Moving from breastfeeding to formula

[DawnyF]

Hello,

I have been exclusively BF for five months now and am looking to switch to FF as I have to go back to work soon

I would like the transition to be as smooth as possible and would like to use the bottles that mirror BF as well as possible.

I would also like some help with how to wean off BF - which feeds to drop first and how long to take in switching to FF.

Any help would be greatly appreciated

Thank you

 

[kat2504]

Hmm, I am not speaking from any personal experience here but from what I have read, the advice is to switch one feed per week to avoid problems with your breasts adjusting. Since it is for going to work, probably I would start with a middle of the day feed as that is a time when you will be at work. Keep the early morning and bedtime breastfeeds till last as you might want to continue them for a bit after you go back so long as your supply holds out.

 

[babyfromgod]

Hi i have heard NUK bottles with latex teats can be good for weaning a breastfed baby onto a bottle

 

[youngwife20]

weird i thought i replied to this post.

my daughter was ebf (exlusive pumping) shes 26 weeks and i just introduce one bottle of formula per day of the reddy made stuff and whatch her reaction she rected to sma so we swapped to aptimal ready made then when we noticed she was fine with it we tried aptimal powder as some babys dont do well with it and she did fine so now i will be reducing my pumping so i gues droping one feed at a time? im no expert and i asume its different as ur feeding directly of the breast.

 

[Laurenmomma]

Iv just gone to formula with Ds, not by choice but tried several bottles and Mam are the only ones he will have,

I agree drop the daytime feeds, your boobs will hurt for a day or two but if u want to do it quicker than dropping 1 a week u can, this time last week Ds was ebf but now i barely have enough for 1 feed! Id keep the night n morning feed if it's suitable for you! x

 

[Sarachka]

I first of all dropped the last feed before my bedtime and the night feed and let OH do that.

The early morning feed is the most useful to keep as you're so tired you can just latch them on.

We were very lucky though, she's never had any issue to do with bottles or teats or formula, she's just happy with whatever she's given, bless her.

 

[Mrs Cupcake]

i have switched to formula but only during the working day so my baby is still bf in the early morn and evening. i too am preparing to go back to work.

i found the nuk latex bottles best, he rejected avent and tommee tippee, he will now take the nuk silicone ones too.

It took me quite a will to train lo to ff, he disliked it at first and i was in tears for a few days because it was so stressful as he didnt feed properly. now he feeds like a trooper and easily takes 8oz in one go! (at first i struggled to get him to take 2oz)

i dropped the middle of the day feed first then the mid afternoon one. i did a few days before dropping another but as i bf in evening it wasnt such a shock to the system.

good luck!

 

[Projectlover]

Sorry, no answers, more questions! I will be going back to work in November when my baby girl will be 6 months. We are hoping to BF in the mornings and evenings for another 2-3 months if we can. I guess we should try to get her used to formula well before she has to go to daycare. Any advice on how far beforehand we should try? Would expressing and bottle feeding breast milk before switching to formula help?

 

[Laurenmomma]

Yeah I'd get her used to just taking the bottle of expressed milk as startin formula could affect your supply, try not to start the bottles until after 6 weeks tho just so Ur supply is regulated n stuff! Good luck! x

 

[youngwife20]

Sorry, no answers, more questions! I will be going back to work in November when my baby girl will be 6 months. We are hoping to BF in the mornings and evenings for another 2-3 months if we can. I guess we should try to get her used to formula well before she has to go to daycare. Any advice on how far beforehand we should try? Would expressing and bottle feeding breast milk before switching to formula help?

sure hun it wont hurt. if you have only been direct breastfeeding you can give her a try with expressed milk as when u go back u could combine expressed milk with formula feeding if you wanted too., this way you can get used to the quanity she is drinking over time. also i would start anytime from now even though its far away you may have to try lots of different milks before you find her on the one that fits her that doesnt cause constipation make her too gassy etc. i would start on cartons give her a few weeks ( unless she shows insant reactions like a rash we switched imedietly when she got a rash with sma. see if she poos ok and seems alright if shes fine then try her on the powdered formula . get used to making it etc. so when u go back to work ur all comfertable in how ur doing things. if you have any questions im no expert but id be happy to help

 

[youngwife20]

Yeah I'd get her used to just taking the bottle of expressed milk as startin formula could affect your supply, try not to start the bottles until after 6 weeks tho just so Ur supply is regulated n stuff! Good luck! x

her babys 3 months old also thats easily avoided. if she wants her supply to stay maintained during the time she is suplimenting with ebm or formula she can pump for that feed. i was an exclusive manuel pumper and regulated a great supply that way if she just makes sure she keeps it up she should be fine " id get her used to taking the bottle of expressed milk as formula can effect ur supply" sorry im confused but whats the difference? giving the bottle no matter what is in it if shes missing a feed and not pumping it could still effect her supply lol might have missed ur point there?

 

[steph.]

I've now got lo on formula during the day but still bf at night and early morning. It was really hard to get her onto formula but i think its because she is more stubborn than most. She had never taken a bottle before and hated the taste of formula. She would take about 10mls and then spit it out straight away. We tried every single bottle, sippy cup, cup on the market and tried giving her expressed breast milk but tbh she didnt really take that either. So we just persisted with the formula and over about 1month she increased the amount she would take and spat less of it out. We used the tommee tippee variflow teats as they seemed to work better than the rest. The key is persistence and ALOT of patience.