ended up swaddling her and rocking her where she was passing gas that sounded like a grown man. She slept til about 4 am after falling asleep at midnight and had the grossest diaper ive ever seen. Has anyone else had this experience with similac formula? She has another check up tomorrow and im gonna talk to our doc about it, but im thinking it's better to avoid formula all together if thats how shes gonna physically react

I've used similac with all three kids with no problem. I used it along with breast milk with my second. Some babies need a sensitive formula, and some take a week to adjust to a switch. I'm sorry she wasn't feeling well!

HeartLikeMine3 · July 2016

I think that was just a complete shock to the system. They recommend gradually adding formula mixed with breastmilk. We noticed LO being uncomfortable and gassy with just one oz. made me decide against formula for now.

kitastrophe · July 2016

We just started supplementing at night(I nurse then she gets an ounce of formula for now)....I have an ok supply but the constant nursing was putting me into dangerous exhaustion where I felt like I was gonna pass out or even drop her so we decided this would be best. We started to do a supplement of formula during the day too only when needed, after I nursed so I can go shower and take care of myself. The plus side is she is sleeping more and my hubby is enjoying some bonding with our baby and this will give me time with our older kids.

snowhite12 · July 2016

I had a similar problem with my first when we attempted to put her on Similac advanced. I gave her 2oz when she was 2 weeks old and she screamed from the gas afterwards for over an hour. my husband had to run out in the middle of the night and buy gas drops. we slowly switched her from breast milk to Similac sensitive and she did fine. with this LO, I've had to supplement from the start and plan on supplementing for awhile. I put LO on Similac sensitive along with breast milk.

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