My baby is two months old and has been EBF. He has never taken a bottle, but we haven’t really tried to give him one.

I do not want to breast feed much longer. I think I might switch him to formula around 3 months. However, I’m scared he won’t take a bottle. I would love any advice on this topic.

Also, I would like to mention that I refuse to pump. I had to pump with my first and I hated every second of it.

Helpful advice is appreciated!

I have seen so many people say they love certain bags and then others say they hate those same bags…is there any bag out there that is consistently decent for most people???

I have a severe tooth infection (the left side of my face is quite swollen), and will eventually need an extraction. I will need to treat the infection first to get the swelling down, which will require antibiotics. I've read different things online about the effects of antibiotics while breastfeeding.. and I'm heartbroken.

I wasn't able to EBF my first born, and that was a huge disappointment for me. Now, with my second, I've been able to EBF and she has been for 6 weeks now! Will I actually have to give her formula until I'm finished with antibiotics?? What if she doesn't handle formula well!?

Will I need to pump and dump so I don't get mastitis during the time I'm taking antibiotics?

Ugh I'm just feeling so entirely guilty 😔

I need some advice/encouragement.

My 9 week old was recently diagnosed with a cows milk protein intolerance. His pediatrician has me eliminating dairy from my diet, and I will need to also eliminate soy if he doesn’t improve in two weeks. I’m currently on day two of the dairy elimination. LO’s symptoms are extreme fussiness after feeds and blood/mucus in his stool.

Prior to this, I’ve also worked with lactation several times due to latching issues, baby choking on my letdown and multiple clogs. I’ve started sunflower lecithin and baby seems to be less bothered by my letdown, but he still pops off the breast screaming when the milk really starts flowing - however, this only happens in the evenings. He is also spending a really long time on the breast or wanting to eat for 5 minutes every hour, but he appears to be transferring adequately each time I’ve done a weighted feed with lactation.

On top of all of this, the stash I built up is useless to me right now. I go back to work in two weeks, and I haven’t had an hour of uninterrupted alone time to do something for myself since baby was born. I have no milk to leave with my boy if I wanted to do something like go get my eyebrows done before returning to the office and any dairy free stash I build up will go towards my first day back at work. Lactation is hesitant about me pumping too much outside of baby’s feedings since I’m already making more milk than is needed.

I am so close to throwing in the towel and switching to Simlac Alimentum, but I feel like I’ve invested so much time, energy and money into making breastfeeding work. I also love the convenience of nursing when things are going well.

I’m just so burnt out from my baby screaming when he’s placed in cradle position because his belly hurts. I’m desperate for some time to take care of myself, and I also want to enjoy these last two weeks of my leave with my baby.

I have a 7 month old. Breastfeeding has been extremely challenging the entire time, but I've been persistent and managed to keep going. I combo feed; she gets about 70% breastfeeding and 30% formula. Well this morning I woke up and I just have zero desire to breastfeed her at all. She will be 8 months next week and I had the goal of 1 year. But today I am so done, the thought of breastfeeding her makes me want to cry, and I want to just go full formula. I don't feel bonded to my baby doing it. I know some have that experience but I've never felt that way. Frankly, I hate it. But it would be much better for our budget for me to keep breastfeeding. Formula is EXPENSIVE and to this point we haven't had to buy more than 2-3 cans per month which runs us $80-120. If we went full formula it will be an extra $120/month at minimum, and we could use that money elsewhere. My husband says not to be a martyr about it, but I want so badly to have the pride of doing it for a full year. So conflicted right now. I guess I could switch to pumping. I'm a SAHM. Maybe even just pump for a few days to give myself a break. I don't know. I did get my period back this month so maybe it's a hormonal thing that I feel like this today.

Hi! I wanted to add a picture of my LO breastfeeding, but it seems pictures are not allowed here. Anyways, we have had issues with breastfeeding since day one. Baby wasn’t latching, then he started losing weight, and the solution seemed to be releasing his tongue tie which was done when he was 3 weeks old. Since then he has been gaining weight perfectly, so that’s great news. However, my nipples are still sore and after breastfeeding, they turn white in specific parts and go hard and tender. I thought these are vasospams, however, they don’t hurt the way it’s described online. Breastfeeding doesn’t really hurt for me, but afterwards the nipples are tender, sore, bright pink and sensitive to touch. I am doing the flipple technique with the LO and by what I can see, his latch seems fine. We had a LC at the beginning and she also never said anything about the latch, only his tongue tie. He is 2 months old now (10 weeks) and I believe since loosening his tongue tie, any issues he has should have disappeared, no? Does anyone have an advice of what this is and what I can do about it? Thanks a lot!

**Rant & question

My little man is 19 months old and is a horrible sleeper. Like, wakes up every 1-3 hours all night long and won't go back to sleep without nursing. I've wanted to night wean him for a long time but have had zero partner support.

I actually believe my husband is the reason for the poor sleep. When kiddo was little, DH put him in the bed with us despite the fact that I did not want him in our bed. He would also get mad at me if I attempted to get LO back to sleep any other way than nursing. So now, LO has a HUGE feed-to-sleep association. And guess who sleeps comfortably through the night while I haven't slept more than 3 hours in a year and a half? 🙄

We recently found out that kiddo has cavities despite me doing all the things to prevent them. Dentist says it's because of the night feedings. I'm not fully convinced that's the entire issue, kiddo has poor teeth genetics as well, but I think night weaning might be in our best interest at this point.

The PROBLEM is...well my husband 😒. I never had the support to night wean because he'd get mad and tell me "it's all or nothing"...like it's any of his damn business. But I think he knew that I didn't want to fully wean and he was trying to pressure me so I wouldn't interpret his sleep.

His mother(nursed one of her kids) is also telling us that there's no such thing as night weaning. They are both convinced that if he wears at night, he'd stop nursing all together. I really want to start getting a little sleep but I also really don't want to stop nursing completely. Has anyone else night weaned only? Did kiddo stop wanting to nursing in the day because of it?

Hi there,

I am a first time mom and have struggled a lot with breastfeeding. We have weight issues so we had to introduce a bottle early and still top up with breast milk I pump throughout the day. Baby takes bottle and boob, however I am trying to transition to only boob. In the middle of the night I would prefer to give him the boob but I am finding he will only eat for 3-5 minutes then fall asleep. I have been trying all the tricks, skin to skin, tickle the feet, cold hands, putting back down in bassinet. When I put him in the bassinet I find he will sleep another 5-20 minutes and be crying again to eat which is leaving me with no sleep at all. I find when I give in and give him a bottle he drinks it all (paced bottle feeding) and he will sleep a solid 1-3 hours.

Is there anything else I can do to help him get a full feed on my boob at night? He can get a full feed in the day without this much difficulty.

I stopped pumping for my baby almost 6 months ago. I can still squeeze out a few drops of milk if I try, but I haven't really tried to get any for months. The other week there was a slight tender spot in my breast so I squeezed some milk drops out to try to relieve it. It was thick and yellow.

Then tonight I felt slightly tender again. Not painful, just a little tender. I squeezed some milk drops out again, but this time they were bloody.

Is this mastitis?

Hey friends - I’m feeling down. My son has been fussy the last couple of days and I’ve been feeling like my “supply” has been down. He’s also 12 weeks so wondering if the fussiness is just a leap or if he’s not getting enough milk from me. Normally I can pump 4-5 oz on my left and 2-3 on my right but the last few days I’ve only been able to do 3 on my left and 1.5 on my right. I breastfeed the majority of the day with one or two pumping sessions to make a bottle up for my husband. This morning my period returned in full force 😭

So as a new mama:

1. Is there a way I can get my supply back or is it going to be this low from now on?
2. Is it normal for my period to be back 12 weeks pp? What do you do when you get your period and are BF to ensure you’re taking care of you and your baby?

Thank you!

I feel like I'm falling apart from almost two months of horrible broken sleep. I'm a second time mom, but my son slept through the night at this age. I'm at a complete loss. She nurses every three hours or so throughout the day, and refuses a pacifier. I don't know if she's actually hungry at night or just needs comfort, but she'll scream unless I nurse her. Has anyone else gone through this with a baby this age? It's worse than cluster feeding.

Hi all,

I’ve just come home after having keyhole surgery yesterday. (31/11 Halloween in Australia) (I had my gallbladder removed due to infection came on suddenly)

I’m wondering how of any of you mummas have fed bubba afterwards, as I’m finding it extremely painful to lay on my side or hold him to feed. The cramping in my belly & the cuts are making it difficult to get comfortable to feed bub, especially also with the kicking & arm throwing as I haven’t seen him in 3days.

Would love some advice on how to breastfeed while still trying to recover from surgery.

Baby is 6mo & I’m 6m pp.

I have pumped milk in the fridge which I pumped while in hospital, but would prefer to use that for a stash & take to daycare.

I’m just here as a new, second time mama looking for some support and advice!

STM, first baby had issues but not as quickly or as bad as #2 is starting out. I have an oversupply with a fast letdown that baby #2 is handling really well. I’ve tried both nursing on my side and back to slow it down. Both seem to work but he’s still having issues. My little one is only 10 days old, clearly refluxing on day 2, witnessed by the pediatrician at the hospital. He came out super fast, and swallowed amniotic fluid and then threw it up on day 2 as well. Now he is clearly refluxing every time we lay him down, even hours after eating. Curdled milk will come up and make him cough and gag. He’s frequently getting hiccups and gags during them as well, when it seems something is coming up. He’ll be asleep upright in my arms and still reflux. I’m not sleeping at night because I’m afraid to lay him down even an hour after eating, or if he seems okay and I do, he’s up right away because milk is coming up and he’s repeatedly swallowing it down.

I just don’t know what to do. I feel defeated because this is worse than with my first and the only thing that made her better was time.

Hi all! I’m writing this in hopes that someone has a similar story or can give me some sort of advice because the amount of pain it takes to breastfeed is extremely taxing. My 11wk old is ebf and has been since he was born. The pain at the beginning was awful, particularly in my right breast, but I was really dedicated to breastfeeding so I continued. Now, I little to no pain in my left breast, but my right one continues to hurt. In the process of troubleshooting why it hurt so bad to breastfeed, I have used it all. Lanolin, nipple butter, silverettes, medela gel pads, and a variety of other things to try and mitigate the pain. Nothing has worked. Every time that I breastfeed on my right breast, it has the most godawful stinging sensation, that is constant until about 5 minutes after I take him off. I have no visible blisters, milk blebs, cracks, bruises, etc. I have never seen any nipples blanching so I was unsure if it could be vasospasm as well. He also has no tongue or lip ties per his pediatrician and our lactation consultant.

Has anyone had a similar experience? And if so, were you ever able to manage the pain or make it stop? I want to continue to breast feed, but the near constant pain is making it extremely hard! Thanks to anyone who has made it this far through my rambling!!

Hello,

I recently had a baby on 10/29. I've been breastfeeding her, or attempting to, and have been having difficulties. I have had contact with a LC but it was through the hospital so I'm not sure how thorough they are. The LC showed me different positions and how to extract colostrum manually. Despite guidance, the baby still wouldn't latch for me or always fought me and preferred her fists. Now we are home and I can't get her to latch at all. She just starts to cry the moment I put her in a football hold or cross hold. She kicks, turns red, & puts her fists near her face and refuses to latch, even uses her fists to block my breast. I have tried everything from burping her to changing her diaper without seeing improvement. I have become paranoid that she's not getting enough colostrum so I've been expressing it and giving it to her through a syringe. I'm thinking because it takes a few minutes for letdown to happen for me, she's just impatient and expects colostrum to come right away. I've been getting frustrated and so has she. Any help is appreciated.

I’m FTM to a 3 month old, exclusively breastfeeding from the beginning, haven’t had any difficulties apart from a clogged duct with fever that went away within two days. A couple weeks ago I bought a hand pump to start occasionally pumping so I could go out without the baby for a few hours/dad could do one nightly feeding, but I wasn’t impressed with it partly because output was miserable, partly because I blamed the clogged duct on it (flange size was universal and it didn’t fit me properly).

So I decided to rent Medela Symphony and tried it for a few days, but my output is even worse than with a handpump lol.

Soo if anyone has any tips on how to pump more than 5ml, i’d be very grateful 😅

Hi moms. I’m at my wits end.

My LO is 7 month old. She used to take the bottle but stopped when she was two months old. That was back when my supply was great, so I didn’t think it would be a big deal. Little did I know. My supply has become very unstable since she turned 4 months old. The first time it dropped it took me two weeks to get it back. That did not last long before it dropped again when she’s 6 months old, then I got it back. But now it just happened again. It just keeps happening.

And she does not take the bottle. She’d rather starve.

I’ve been told to stop breastfeeding and ‘starve’ her (offer the bottle every three hours) until she gives up and accepts the bottle. Has anyone done that? Is it safe?

Thanks

Hello, my baby is 5 weeks old tomorrow and I've been bf her since birth. And it's been a struggle. My supply is fine, although she gets fussy in the evenings at a lower flow rate. She wakes 2-3 hours in the night, although there has been two 4.5 hour sleeps and I live in hope every night there will be another. I struggle because it's so hard for so many reasons. One big reason I have is privacy issues. I'm a very private person, I don't feel comfortable feeding in front of anyone but my husband. It's just part of me that I've accepted, all through birth and pregnancy I've really realised just how private I am, especially with my body. Now I feel trapped in a corner, either I have to feed alone in a room when we have visitors or I have to get more open to having my boobs out, which I'm really super uncomfortable with. I have great family and friends and heaps of support - but I just don't feel comfortable feeding around any of them. I'm left either feeling isolated or exposed and both suck. We're going for a holiday with my husbands family (like 15 people all up) for two weeks over Christmas, and instead of being excited I just feel dread that I don't know how to feed her and keep myself covered. I'm worried I'll spend the whole two weeks locked in a back room hiding. They're lovely but they don't really understand, they're all comfortable to feed their babies in front of family and friends.

I've tried a cover for feeding and even at 5 weeks my little girl is fussy about it, and it's tricky to see what I'm doing and feed her properly in it. And I still feel a little weird even with the cover on. Privacy is not my only issue with bf, I'm also exhausted, drained, struggling to keep hydrated, sore, leaking every morning, glued to the couch for hours on end, and (I feel super guilty saying this) I hate the feeling of her sucking on my nipple. I love my daughter so much. But I really hate the experience of breastfeeding.

I have support, a great midwife, Plunket nurse, lactation consultant all helping me with latch and techniques etc. There's no physical reason why I can't breastfeed.

I know people will say to go to formula and I'm really considering it. But the health benefits of exclusive breast milk for my baby girl are so strong, I really want to set her up well for a good life, and to give her the best I can, so I'm trying to hang in there and find solutions. So, does anyone have any advice for the privacy problem?

Edit: just for context my baby is "thriving" she has gained heaps of weight and I've gotten tonnes of positive comments and been told that "she's a good feeder and I have a good supply" from the health care providers. - the problem is me, not her or the milk, it's my comfort.

What breast pumps do you recommend for flat nipples? I'm considering purchasing this one:

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Horigen-Breast-Pump-2267K-Single-Green-Electric-Wearable-LCD-Panel-4-Modes-10-Suction-Levels-180ml-Bottle-Suit-Short-Flat-Inverted-Nipples-Hands-Free/3389159898?athAsset=eyJhdGhjcGlkIjoiMzM4OTE1OTg5OCIsImF0aHN0aWQiOiJDUzA1NX5DUzAwNCIsImF0aGVlIjp7ImEiOjkuMjUsImIiOjYxMi4wLCJ3IjowLjAwNzM2NzgyMzIzNjgyMTkxMSwibCI6MC41fSwiYXRocG9zYiI6IjAiLCJhdGhhbmNpZCI6IjExOTIxOTUwMjgiLCJhdGhyayI6MC4wfQ==&athena=true&athbdg=L1700

Also I'm concerned about what my shape will look afterwards. My boobs are naturally pendulous/deflated so would weaning after breast feeding make it more deflated or look the same as before just bigger?

Hi can anybody confirm if it’s safe for my baby to still breastfeed while I’m taking cabergoline? I’m taking it because I want to stop my milk production, but meanwhile my baby is still not weaned off and I can’t pump fast and often enough before my breasts get engorged whilst also staying up at night as often and long as he’s willing to finally stop crying and given in to eating puree and food and drinking water. I just want to know if it will cause him any damage. My OBYGYN said in person that it was fine when I asked if it was ok to still breastfeed, but the bottle says to not take it while breastfeeding- but I’m wondering if that’s because it will reduce milk supply or because it’s harmful to baby. She hasn’t responded to my messages and it’s been a couple of days. I worry but I’m also exhausted from house chores, having to stay up to feed and hydrate a stubborn crying hungry baby, and engorged breasts. Somebody please bring me some relief with some confirmation.

I am going to London on Sunday to see a show for my friends birthday. I will be leaving at 9ish and won’t be back until the late afternoon. I’m going to have to pump, and I don’t really wanna waste it but I also don’t want to carry around a cooling bag and multiple pumps😂 Just interested to know what people do/have done :)

I don't know if anyone else has this issue but when I'm nursing my baby she often falls asleep, now that's not an issue, but when she half wakes up and tries to relatch when I'm trying to readjust and she latches onto my boob skin or my areola 💀 holy guacamole that shit feels like a bee sting! It's so quick and makes me jump cause it hurts lol I know it's unintentional (she's 5 weeks old) but dang girl watch it 😂

So.... several times, I've decided I'm going to quit soon. I pump less than 10 mL a session. I think the issue is that I had planned to do this for at least 6 months and I had all these reasons why... like "we'd be starting solids and she'd be through some vaccines".... but now I'm staring down the barrel of the 4 month mark and I just can't do it anymore. I produce like nothing. She only wants to feed in the morning. Nothing I've tried makes me produce more. So I know I need to be done. I think instead of waking up and thinking "this is the day" and then suddenly missing a pump or finding myself sitting at the pump because "I can do it at least one more time"... or "I'll reconsider tomorrow." I need a new day and way to quit. I'm thinking that the immune system is more mature at 4 months.... (develops between months 2-3, but doesn't fully develop until 3 years old... I know). She's already getting 97% formula. Some days I don't even think she gets breastmilk.... maybe 2 ounces. I have two more months of leave... and it would be great to actually spend that time with her... focused on her... and not on my inability to produce. Please for the love of god, tell me the pros, the highs, and the reasons quitting benefited you....

My LOvis one month old and we EBF, lately she’s been acting STARVINGG. I’ve never really worried about my supply, and I know she’s getting enough she makes plenty of dirty diapers, seems ro be gaining weight fine. I’ve been trying to put with the cluster feeding bc I know it will help with my supply, but I’m at my breaking point.

If I start to supplement a few of back to back the feedings with formula will it really mess with my supply that much??

If I give her an oz or two of formula after our 9-10pm feeding will it help her sleep a little longer and not wake up starving an hour later ??

Background: My teenager and I are military survivors as they lost their dad a long time ago in a terrorist attack. They are 17 and this is their last year to participate in an event that gives these kids a long weekend to connect and enjoy their lives for a while near and at Disney World. We were accepted and I didn’t hesitate to confirm the plan to take them in December.

My now future-MIL and grandmother brought up a question today while I was down for the count after oral surgery this morning and she was up helping. My fiancé and I had asked her to come up during the day with the upcoming trip to help him with our what will then be an 8 month old baby (only the bereaved child and a single adult can attend), and she was happy to do so.

However, she is asking if I plan to wean baby before leaving on the trip. I don’t want to wean at this point (6 months) and tailored my surgery and aftercare plans towards maintain my supply thanks to a great care team. Baby will take a bottle of Nutramigen when I’m out of the house without fuss, but that only exists because I am not a pumper. My supply has been “just right” by Goldilocks standards since leveling out from a low supply in the beginning, and I’m hoping a five day trip without nursing won’t completely ruin her on the idea.

SO: A: how do I help my baby stay interested in breastfeeding when I have to be away for 5 days? and B: what can I do for myself (I own a lansinoh hand pump but nothing else) while at the parks to ensure I have a supply still when I get back?

This is my first post. My son is 8 weeks old today. We had a rough go of things to begin with. He had a tongue tie and never really latched properly after birth. I started supplementing and pumping.

LC and midwives discouraged the use of nipple shields but my son now has a preference for bottle nipples and even though I have breastfed him directly without nipple shields, it’s only once or twice a day. The past 4 days, he flatly refused to nurse from me directly. So, I caved and used the shield today and he latched from both sides immediately.

My concern is, I’ve been supplementing and pumping has been hard. I’m worried about my supply even if I get him to breastfeed and get him off formula supplementation.

Has anyone had an experience similar to mine? Nipple shields, supplementing and milk supply concerns? I’m needing some encouragement because it’s taking a huge mental and emotional toll on me.

My LO is 5 weeks, and I had to start supplementing my baby with formula on day 3 as my milk supply was too low and he kept getting jaundice. I got pretty reliant on the formula for a bit, but I'm trying to work my way back to EBF since formula is expensive. I can theoretically produce exactly what he requires if he feeds every 2 hours (weighed feed showed he took 2 oz combined after it had been 2.5 hours since he had fed last), but it's exhausting and an ibclc recommended also pumping at least 5x/day as well.

Has anyone successfully gotten back to EBF after using formula? How long did it take and what was your experience like? Any tips?

Note: I'm absolutely not shaming formula feeding, I just personally want to get back to not using it for cost purposes.

Since starting breastfeeding I’ve been battling blood blisters, blebs, clogs, and mastitis. I thought I had finally gotten healthy but my baby (5 weeks) had to be bottle fed (pumped) for a bit while I recovered. Now he won’t drain the breast. He only suckles and eats about 1oz when he would eat 3-4oz from the bottle. It’s like he gets frustrated trying to eat from the breast over a bottle. How do I get him back to eating at the breast?

I feel like I can’t win with breastfeeding and my baby is just getting frustrated when I try. I’m feeling lost but don’t want to give up yet.

I recently had my second child, who is about 5 weeks old. I breastfed my first kid until he was over 2 years old, and my first didn't learn to latch until he was 4 weeks old (my nipples were too big and his mouth was too tiny at birth at he was a small baby). My memory is hazy now on how we managed it but I think I just kept getting him to practise once a day while I pumped/fed formula until he randomly got it.

Same deal with second child, and I wasn't worried assuming we'd see improvements in latching. We're past my 4 week "deadline" and now I'm wondering if this baby will ever get it. She's smaller than her brother at birth, so maybe it'll take longer. But the issue is she doesn't open her mouth big enough (maybe because she's used to the bottle teats?) and gets so angry and frustrated if I try to make her practise longer than a minute. I can't remember if my first was like this. I've tried offering the breast both when she's hungry and not hungry to see if different moods would help.

So I'm looking for anyone with success stories where their baby learned to latch a bit later. I'm mentally preparing myself to go down the EP route but I'm still hanging on to some hope bf might work. I'll be really sad if it doesn't, as I really enjoyed breastfeeding my son.

Side notes on other things I've tried - I haven't found any nipple shields that fit me (nipple is large), and I'm going to see a LC soon and also a paed re the minor tongue tie observation he made at birth, in case that's affecting her ability to latch.

My 9 month old baby who has been exclusively breastfeed will not eat. Okay here is back story, I am newly pregnant and my milk supply has dropped drastically, I only have enough frozen milk for like maybe 2 weeks worth. For the last 9 months she is nursed during the day and takes a bottle of breastmilk at night. It has never been an issue. With my milk supply in question her pediatrician recommended trying formula and getting her on formula. She will NOT take any formula and I have tried them all. But now she won't even take a bottle of just my breastmilk, she won't even let the bottle get close to her she screams and pushes it away. I don't know how to feed my daughter, she won't take a bottle and I'm not making enough to nurse anymore.... anyone have recommendations on how to feed her?