Decided not to breastfeed

[Doj]

Is there is anyone out there who decided not to breastfeed and went straight to the bottle?

[Mom2katiebug]

I voted no cuz I wanted to give bf a try, but was open minded about it and wasn't completely opposed to formula.  Good thing cuz DD was a big, hungry baby and after 10 days with still no milk...well, we had to supplement and then went fully to formula.  While I wish it had worked out on some level, I don't regret formula or anything like that.  I has really worked out well for my family. 

I know there are other moms IRL and there are some on here too that have decided to go straight to formula.  I hope they see this and vote.

[Kimberly®]

I said no because my original plan was to bf. I didn't want to FF at all but as things turned out FF was what we did. I don't regret that at all either. I think that its a very hard choice to make. You have to find whats right for you, and more importently your child. Some LO's just don't so well with bm, others do bad on formula.

[Lªuren]

I also said 'No' because I did intend to breastfeed as well, or at least try it.   I was pretty open-minded about both methods and had planned to combine at some stage, things never work out the way you picture they might 

I regret my decision, I did feel a bit bad at the time but DS was also a hungry baby and was getting topped up with formula as well, even in hospital ( but thats another story  ).

You do what you feel is right for you and your LO.

[litomi]

I was quiet naive about BF. I thought it's something very natural But after few days of trying, with the baby crying/sreaming in my arm.... and end up with both of us in tears. My milk was not enough and came out too slow.  I decided to use formula and EBM. So, while other mums were resting after feeding their LOs, I was busy pumping

[Lªuren]

I also remember pumping at 2am in the morning to get enough for his next feed.

[Wife and Mummy.]

Hello I never bf at all not my sort of thing,I HATE my BREASTS so it was always NO NO NO NO with me.My children are fine they never had any colds or anything like that.But I do put my hands up to people that do bf your great but it just wasnt for me.Sam.

[maisy]

I answered yes. With DS I had a really hard time Breastfeeding, so for that and many other reasons I decided to bottle feed. dd straight away. I was completely comfortable and happy with my decision untilShe reached 3 mo. Then for some reason I suddenly felt really guilty that I didnt even give her the chance.   So if and I mean a big IF  I ever decide to have a number 3 I would definitely try to breast feed.

x x x x

[angelina and andrew's mum]

i think its whats best for u and ur lo. i breastfed in hosp every hour-nightmare! when we got home i decided to do a bottle at night and continue bf in the morn. lo didnt want bf in the morn so stayed with bottle-she was happy so that made me happy.xxxgod luck whatever u decide.x

[kgmf123]

Hello,

With my ds I couldn't even contemplate the thought of bf so I went straight to ff. With my dd I thought I would breast feed her first feed and then change to ff. However one bf turned into one day into one week, and now I have been bf her for nearly 13 months. Therefore I've had one child that has been totally formula fed and another that has been totally breast fed.

Best of luck with whatever you decide!

Kat x 

[yaya]

i wanted to BF exclusively but it didnt turn out that way, with next one, I want to give bf a shot but also want to combine with formula so people can help out with feeds.

[SallyDom]

I was open minded about and wanted to give bf a try. I managed for 5 weeks but Dom was a big baby (9lb 9oz at birth) and I thought I wasn't filling him so at the end of the 5 weeks I was crying all the time and had a stressed out crying baby. It was before I'd discovered BW so looking back I now realise I had an overtired baby who was falling asleep everytime he fed so was never taking a proper feed. I was feeding him to sleep cos it was the only way I knew how and when he did fall asleep he would only sleep for maybe 20 minutes at a time. It was a really hard time actually and once I stopped feeding him to sleep and got him to take proper naps life was sooo much easier.
I think next time I may manage to bf sucessfully as we'll be on EASY from the start and if it doesn't work then that's ok, but I personally do feel pressure from people that 'breast is best'.
I was watching an old episode of BW on tv last week and Tracy said to a mum that a baby only needs 3oz breast milk a day to get the benefits. If I'd have known that I probably would have tried to feed at least once per day.   
Overall I think whatever is best for baby and mum is the way forward.
Sally
x 

[vibha]

hi,
i relpied "no" as i did give breast feeding a fair shot,i always wanted to Bf but my nipples were flat so had a hard time with sore bleeding nipples...mastities bla bla...so after 5 weeks of agony decided what was best for my lil one and me and started to bottle feed...i dont at all regret my decision as DS was much more settled and happy and slept well when on bottles...all i can say is do what u think is best at the time.

[Colin Macs Mom]

I voted yes, although it wasn't so much a choice as a necessity. I had breast reduction surgery in 2002 which was extensive enough to make being able to BF extremely unlikely if not impossible. Yes, I could have tried, but I would have suffered somewhat serious problems had it not been successful, and I didn't feel like that risk was a smart one to take when I had a newborn to care for. Plus, the way I was before surgery made it unlikely that I would have been able to BF anyway (!!) so I didn't feel confident at all that it would work afterwards then either.

Colin did fabulously on formula, he still has never had an ear infection and didn't even get a cold until he was 15 months old and had started going to daycare. I think that's pretty darn good. And TBH if I had started BFing I don't think that I would have stuck with it.    His sleep was so bad and with his reflux... I could not have done all the night feeds.

[Dree]

Hi,

I too voted NO. Ever since I decided to have a child I knew that in my heart I would at least try to breast feed. Flat nipples and all. Well, it was one hell of a challenge. I had to use a nipple shield so my LO could get a good latch. I was recovering from my c-section and going through big time baby blues. I was snapping at my poor DH everyday because I was sleep deprived.

Finally my DH had enough and said "GIVE HER FORMULA ALREADY". I just want my wife back. That is went it hit me, I could do both...yes, that is what I will do..both bf and ff. So, when my LO was sleeping I was pumping away. I was still sleep deprived but determined to go as long as I could.

In the end, I was able to bf and ff and give her EBM for 3 months. I feel good about it because I had other complications. That is another story in itself. Not to mention my period came one day and changed the taste of my breast milk forever. My DD just spit it out whether it was from a bottle or directly from the source. This is something nobody tells you.

I ff at night so I could get a good night's rest. I would pump 3-4 times a day for 3months. I have no regrets simply because I gave it a try.

Do what is right for you. But, remember you can do both. It is possible.

Dree 

[motherof3]

I tried to bb all of my girls but never had any success.   When Jackie was a newborn she would just scream and I couldn't even calm her down enough to latch on.  I actually fed her with a syringe for 4 days so she wouldn't get nippled confused if we tried to use a bottle. She was also on oxygen for the first 12hrs after birth and I think this made a big difference.  She just never got the hang of it. 

Then when Payton came along I thought I would try again.  She did better but I was so sleep deprived b/c she would just eat and eat.  Then their was Abby...with 2 other kids it was just too hard.  I only lasted about 3 days with her and she is doing much better on formula b/c she has a milk soy protein intolerance I wouldn't have been able to eat any milk or soy products. 

With Jackie and Payton I lasted 1 wk.  It was such a hard decision switching to formula and I still wonder if it would have helped with their allergies (Jackie- milk, soy & wheat) (Payton- milk) but I know it was the best decision.  I am one that really needs her sleep to function so it was a life saver when someone else could feed them.

Andrea

[macsmum]

I bottle fed all 3 of mine, i had my 1st baby at 15 and was really not comfortable with the thought of it, i ended up bottle feeding all 3 of them, i have never even tried it, i sometimes think what if but i suppose most people that haven't bf do.

Emma