9 week old refusing EBM in bottle

[SummerBaba]

Just thought I'd ask for some advice or perhaps any other mums out there who had conquered this:

I have a new challenge with my 9 week old baby- he's refusing my bottled breast milk, agh! I thought I'd give it a whirl to introduce every eve after his bath so that dad can feed him (and eventually I can go back to work and baba can be left with someone)- to no avail he screams and screams hates the bottle! He had bottle very early on when we had issues with breast feeding (he had tongue tie and was reluctant to feed) and was fine but then I mastered breastfeeding and so just breast feed on demand he now won't take the bottle! I have tommee tippee and have just bought 'first years breastflow' and he still screams, he does not even go to suck just cries and cries with a gaping mouth and ends up spluttering on the milk. Daddy has tried bottle feeding and he still has the same reaction.

Any tips? If he just won't accept bottle- is it possible to go without bottle and just gradually wean over the months ahead? It is heartbreaking to see and hear him get so distressed and upset, any ideas or reassurance. I plan to go back to work in Jan so got a bit if time...but panicking a bit

 

[danielle1984]

Wow! Same thing here!! He would take the bottle the first three weeks but now BF is going very well (except for constant feeding). Now he won't take the bottle. I need to know too cuz we have a date on Thursday (his mom is babysitting). First time out lol

 

[CupcakeBaby]

DD refuses bottles too.

I just try now and again when she's in a good mood.

If I try to hold her and feed her she won't do it at all.

Yesterday DH managed to get her to take an ounce and that was by propping her up on her playmat and feeding her while she was distracted looking at the toys.

 

[Julesillini8]

Same here ladies. My first daughter took a bottle of expressed milk no problem. This second little stinker HATES it. Started at 5 wks with a random bottle here and there. Just screamed and pushed it out. We've tried like 6 brands. Now I picked one and am just sticking with the one, trying to keep consistency so she gets used to it. Now trying one bottle every day. Two days ago, she took and ounce before quitting, yesterday two ounces.... Was feeling a little bit of hope, but today back to not sucking and just screaming! Uh, so frustrating, but I guess we all have to just keep trying. Mine also won't take a bottle while held, she sits in her bouncy chair for it. Hope she comes around soon because I have a wedding coming up wherei will be away from her for like 10 hrs, and also have plans with my hubby next month where I will be away for about 8 hrs. Yikes, hope this bottle thing happens so I won't be stressed out about her! Good luck to us all

 

[pinklightbulb]

Both mine refused EBM from bottles, and formula as well when FOB tried it (annoyed the crap out of me into it, more like it). Some babies just don't like them, as I found out. Eventually Liam accepted one at 7 months but it took a LOT of perseverance.

 

[CupcakeBaby]

I'm thinking maybe I can just wait until 6m+ and see if she'll take it in a cup.

 

[SummerBaba]

I'm thinking maybe I can just wait until 6m+ and see if she'll take it in a cup.

Yeah I am thinking the same! Should I just give up and accept that bottle is just not going to happen and go for no bottles and straight to sippy cup/doidy cup but then I fear that he then won't take that and it will be too late! Agh its stressful!

I love breastfeeding though and the closeness and bond it brings but don't want to feel like I can never be away from baby as being the sole provider of his food Plus I worked so hard to master breastfeeding and am so proud I stuck it out! You get told that breast is best so that's what I did and now have problems switching to bottle! I only want to get him to take a bottle every eve so that daddy can feed him and so that he can be familiar with bottle for when I am away from baby. It is heartbreaking when I express the milk only for it to be thrown away.
I have a nice supply and can get a good 120ml off both boobies-such a waste sitting in a bottle not being drunk

I did buy a 'first years breastflow' in the hope that this would do the trick..

Maybe will try diff teats, I heard good reviews about the 'Playtex Latex Brown' teats so maybe worth a shot?! Any ideas?...

 

[Mum2BKW]

I'll be stalking this one, we have exactly the same problem.

I was told by our HV not to give the bottle myself, for daddy to do it when I'm not even in the room. We tried that last night and it still didn't work, though she did suck for a brief time before stopping.

We plan on just persevering with daddy giving a bottle each night before she gets really hungry, hopefully at some point she'll get the idea. The problem is that a bottle is a totally different action than breast, baby just has to suck where breastfeeding is more of a lapping action with the tongue.

Hopefully someone on here will have tried something that worked!

 

[SummerBaba]

Pinklightbulb- am with you on the constant feeding! Yesterday all he did was snack all day, didn't feel like I had any milk in my boobies as they were soft but the milk is there, its tiring but I love breastfeeding!

how are your little ones nappies, mine goes from a very busy nappy day-with lots o wet and dirty to the next day being one poo a day but lots of wet ones..weird!

Let's hope we can crack the bottle thing!
Have my fingers crossed for you!

 

[SummerBaba]

Mum2BKW- yeah i heard that its best for dad to feed an mum to leave the room- they can smell your milk from quite a distance, some even say to leave the house while daddy feeds until baby adjusts!

i tried to trick him last night by putting him in the breastfeeding position and feeding him then trying to slip the bottle teat into his mouth, for a fraction of a second he did go to suck but then quickly realised this is not the warm comfort of mummy's nipple and he withdrew and screamed the place down, oops!

Am going to persist every night with daddy feeding and just grin and bear the tears-he gets into such a state though, then its cuddles and get him to calm only for him to get upset again, we give it a few tries then we give in as it so awful to see him like that, its a vicious circle! Feel like such a bad mummy and it really gets to me SOB!

Must be brave and hope someone on here has the answers....

 

[pinklightbulb]

I swear I tried 4 different bottle brands, about 6 different teats, EBM, four different types of formula and so on before Liam would take a bottle. I was happier with the constant feeding tbh! I found it so stressful trying to introduce a bottle because he just wouldn't take it.

 

[SummerBaba]

Pinklightbulb-did he eventually take to bottle then? If so then there is hope yet hehe!

If no bottle, did you use a sippy cup/doidy cup?

 

[SummerBaba]

...I too don't mind the constant feeding and have no qualms about bf in public (which is prob a good thing!). I guess am worried I will never be able to leave him as I am sole food provider. Guess I worry that people will be thinking- 'she never goes out without her baby' kinda thing.

Oh well, I can't force it and if it feels a constant battle with bottle than its just not worth it and I don't want bubba to develop a bad association with bottle.

 

[CupcakeBaby]

I was the same - being sad about pouring milk away as I generally get 3oz per breast.

So what I do is freeze 2oz (I don't pump every day just when I feel I have the extra milk) then that leaves us 1oz to "play" with.

Means I have a pretty good freezer stash (which lets face it will probably be mixed into food rather than drunk from a bottle, but never mind) and she still gets the bottle practice.

I feel like I'm just buying bottle after bottle though as I keep reading different people say "this was the one"

We've tried:

Avent Natural
Tommee Tippee (most success so far)
Mam
Nuk Latex
Medela Calma

And I have my eye on the Lansinoh mOmma but that'll be another £10 down the drain of it doesn't work.

 

[SummerBaba]

Thanks CupcakeBaby for advice about freezing it-I never thought about mixing it into food good idea, at least he will still get the nutrients etc that way. I was in Boots today eyeing up more teats and bottles but held off buying as not sure the teat is the problem as he does not even suck. I think he just needs to learn the skill to suck from a bottle teat as its diff to a breastfed suckle.

I kinda thought today, if he does not accept it then I will have to accept it too and try again at a later date or when introduce weaning.

I don't mean to add to your list but the 'Playtex Latex Brown Teats' have gd reviews, I am tempted but am holding off for a bit to see if he'll master the tommee tippee (as he did in the early days grr!)

The Lansinoh ones are new to me....may add them to my list ha!

 

[danielle1984]

We are using the Playtex Ventaire.
A friend of mine told me to try giving the bottle once per day. Even if its only 1oz just to get baby use to the bottle again. Then cut back to maybe once every two/three days.
We'll start trying that tomorrow. We are doing out for first time on Thursday, his mom will babysit. Hope he'll take the bottle.

I don't mind the constant feeding either. I love the cuddles and bonding time. Unfortunately, he nurses to nap/sleep. If I don't, he'll cry himself to sleep. No clue how to get him to fall asleep without the nipple in his mouth. Going for a walk seems to work but thats all. Hope it gets better with age and time.
Any of you ladies have that issue too?

I assume that if your LO doesn't take the bottle, he or she probable doesnt take a pacifier?

 

[pinklightbulb]

Pinklightbulb-did he eventually take to bottle then? If so then there is hope yet hehe!

If no bottle, did you use a sippy cup/doidy cup?

He eventually took one, from my cousin he'd never seen before-- she was standing and rocking him, and then slipped the bottle in his mouth, and he took the whole lot, lol! So if you give the kid to someone they've never seen before, maybe it will work for you too It was a normal bottle

 

[firsttime83]

We introduced a bottle of expressed milk quite early (probably 4 weeks) LO seemed to have this BFing thing down so I wanted to introduce her early. When we first introduced the bottle it was a "dream feed". Not sure if anyone else does this, but OH gives LO a dream feed before he goes to bed each night... just plops the bottle in her mouth and she drinks without waking up. We also tried quite a few bottles and she will only take from Tommee Tippee's anti-colic bottles.

We seemed to have a bigger issue with getting her to take a pacifier. I wanted her to accept one because she was soothing with my breasts to go to bed, which I'm sure is fine, but I needed an alternative for OH and if someone was looking after her. I took me 5 or 6 different pacifiers before I found one she finally liked...

 

[SummerBaba]

Heya guys,

I am deciding to stick with the Tommee Tippee! I had a tiny bit of success (in that he didn't scream the place down, instead just whined a lot). I put him in his bouncer and got just the teat from the bottle and let him play with it in his mouth, he didn't totally reject it and was biting down on it. I then later tried it with the bottle and he did the same. Then I tried him with the bottle with my breast milk in, he did squirm and whine and I just did little tries (so in the mouth let him play then leave it for a bit and bounce him then try again). He's still not keen and its a slow process. Am hoping in time he will become more familiar and comfortable with the teat in his mouth and begin to suck.

Such a nightmare though, am hoping for some breakthrough!