Nursing newborn

[Glizmo]

Just had my breastfeeding prep class this past Saturday and "learned" a bunch (a lot I already knew from books and these boards, but it was nice to hear it a different way again).

Anyway, I emailed my MIL what we learned and I said something about no bottles for first 4 weeks and she replied "Using a bottle is not a bad thing. It doesn't confuse the baby or make it so she won't want to nurse or anything else bad." My understanding is that 1)some babies do get nipple confusion, 2)it's easier for baby to eat from a bottle since they don't have to work as hard, so they may end up preferring that to nursing, 3)not to mention potential problems with building milk supply if baby's not nursing.

Granted, each baby is completely different and some babies will have no trouble at all right from the start. I just don't want her thinking I'm crazy for wanting to exclusively breastfeed for at least the first 4 weeks if at all possible.

I guess what I'm looking for is some insight from other mommas out there who have had problems with bottles+breastfeeding at the start and why you would recommend avoiding that combination. And possibly some simple resources that make that point. (again, understanding that some people will have no trouble at all)

Also, does anyone have any experience with cup feeding newborns? Is it difficult/messy/time consuming/not worth it compared to using a bottle?

[AngelaS]

With my first, we cup fed her for the first couple of days until my milk came in. We did the same w/the second. They would both nurse and then I'd give them about an ounce by cup. It was a hassle.

With the third one, I nursed her and then asked for a cup and they brought me a bottle in the hospital. They claimed as long as she was latching well and sucking okay, one bottle wouldn't hurt. They were right. I only supplemented my girls at bedtime w/about an ounce for probably 2 nights each and it didn't affect their nursing at all. :)

I gave each of them their first bottle at about one month of age, just so they could have one and I could occasionally go out w/out them. :)

[elektra]

I totally waited the 4 weeks (that I think I read in the Baby 411 book) that was the optimal time to introduce a bottle, so as not to disrupt breastfeeding.
My BIL and SIL had to give my neice a bottle from day one because she was in the NICU and SIL could only give her expressed BM. My niece was still able to breastfeed, luckily. So yes, your MIL is right that it can be just fine to have a bottle from the beginning for some.
Was I going to chance it though, even though I knew DN was fine? Nope! Everything I heard/ read said to wait on the bottle, so that's what I did. Unless I had been advised to supplement with formula by my ped, I felt it was best to just stick with straight breastfeeding.
A girlfriend of mine who had severe post partum depression had to have her DH feed their baby with a bottle in the beginning. She tried to breastfeed and pump but it never worked out for her. I don't know if the bottle was the exact cause but it's one case I know of first hand where the bottle was introduced right away and BF was not successful.

[alexsmommy]

DS1 was a preemie in the NICU for 3 weeks. In order to get him home faster, I agreed to bottle feeding. He came home very nipple confused and it took five weeks of blood, sweat and tears (literally) to get him to latch. This is an extreme situation and I have no doubt that plenty of full term newborns can have the occasional bottle from day one and still latch. I do know that there are babies who won't do this and will prefer the bottle, so with DS2 I refused to chance it and spoon/cup fed him the first few days. It turned out he was tongue tied so there was more drama which I won't go into, but I do feel things would have been made worse had I used the bottle. Go with your gut. If things are going well and for some reason you feel you need a bottle, talk to a good LC and see how it goes. Definitely reseach what bottles are most like bf, even if you just use one or two of that brand for the first weeks. Best of luck.

[SnuggleBuggles]

I waited 7 weeks before trying a bottle with #2 and about 4 weeks with #1. With #1 we did a bit of cup feeding, finger feeding and using the medicine dropper with no troubles. Bottle use was less than 1 per week.

I figure since you never know if your dc will be one that has trouble with nipple confusion it makes sense to wait, just in case.

Beth

[GeekLady]

My goddaughter was born after such a long and nasty labor that she spent time in the nursery so her mom could get a little rest. Lots of back labor, I understand, and twelve hours before her mom gave in and had an epidural.

Anyhow, the nurses gave her formula in a bottle, and it ended up taking them a couple of weeks to start nursing successfully. Who can say if they would have always needed that time, or if nursing would have been easier if she hadn't had a bottle in the nursery? You can't try it both ways.

How you want to go about breastfeeding your new baby should be enough for your MIL. If it isn't, let her know that breastfeeding is a two way relationship... and you feel that it's important to exclusively breastfeed for those first four weeks, to establish a good one. You have to learn too, after all.

[GeekLady]

blasted double post

[WatchingThemGrow]

Despite my requests for DD not to be given a bottle or pacifier, one of the newborn nurses took her a few hours after birth to bathe her, etc. and ended up not getting her back to me to nurse (why not???). Her blood sugar was low and they gave her a tiny bottle. We spent the next 6 months retraining her to suck properly, trying to increase my milk supply because of the sucking issue, constant weigh-ins, weekly suck-training appointments at the feeding specialist, pumping, supplementing, etc. It was pretty traumatic for me since I wanted to nurse her normally. I thought with this last baby, we could be more vigilant about it. Unfortunately, he had a tight frenulum and couldn't nurse well, so here we are again with almost all of the same stuff - just a frenulectomy instead of the feeding specialist. Most people don't have as much trouble, but I was determined to make it work.

I applaud you for conducting your own research beforehand! You're going to be a great mama!

As for the "give the baby a bottle" comment, I'd go with what you've read and do it when you feel comfortable. Pumping takes a little getting used to at first, but you could invite her to give the baby a bottle after DH gets to do it some. Some of my friends have waited too late and had trouble on that end. Good luck with it!

[Wife_and_mommy]

I did nothing but bf for the first 4-6 weeks because I didn't want the possibility of confusion--plain and simple. BF was that important to me. I had planned on using a cup but didn't need to.

I wouldn't discuss it any further.

[dsb22]

My suggestion is to play it by ear and see how your baby does with nursing. If he/she likes it and things are going well, I would not be afraid to introduce a bottle before four weeks. Babies get more than nourishment from nursing, so just b/c a bottle is easier doesn't mean that's what they'll prefer. Also I say this as someone who ended up with the opposite problem and it was very stressful as well. My dd was in the NICU for about 11 days after birth. We had latch problems, so at first she got pumped breastmilk. (I was lucky in that I had my sister to help me pump every 3 hrs around the clock, with a hospital grade pump, to get my supply established.) But, even though she sucked down bottles and our nursing sessions were very frustrating for both of us, dd always wanted to nurse. After a few weeks, we saw a lactation consultant and got a boppy-type pillow, which resolved our latch issues...And then I made the mistake of slacking off on the bottles. A few days and dd decided she had had enough of them. I spent the next 9 months trying all manner of bottles and nipples to entice dd to take a bottle at daycare. And based on posts I saw here and on kellymom.com (another great resource if you haven't already found it), dd had many fellow babies who shared her opinion :-) So I just want to give you a heads up about that potential issue. It is really nice to be able to leave your little one with family members, babysitter or daycare and know that they will be able to feed him/her.

[lisams]

I waited until about 6 weeks to introduce the bottle and both rejected it at first (DD never took it, DS eventually did). So, I'd say don't wait too long if you plan on giving an occasional bottle.

If I were to do it again, once baby has a really good latch and is nursing well (for us that would have been around 3 weeks I think) I would introduce a bottle every few days. Enough to remind them of how it works, but not enough to get them hooked.

[flygirl]

I'm sure each baby is different, but this is my experience.

My daughter had a horrible latch. By day 4, my nipples were bleeding and breastfeeding was painful. I went to the lactation consultant and the pediatrician's office and she said I needed to take a 1 or 2 day break from breastfeeding to let myself heal. So I started pumping and fed my daughter expressed breastmilk from a bottle. She didn't have a problem going back to the breast at all, though we were very careful with her positioning during bottle feeding. The lactation consultant recommended having her propped up in our lap with the bottle at about a 45 degree angle. We were careful to make sure she latched on to the bottle nipple properly with her mouth open wide and her lips pressed outwards on the nipple.

Since I was pumping regularly when we bottlefed, my milk supply was unaffected.

Hope that helps...and good luck!!

[pb&j]

DS got a daily bottle starting at 2.5 wks. I was bound and determined not to give him one until 5 wks, but was dying from lack of sleep. He did fine, and never had any issues going back and forth, and we BF'ed till he was 1.

[jhrabosk]

More kudos for gathering all of your info in advance. It's so important to be armed with it, but at the same time make sure you remember that you're NOT a failure if it doesn't work out the way you planned!

I agree with the others that the baby's latch and the establishment of a good nursing relationship and milk supply is more important than a certain number of weeks. My DD had a good latch, but I had persistent supply issues (had reduction surgery 10+ years ago), so we waited as long as possible to introduce a bottle. We did a cup (so messy) and a supplemental nurser (kind of a hassle, but easier than the cup). I think after the first couple of weeks, I allowed an occasional bottle so that we could get out of the house (the SNS was too much to do in public), but otherwise didn't do regular bottles until DD was requiring more formula than the SNS could hold.

Lots of luck to you!