Think I've failed already :(

[wemustntpanic]

My baby is 4 days old and in a moment of panic in the hospital on day 2 I introduced a bottle because I didn't think he could be getting enough if anything from me and I was really worried he would get poorly
Since then I've been offering breast and then topping up with bottle but today he seems less able to latch (it wasn't perfect to begin with). My milk is starting to come in now and I have been able to pump a little and give that in a bottle.
My question is do you think he will still be able to learn to accept breast or is he now just going to want bottle?

 

[staralfur]

I would discontinue the bottles now that your milk is in, it's an important time to have him nursing as much as possible to bring in your supply.

You might have to work at the latch a bit but if there's no bottle then he should be able to pick it up again.

 

[LoraLoo]

Absolutely you can get him back to exclusively breastfeeding if that's what you want.
I too would ditch the bottle for now. He may be struggling to latch because your breasts are so full with your milk coming in. Express a small amount off first if this is the case. Get comfy and have some skin to skin contact and just keep popping him on. Let him feed for as long as he wants.
Best of luck and well done for giving it another go

 

[BostonGal]

I agree that my babies struggled with latching when my milk came in and breasts were engorged. They both still managed to gain plenty of weight. If your baby has lots of wet and dirty diapers they are getting enough to eat.

 

[wemustntpanic]

Thanks for all your advice ladies - he managed to latch on again this afternoon and has quite a good feed. Was still fussing for more so gave him some formula too though. Have expressed about an ounce since too. Not really sure what I'm doing but will preservere as long as we can

 

[caitlyn2009]

I agree with all the others Ladies. Discontinue the bottle and spend as much time as you can doing skin to skin and letting him nurse. This will help your supply along with helping him learn to nurse properly.

Thanks for all your advice ladies - he managed to latch on again this afternoon and has quite a good feed. Was still fussing for more so gave him some formula too though. Have expressed about an ounce since too. Not really sure what I'm doing but will preservere as long as we can

I would suggest that even if he seems to have had a really good feed, but still acts hungry to put him back to the breast instead of topping up with formula. It is completely normal for him to want to nurse almost constantly. He does this to help increase your supply. It doesn't necessarily mean he isn't getting enough from you. As long as he has plenty of wet and poopy diapers then he is getting enough even if he acts hungry all the time

 

[justplay91]

If breastfeeding is something you do want to stick with, I would definitely stop using the bottles. This was exactly what happened to me- and ruined my experience with breastfeeding (which I loved). I pumped and fed for awhile and then combi-fed for a little while longer. Eventually I had to switch exclusively to formula. When I do it all again with this baby, I will be staying far away from bottles! The baby gets used to the faster and easier flow from the bottle and has trouble latching on a breast. At only 4 days old, though, you have lots of time to rectify this and get him back exclusively on the breast! Only if this is what you want, however. There are multiple ways to feed your baby and you shouldn't ever let anyone feel bad for the way you choose to do it. Just letting you know that 1. Exclusively pumping is very hard and 2. You can absolutely still exclusively breastfeed if that's what you want. I recommend seeing a lactation consultant who can help you get your baby's latch back on track.

 

[Breezy]

I agree with all the others Ladies. Discontinue the bottle and spend as much time as you can doing skin to skin and letting him nurse. This will help your supply along with helping him learn to nurse properly.

Thanks for all your advice ladies - he managed to latch on again this afternoon and has quite a good feed. Was still fussing for more so gave him some formula too though. Have expressed about an ounce since too. Not really sure what I'm doing but will preservere as long as we can

I would suggest that even if he seems to have had a really good feed, but still acts hungry to put him back to the breast instead of topping up with formula. It is completely normal for him to want to nurse almost constantly. He does this to help increase your supply. It doesn't necessarily mean he isn't getting enough from you. As long as he has plenty of wet and poopy diapers then he is getting enough even if he acts hungry all the time

This!!

 

[tulip1975]

I was lucky - my hospital showed me (with a picture brochure) just how tiny a baby's stomach is those firsr 3-5 days, so I didn't worry that it took 3 days for my milk to come in - the colostrum was sufficient.

Nursing (and pumping) is about demand creating the supply. You should have early appointments to make sure that weight gain is happening. Those first days with engorgement are terrible. Every time my baby latched I was in agony. But after 2 weeks, everything was much better.

Good luck!

 

[mowat]

Keep it up! And yes, see a lactation consultant multiple times. One of my twins couldn't really breastfeed until he was more than four weeks and managed to figure it out even with having been almost exclusively bottle fed. Just try not to get frustrated! Easier said than done, I know.

 

[wemustntpanic]

Thanks for everyone's replies. Just thought I'd update to say that we are still going with the combi feeding. He seems to be coping really well with both now and I'm happiest doing both for now I think though he seems to be getting closer to taking a whole feed just at the breast. He's a big boy though so I'm happy to top up if he wants it.

 

[mowat]

That's fabulous---glad you've found something that works! My twins were in for a check-up today and they're both huge! Hard to believe that after a little bit of a rough start with feeding they can be so big. They rank in the 95th to 99th percentile for everything! Persistence pays off.