Only bottlefeeding with breast milk?

Question

I am due to have a baby in october and plan to pump my milk for the baby only, I don't want to nurse him but I want him to get my milk. I may supplement occasionally but I want him to get mostly my milk. Anyone done this, advice?

Answer 1

If you want him to have breastmilk, you're better off nursing him. I don't know why you would want to only pump. It's far more time consuming and painful, and you don't get nearly as much out of pumping as hi will from nursing. If you want him to have breastmilk in a bottle for when you're out in public, I'd say give nursing a try, keep it at home, and pump and keep a good supply inthe freezer for other times. I think you will be very unhappy only pumping, but I applaud your very wise decision to feed your baby breastmilk.
Good luck!

Answer 2

My daughter was a preemie, and just couldn't get the hang of breastfeeding (even the lactation consultant eventually just threw up her hands and said she had no idea what the problem was!). So we became a pumping duo.

It made me crazy, but I stuck with it for three and half months before I started "sneaking in" formula. Getting up three times a night to spend an hour pumping each time really sucked. I was exhausted! (Hubby, bless his heart, wasn't a whole lot of help.) The only thing that kept me going was knowing that I was giving my little girl the best thing I could give her. :)

I, too, recommend a Medela product, or renting a hospital grade pump. You'll get the best results.

I also found that freezing breast milk worked well for times when my daughter was being watched by someone else, or for travel (ever tried pumping in a car, or airport bathroom? Trust me -- not fun!).

I think you've found a great compromise between how you want to do things and the health of your baby. Just remember to get in lots of cuddles that would otherwise occur during breastfeeding! If this is truly what you want to do, you won't regret it. Good luck!

Answer 3

I had to do that at first with my 33w preemie. Its called "exclusive pumping" so if you do searches on that you may find out more. What you will definitely want to do is get a good electric pump and multiple sets of attachments, as you will be sterilizing them often.

I wouldnt rule out nursing at first. I dont know your reasons, but after delivery you will have the nurses in the hospital to help you (well with both, pumping or nursing). But if you would happen to change your mind after you leave the hospital it will be harder to get that help. Secondly, I nursed right away with my second. While both were not the most comfortable - just took some getting used to. Nursing wasnt so bad. Plus Im kind of lazy/easy going, so nursing just was easier for me. Along with all the other benefits it gave.

If you're pumping because of a work schedule, your company might have something called a "lactation program" which can get you a great deal on a new pump.

Answer 4

I had to with my first, he refused the breast because he just couldn't latch on with his horrible jaundice. I pumped for him for 3 months. Pump every 1-2 hrs because if you were nursing you would be doing it that often. You have to do it more in the beginning to work up a supply. Get a really good pump like a medela for about $300 (you may find one a little cheaper) or ask about renting one from the hospital. The better the pump the more milk you will get and the more often you pump and longer the more milk supply you will get.

Answer 5

Good luck, and well done on wanting your baby to have your milk, not formula. You didn't really say why you don't want to breast feed though, so I'm not sure what the reason. It can be done, and good on you, but pumping is much more time consuming than feeding. When my baby was 4 months old, it took me forty minutes to pump out a feed for her that she would latch on and take in less than ten. It also gave me sore nipples. Make sure you have a good quality pump.

Answer 6

It may seem very odd to you now, but you might want to give breastfeeding a try. Breastfeeding may seem weird to you now, but it is actually a very sweet time to spend with your baby. It takes about 6 weeks for your breasts to be in full milk production and it's a lot harder to get things going with just a pump. Also, think about the time commitment of pumping, cleaning bottles, cleaning the pump, storing, warming, and feeding as opposed to just feeding.

It's great that you are getting things ready for your new baby baby so early and obviously want nothing but the best for him or her. Best of luck.

Answer 7

If you want or if you can try breastfeeding for the first 6 weeks. It will really help you get a better supply and then you can pump longer. It can be tough to get enough to pump if you havent established a supply. And who knows after 6 weeks you might like breastfeeding. I HATED breastfeeding for about 5 1/2 weeks then it got so easy now Im glad i stuck with it.

Answer 8

Buy a good quality dual electric pump. It will cut your pump time in half if you get a dual one. I pumped exclusively-- no breast feeding-- becuase I gave up after 4 days of breast feeding and her crying all the time because she had trouble. I know i should have stuck with it longer, but pumping was just SO much simpler!!

Pump frequently, and maybe even get an inexpensive battery or manual pump for if you go places for an extended period of time-- you dont want to constnatly go long periods without pumping.

Answer 9

honestly i can say this is HARD!!!!! and frustrating. it is like feeding them twice.
i did this with my twins because they did not know how to nurse due to time in the NICU and i had to basically pump for an hour then turn around and feed for an hour, i really wish i could have nursed because i ended up not having enough milk due to a pump not really helping you produce as much as the baby actually nursing.

but if you want to do it... get a hospital grade pump (rent one) or buy a medela. and lots of accesories so you don't run out.

Answer 10

Many of the moms at the Tripletconnection.org do this for months. SO, yes, you can do this, but you need a good quality pump. Hospital pumps tend to work best, so you might want to enquire from a lactation consultant about rentals. They used to be about $50 a month plus tubes/shield.