Mothers can we do this?

Question

well i want the benifits for myself and for my baby of breastfeeding but i want to bottle feed could i actually jus get a breast pump and bottle feed breast milk? if i ever needed formula for a day would it be safe to switch? do people actually do that?

Answer 1

Yes you can do it and really it works out better. Dad can use feeding time as bonding time with the baby to that way. You don't have the problem of switching them over from breast to the bottle. if it is offered both ways.

Many woman do this they pump and go to work and leave the sitter. reality is it is almost impossible to only use the breast.

Now you don't want to switch off and on between formula and breast milk, it may cause constipation. it would probably be best to pump what you need until you decide to switch the baby over to formula.

Talk to your pediatrician, find out what formulas are the closest to breast milk if it is really necessary to use formula for a period of time.

Answer 2

Yes, you can pump instead of breastfeeding, but that seems like an awful lot of work to go through on a regular basis, if you're going to be feeding baby, anyway. It's nice to have the expressed milk for dad/others to feed baby, though.

And, we switched back & forth from breast to bottle w/expressed milk to bottle w/formula all of the time. Babies had no problems taking any of them at all.

Answer 3

My son was born 2 months early, and the only way he could eat at first was through a feeding tube. I pumped and pumped and pumped!! I would bring my breast milk to the hospital and they would freeze it and then feed it to my little angel. Once he was a little older I tried giving him my breast but he would never take it, so the nurses set me up with little tiny bottles, and I continued bringing breast milk to the hospital until the day he came home. Once home he still wouldn't take the breast, so I pumped and fed him with a bottle, until he was 6 months old.

It is totally possible for you to do it! You will not dry out, and it will help your partner to bond with the new babe, as they will also be able to take part in the feeding process. If you continue to pump and freeze excess milk, you will have a large enough back up supply, so that if you miss a day of pumping, you will not have to resort to Formula.

:o)

Answer 4

If you breastfeed breastfeed meaning you don't pump the milk into a bottle the baby developes a closer bond with the mother. Plus the child gets confused if you use a bottle and your breast. I guess you can do that if you want but it's possible the baby will get confused and not take the breast if you bottlefeed it and then decide later to breastfeed.

Answer 5

Yes, you can bottlefeed breastmilk. And if you ever don't have enough, you can supplement with formula.

Baby receives the maximum benefits of breastfeeding from nursing directly at the breat and from exclusive breastfeeding. But any breastmilk your baby gets is a benefit to both of you and is healthier than formula.

If you are talking about exclusively pumping, that is possible, but it is difficult. You would need a really good hospital quality pump. It is time consuming since you have all the work of bottlefeeding PLUS the pumping time and pump parts to clean. Direct breastfeeding makes establishing a supply a bit easier than exclusive pumping. I strongly suggest that you nurse directly at the breast for at least the first couple of weeks to get your supply established. Especially since colostrum is so difficult to pump.

Check out:

http://www.kellymom.com

http://www.lalecheleague.org

Answer 6

If you feel that pumping your breast milk is that right choice for you and your baby, then there's nothing wrong with that. Chances are, your output will be greater than your baby's appetite at the beginning - that's when you bottle the surplus and freeze it, for days when you can't pump (although you want to avoid skipping pumping which can alter your production).

I did this for my preemie son until I went back to work.

* Read more about pumping/storing here:

http://familydoctor.org/828.xml
http://www.medela.com/NEWFILES/faq/coll_store.html
http://www.askdrsears.com/html/2/T026900.asp
http://pediatrics.about.com/od/breastfeedingtips/a/04_pumping.htm

Answer 7

Yeah some people only pump at first if they have preemies in the hospital. You should breast feed at first though. Its a mental thing, alot of instincts are involved. Your body might have a hard time letting down to a plastic pump.

Answer 8

Yes you can freeze breast milk up to a year.

Because my kids were soclose. I had to pump my breast for one to drink out of his new cup while the new born was taking over his position.

It also always for someone to help out if your late and the babys crying.. Should keep extra's just in case in the freezer.

Answer 9

I am pretty sure that you can do both of those things and it won't hurt your baby.

It is nice to hear that you are actually able and willing to breastfeed. So many woman out there choose not to when they are able to.
I wasn't able to breastfeed my daughter when she was born. I never developed any milk while I was pregnant. I was heartbroken, but fed her formula and held her every time I fed her. She is very healthy and she has never been sick or had an ear infection. She is 5 now and a healthy happy child.
I wish you the best of luck with your baby.

Answer 10

yes, you can pump and bottle feed. if necessary, you can give the baby formula. it's not going to hurt. i did that with my daughter. i actually breastfed her at first so it took a little while for her to get used to the bottle, but she did fine. it's a pain in the butt to pump though. it takes up a lot of time, but it's worth it.