Hospital pressuring you to supplement with formula?

Question

When my son was born, he was full term, no problems, 8 lbs 14 oz, the hospital instructed me to give him a bottle after nursing until my milk came in because he was a big boy. Now that I look back I am kind of mad that I was so pressured to give him formula. I think that I wouldnt have been so engorged that first week if i hadn't and also i would have felt much prouder knowing that I did it myself. My son is almost 6 months old and is exclusivly breastfed with no problems, and is very healthy, but i am a little mad at the hospital for pressuring me at a time when i was vulnerable because it was my first child and i didnt know how things should work. Anyone else feel like this?

Do you think that they really honestly think that the baby needs it or is it that they get that vacation to the bahamas paid for by the formula company?

Answer 1

Yes, I had 2 C-sections and the first time I was pretty out of it on pain meds all night so they supplemented my son with water and formula. By the time I was able to nurse him the next am. he was already a bottle baby. We did give it a try for about 10 days, but he had no clue and I ended up with an abcessed breast, on antibiotics, had to stop nursing, and we just never went back to it after that. He was 10 lbs. 5oz. at birth and had to have oxygen that night, but I still wanted to try nursing him and I was disappointed not to be able to. But he did sleep through the night the first night he was completely weaned.

The second time around, I was awake for the birth and was able to nurse my son a few hours later. I insisted that they not supplement him and bring him to me when he was hungry, during the night or whenever. There was a rule that they had to keep him in the nursery because I had had surgery, but because I stuck to my guns, we had a better outcome. I had one nurse who was considerably younger than me and was insistent on "letting me get my sleep" but I pretty much told her off and she did bring him to me during the night.

So I guess what you did was normal for the first time and though I know how you feel, when it comes right down to it, you have a healthy baby and a healthy mom so that's what counts, right? If you have another baby, you'll know better what to do and you'll be more confident about sticking to what you want. Best wishes and congratulations!

Answer 2

Why are you mad at the hospital? They suggested you give formula to make sure your baby would get fed. You are 6 months out and are nursing with no problems, so what is the problem?

I nursed my twins and for the first week I had no milk. I didn't even see any clear liquid that was supposed to be the colustrum. There was nothing there. My babies lost too much weight and were small to start with. I wish someone had brought in the formula and maybe my babies would not have suffered for it. And yes, they do need to eat that first week. Can you go without food for a whole week?

It does not pay to be extreme on one side or the other. Every case is different, and in the end what matters is that your baby got something to eat. Formula isn't poison and in fact my babies have thrived on it. I couldn't say the same about breastmilk.

Answer 3

My girl born a year ago was 9 lb 2 oz and they suggested letting them feed formula because she was a big girl and hungry and my milk didn't really come in til the day I left the hospital. I did feel pressured somewhat at the time, but I don't resent it because I was able to breastfeed fine after I got home (with some of the usual beginner problems!). I feel like it wasn't ideal because I had heard a midwife say that babies didn't need alot the first few days and it made sense because it takes a few days for milk to come in. On the other hand, I did what I thought was best at the time. If she really was hungry, I didn't want to deprive her! And at one point in the hospital, it was a choice of letting her suck on one of my bleeding nipples or take formula so you better believe I said please give her the formula!

It's great if the kid never has to taste a drop of formula, but it's not going to hurt anything. Even just a few months of breastfeeding has great benefits for the baby!

Answer 4

You have learned a valuable lesson, that medical professionals are not always correct.

The majority of OB nurses have very little training as lactation consultants. It is not uncommon anymore for hospitals to use surgical nurses rotating out of the OB that will be advising mothers on how to breastfeed. I was watching The Baby story on TLC and caught a new mommy being shown a very difficult position for the mom and child to bf in. The mom goes on in the episode to have to pump because baby has difficulty latching on, they blame mom for lack of milk and the whole thing could have been resolved quickly had they brought in a LC to show her that the football hold wasnt best choice. I felt so sorry for the mom.

In my parenting I have had a Doctor tell me my child could not get C-pox twice and it happened. I have also had ped dentist tell me a discoloration on my childs baby tooth was just that and it was a cavity. Loss of confidence after things like that will teach you the lesson that all the instructions your doctor and the nursing staff give you are not always 100 percent correct. Your baby would not have had failure to thrive if you did not supplement. That is the most common suggestion hospitals make for low birth weight kids & bigger babies and it really hurts new breastfeeding mothers and causes more frustrations.

The whole 'my milk wasnt in' thing is so sad, before you experience that let down and become engorged the first time you ARE making the best thing for your baby- you produce colostrum and it is vip for baby. It is rich in nutrients and exactly what your child needs, to the eye it looks watery BUT it is NOT.

Answer 5

Colostrum is the milk secreted for the first few days after birth it is characterized by high protein and antibody content. If you gave him the bottle after nursing he received the benefit of the colostrum.
When your milk comes in you will fell engorged until your body
adjusts to the amount that the baby takes. While the hospital should have phrased it better ie: if he's still hungry after nursing
it's alright to give him some formula. They were wrong to use his size as a excuse.

Answer 6

It only takes a day or so for your milk to come in, however, the baby will still receive nourishment from the clear liquid coming out - therefore, the hospital had no right telling you to use formula. I truly wish the hospitals would stop taking advantage of people, when a person is so vulnerable in their care. I'm really glad you ditched the formula - breast milk is so much better for a baby. It's also better for you because you get your shape back faster. I did this with all 3 of my children and I wouldn't trade if for anything in the world. My youngest nursed until he was 10 months old. The only reason why I stopped him was because my daughter had contracted a virus, was in the hospital and I worried so much about her that my milk stopped. My youngest went from me to the cup and never saw a bottle - now how great is that......................

Answer 7

Has nothing to do with the calories. Has to do some with quantity. If your child does not require billi lights or is not in danger of requiring them, I see no reason to supplement. If s/he does require medical intervention, several studies have shown that alternating feedings (breastmilk one feeding, formula the next) worked AS WELL as formula alone. I would recommend that over the cost and time of hospitalization. You also might try pumping from the other breast and feeding the baby that as well in order to increase volume. Use a tiny dixie cup if you don't have an infant cup to avoid nipple confusion. Health professionals still freak over mild jaundice even though it is perfectly normal in a newborn. It is abnormal levels of jaundice that are a concern because brain damage is not something you want to play with.

Answer 8

This is a really big issue. After reading many of your comments and agreeing with a lot of them, I have to appologize to the medical field-didn't think that I would say this. Think of it like this..It was your first child. Most of the people in labor and delivery have plenty of experience. Like most humans sometimes they make mistakes. Every child and mother is unique with their own recepie of special needs.
When I had my child--only child--I knew that I wanted to breastfeed. She came out tiny and a bit jaundice. I had a C-section. Prior to my going "under", I had repeatedly told the nurses and my doctor that under no circumstances will the baby be given a bottle. It took three hours to come out of it before I fed her. The nurses almost gave her a formula. I'm glad that they didn't. Although if complications were to have arise, I'm sure the medical staff would have known what to do.
Going into labor is an overwhelming experience. Your anticipation and people telling you last minute advice could drive you crazy. Overall, nurses, midwives, doctors, know what they are doing. Everything is in the child's best interest.

Answer 9

I did to a point. My son was a big boy too at 9 lbs 11 oz, but he also had some low blood sugar issues when he was born so I had to give a supplemental bottle the first 24 hours he was born. The hospital did pressure it though, but it was because of his low blood sugar. I can't say I regret it because he turned out to be allergic to lactose so we ended up having to formula feed with special formula. It was a bummer, but I didn't beat myself up over not being able to breastfeed.

Answer 10

You should be mad. A lot of current research shows how more beneficial is breastfeeding babies and how problematic (for the rest of their life) can be feeding babies with a formula.

My wife has been through a similar experience and ignored what the hospital advised her. Later on she had some other procedures done at the hospital and the advice she received was so bad that she wanted to file a lawsuit.

Sometimes it is so shocking what they will tell you to do. I don't even know how and why they should be called "medical professionals". :-)