Bottle and breastfeeding??

Question

I'm breastfeeding my 2 and half mo old baby and I'm planning to do so. We are invited to a party this saturday, I have babysitter, but - baby won't take the bottle! I have enough milk stored and I'm trying to get herv used to a bottle, but somehow it's not working out. It seems she doesn't know how to suck on the bottle - she can't latch on it. I tried different nipples too. She would go for hours screaming from hunger rather than take the bottle. What can I do??? Are there some special nipples resembling breast ('cause it seems the nipple is the problem - she cant put her mouth in proper position and keeps trying to suck wide open and kind of bites on it like it's breast...)?? Somebody had this problem? And what did you do? Please don't tell me to just stay home - if it's not now, eventually I will wanna get out for a day so I really need to figure this out.

P.S. She knew how to drink from bottle when she was newborn...

Answer 1

I just finished going through this exact problem. My daughter would not take to the bottle either. I would try the avent nipple or the playtex natural latch nipple. My daughter took to the playtex. Are you the one trying to feed her the bottle? If so it might be that she is associating you with the breast and knows it is there so refuses the bottle. I was told to let my husband feed her the bottle and to not be in the room and sometimes to even leave the house altogether so that she doesn't sense or even smell you.
be persistent on giving her the bottle but don't fight with her, if she gets too upset put the bottle down and console her. try again when she is calm. Also try to give her the bottle at the same time every day so she knows that at that feeding it is bottle time. It worked for me, i wish you the best of luck and a whole lot of Patience.

Answer 2

My daughter was exactly the same way at that age, I tried everything from different bottles to expressed milk and formula, nothing worked. Now she is 5 months and still is exclusively breastfed. Do not let anyone tell you she will eat when she gets hungry, I let my daughter stay with my mom for 5 hours because the doc told me if I wasn't around she would take the bottle no problem when she was hungry. WRONG! She cried the whole time, and I'll never do that again. Is it possible you can take the baby with, and nurse her in a different room, or the car? Or could you leave after two hours feed her, then go back? These are all options I have done to keep my little one from going hungry. Also. I find I can get out with friends after she goes to sleep and doesn't need to eat for 6 or 7 hours. (It takes 4 hours for nicotine from second hand smoke to get out of breast milk) and then I can even have a few drinks. Another thing to try is give her a bottle first thing in the morning when she is most hungry, another thing my doc had suggested but never worked for me. Certainly wouldn't hurt to give it a shot though. If it makes you feel any better my daughters pediatrician is convicned the babies who hold out for the breast turn out to be smart and in the top of their class.

Answer 3

I use Playtex bottles with the Natural Latch nipple. Try having someone else feed her the bottle instead of you. That worked for us, but my son wasn't as adament as your baby. You need to be out of the room so she doesn't think she can just get you to take the boob out. I hope that helps. I know you don't want people to say to stay home, but I think you might be trying to introduce a bottle a little too late for this weekend.

Answer 4

Avent bottles tend to work well.

Someone other than mom should offer the bottle. Can the babysitter come give it a trial go one afternoon? Or Dad or Grandma?

You can also try cup feeding, a spoon or a dropper or an oral syringe.

Can you take her with you to the party? How long do you plan to be gone? Could you feed her right before leaving and then be back in about 2-3 hours?

Answer 5

My baby is the same way. She only likes her food from the tap =) I tried 3 different nipples and she gagged on all of them. I heard from one woman that she gave breast milk in a shot glass. It worked for my daughter, but it was a little messy.

Answer 6

I went through a similar situation. It sounds like she is experiencing nipple confusion. Unfortunately, I had to purchase and try several different nipples until my daughter "chose" one.
Also have you tried both silicone and natural rubber nipples in all sizes and "colors", meaning the brown rubber color and the clear ones?
Good luck and I hope you can go and enjoy the party.

Answer 7

Try AVENT bottles. The nipples are "most like" breast. I used and still use AVENT not only for colic but for the easy transition to and from breast

Answer 8

for my son we used the parents choice nipples and they are the only ones he would take. they are only one dollar a bottle and worth a try

Answer 9

I used the AVENT bottles and nipples - they worked really well and my son had no problem with them.