Help! Lo won't take any other milk but the breast!!

[Egyptiangirl]

Hi, my lo is almost a year and still has about 4 breast feeds in 24 hrs. 1 still in the night anywhere from 1am - 4am. Problem is I'm due to go back to work after Xmas so need to wean him by then as I work 12 hr shifts and never got on with expressing anyway. Plus, I think a year is acceptable to move him onto cows milk ideally or formula. Problem is, I tried to start to phase in the milk by replacing his mid afternoon feed (which he isn't that bothered about) with formula...hated it and won't touch it!!! Even though he was combi fed for a short time when he was a newborn!! So I tried cows milk instead....same thing!! I tried bottle and sippy cup...no go!! What to do?

 

[AP]

First of all you need to figure out if its the bottle/teats you're using.

You can mix expressed breastmilk with other milk, that's we how did it

 

[Egyptiangirl]

Atomic pink, I don't think it's a problem with the bottle or teats as he has had them when he was younger and I tried the milk and formula in his sippy cups with the same disgusted reaction!!! Lol!!! Any other tips?

 

[seaweed eater]

I wouldn't rule out the idea that it's the bottles/nipples just because he had them when he was younger. Even BF babies who've had a bottle every day for a few months sometimes start to refuse them. He's probably much more vocal about his preferences now than when he was a newborn.

 

[_Lexi_]

Have you got the right flow teats? If he hasn't had them in a while he might need the next ones up? Jessica had bottles of expressed milk. Didn't have a bottle for 5 weeks, and tried various different bottles before we found one she'd take without much of a fight. I know when my brother weaned my niece, they'd start with 3/4 breastmilk to 1/4 cows milk, then gradually increase the amount of cows milk until she was entirely on that. Was a slow, very gradual process, but as it wasn't a sudden change, she was ok with it x

 

[Egyptiangirl]

I tried both the newborn teats and size 2 baby teat and his usual sippy cup. Ill try expressing and mixing the amount of milk and see if he'll have it and I'll try a different bottle too. Thanks!

 

[AP]

I tried both the newborn teats and size 2 baby teat and his usual sippy cup. Ill try expressing and mixing the amount of milk and see if he'll have it and I'll try a different bottle too. Thanks!

It's a good start - try using more expressed milk first and reduce. It really helps. x

 

[Rachel_C]

Does he need to have cow's milk at a year old? I wouldn't bother too much about it - cow's milk isn't a natural part of the human diet, you can get plenty of everything in it from other sources. Does LO have cow's milk on cereal? You could try starting there if you haven't already.

Do you need to stop BF once you go back to work? Many mums and babies just BF when they're together and LO eats solids and has water when they're not - at that age it should be fine with no need to express. If you do want to give formula or cow's milk, I wouldn't give it in a bottle at all - no point introducing something you'd probably want to give up soon-ish anyway You could try a normal cup or cup with a straw - both of my kids have preferred straws to sippy cups.

 

[noon_child]

My LO refused to drink milk at nursery when I went back to work. She just ate more food and held out for boob when I came to pick her up (OK I wasn't on 12 hr shifts but she had no milk from 6:30am till 5pm). If her diet is varied there is no necessity for milk. Plus you can give liquid vitamins if you are worried. btw she now drinks tons of cows milk but didn't want it till about 20 months.

 

[Egyptiangirl]

Does he need to have cow's milk at a year old? I wouldn't bother too much about it - cow's milk isn't a natural part of the human diet, you can get plenty of everything in it from other sources. Does LO have cow's milk on cereal? You could try starting there if you haven't already.

Do you need to stop BF once you go back to work? Many mums and babies just BF when they're together and LO eats solids and has water when they're not - at that age it should be fine with no need to express. If you do want to give formula or cow's milk, I wouldn't give it in a bottle at all - no point introducing something you'd probably want to give up soon-ish anyway You could try a normal cup or cup with a straw - both of my kids have preferred straws to sippy cups.

Rachel_C won't just feeding him when I'm not at work hurt my supply as I will hopefully be working 2 days on and 6 Days off but because of the 12hr shift times I won't be home to feed him at all during the 2 days on. Although this does sound like the easier option. I'm a firm believer in not pushing a baby to do anything. Like Stan, in my opinion, he do it himself when he's ready etc.

 

[noon_child]

Does he need to have cow's milk at a year old? I wouldn't bother too much about it - cow's milk isn't a natural part of the human diet, you can get plenty of everything in it from other sources. Does LO have cow's milk on cereal? You could try starting there if you haven't already.

Do you need to stop BF once you go back to work? Many mums and babies just BF when they're together and LO eats solids and has water when they're not - at that age it should be fine with no need to express. If you do want to give formula or cow's milk, I wouldn't give it in a bottle at all - no point introducing something you'd probably want to give up soon-ish anyway You could try a normal cup or cup with a straw - both of my kids have preferred straws to sippy cups.

Rachel_C won't just feeding him when I'm not at work hurt my supply as I will hopefully be working 2 days on and 6 Days off but because of the 12hr shift times I won't be home to feed him at all during the 2 days on. Although this does sound like the easier option. I'm a firm believer in not pushing a baby to do anything. Like Stan, in my opinion, he do it himself when he's ready etc.

I'd hope that the 6 days you'll have back with him would be long enough to keep your supply but 2 days off is a lot longer than I have experience of. Could you express/pump once when you get home on the first of the two days, just to give your body the extra nudge?

My milk wasn't at all affected by only doing one feed a day for two days straight, then feeding like normal for two days then only doing one feed for a day, then another two days as normal. Everytime LO was sick or teething and needed the extra comfort or hydration she never complained there was not enough there.

It probably will be the first step towards LO taking less milk during the day because it wont be such a habit but this happens once food is establihed anyway. My LO didn't completely wean till 27/28 months despite me going back to work at one year