Back to work soon, baby won't take a bottle

[u2ecila]

Hi,
I have been trying to teach my lo how to use a bottle for the past two weeks. She is ebf, and I pump milk for the bottles.

My husband and I have tried 5 different types, and she just doesn't suck on it correctly. She chews on the bottle and then drools out the milk. She also has problems with pacifiers. I have less than two weeks til I go back to work.

Please let me know if you have tip or if you can recommend any specific bottle types.

Thanks!

[BDKmom]

Are you giving the bottle, or your DH? Sometimes they won't take the bottle if you are nearby.

[u2ecila]

Both of us have tried, and I stay out of site when my husband tries.

[maybeebaby08]

Does she have a tight/thick upper frenulum? My DD2 wouldn't take bottle/paci but once we had hers snipped she would take a bottle. She was fine breastfeeding and got plenty of milk so it took awhile to figure it out (she did have a weird latch though.) I hope you can figure out a solution, it's hard when they won't take a bottle.

[u2ecila]

Thanks - we have a dr appointment next week, so I will look into that!

[abh5e8]

how old is the baby? is she gaining weight well? how long are your work days? mine wont' take a bottle, but dh brings her by over lunch break most days and I just nurse her. I still pump and he offers every day, but she usually refuses. then she nurses like crazy when i'm home. she is huge, growing well, tons of wet/dirty diapers so i'm not worried about it. (but she was 6 months when i went back to work).

fwiw, my boys did the same thing and ds2 was only 4 weeks old when i went back. they "reverse cycled" so they ate all night and mostly held out during the day. it worked for us. :) and they did finally take a bottle...dh said once they were hungry enough they would take it. i'm sure your little one will learn!

do you have a nanny or daycare? how far from work are you?

[sariana]

How old is she? My DD never would take a bottle. When she was a few months old, we just gave her BM in a sippy cup, the kind with no valve, just a lid with a spout hole. That was only for rare occasions with a sitter, but I imagine it would have worked as a regular feeding method if she got used to it.

What does your doctor say?

[u2ecila]

Thank you both for your replies! Your stories have helped relieve some of my stress. :)

My dh will be watching our lo; she will be 10 weeks old when I go back. I can usually work from home 2 days a week, and I will probably do several half days for the first couple of weeks. I am very thankful my job is very flexible. It's an 8 hour day, but the commute time can add another 2 hours.

My office is 25 min - 1 hr away each way, so we might be able to meet up for a lunch feeding some days - that's a great suggestion. I will also look at sippy cups. We might be able meet up short term until she can do the sippy cup or bottles. Oh, and my little girl is eating and growing quite well now. She is 100th percentile in height and weight!

Thanks all!

[abh5e8]

yay! that sounds like a great plan. go for the sippy cups, my dd will take them some now and would never take any milk from a bottle.