Bit confused by it all?

[whatwillbex]

Hi,

Hope you don't mind me popping in and picking your brains. I am a first time mum to be and feeling pretty clueless and everything I read is confusing me.
Im just trying to get any idea on which is best.

I am going to try and breast feed but would also like to bottle feed as well. Didn't realize before becoming pregnant what a big debate it is and everyone has strong views and it can be a little scary when you haven't a clue.

How do you know what brand to use and is best?
How many of these tins do you go through each week?
How many times do you feed you baby is it on the hour lol?

Sorry they probably sound like really silly and simple questions but people keep telling me different info and say midwifes wont advise as they want you to breast feed?

 

[kat2504]

If you really want to breastfeed then the best thing to do is not to get any formula in advance and just focus on breastfeeding and getting your supply established. If you want to use some bottles early on, try to express them.
After a few weeks, it's a better time to start combi feeding, say 6 weeks or so. There is little difference between the brands of formula as the content of formula is heavily regulated. Most people who FF full time would use about a tin a week and it would cost them about a tenner a week. If you FF you should still feed on demand, you should be taught in the hospital or in antenatal classes to recognise signs baby is hungry (usually sucking fists). Generally this will be very frequent for a newborn and settle down to every 3 hours or so with one longer stretch in the night. There is no point waiting with a screaming baby for a set hour when you could just feed them sooner.

 

[whatwillbex]

Thanks so much. Im sure its one of those things that will come once the baby arrives. At the moment my head is a little on over drive and everyone just seems to know and was panicking me a little.

Thanks

 

[Laucu]

Agree with PP... newborns generally need to feed 8-12 times in a 24 hour period, although some will feed more than that. Jack would feed every 1-3 hours when I BF him but settled into a 3.5/4 hour pattern once I switched to formula.

 

[skunkpixie]

Heya.

Its just trial and error when finding the best bottle and formula brand to use, but chances are your baby will accept whatever ones you first try them with.

All babies have different feeding pattens but will generally want to feed every 1-3 hours to start with, just go by how often your baby wants it and dont worry if you are feeding very frequently (like others have said 8-12 times a day is completely normal at the start). xxx

 

[susan_1981]

I think however you want to feed your baby is what you should do and don't listen to anyone else. I think there's too much pressure on new mums to breastfeed.

I tried to do the combination feeding but I just felt like I was always trying to breastfeed during the day and I found it a bit too much for me so now we use formula.

We are using Cow & Gate powder. Maybe it sounds bad to say this but we chose this one because it was the cheapest! But my baby seems to like it so we've stuck with it. With regards to feeding him, we feed him every 3 hours or so or when he's hungry. We are feeding on demand, not by schedule. Sometimes he wants feeding more than this, sometimes longer. We give him 3 ounces each feed and so far, we still have about a quarter of the tub left.

 

[pinksapphire]

If you really want to BF then don't get any formula in advance as it is very tempting to give formula in the early days when the baby is feeding constantly to build up your supply. I personally would not introduce a bottle before 6 weeks as this is what led to me giving up EBF. Ultimately it is your decision and if you find BF doesnt work out for you then don't feel guilty. your baby, your body, your decision!
All formulas are pretty much the same and comes down to personal preference as do bottles my LO will only take tommee tippee.
A box of formula used to last 2 1/2 weeks when combi feeding and now lasts about a week EFF.