11 Week Old Who Will Not Take Bottle & I Go Back to Work in 2 Days

Is there a local La Leche League or organization for breastfeeding mothers to help you out? I did not have issues with this for the most part, but it was a few days of refusal and minimal intake to get my kids to realize it was all they were going to get and also a natural nipple. Since I pumped and used that in the bottle first alternating with formula it got easier. Hope this helps.
C. - Disabled mom and part time Latasia Jewelry Designer

Have u tried having someone else give her the bottle. I was worried about the same thing but i know my son took it when he got hungry. Im sure things will work out. It could just be that she dont want it from you!

You are not alone!! My little girl ( Turning 2 next week) had taken bottles numerous times until apx. 3 months old, and then decided to refuse it! I know you don't want to hear this, but... Nothing worked. I think we bought almost every bottle made, with every nipple, we tried dropper feeding, spoon feeging, cup feeding, and sippy cups! Thankfully I was off for 4 months before I had to return to work full time. By the time she went to daycare she was able to take baby food- cereal made with breast milk and baby fruit etc...During my very frustrating and stressful time I found that this is a very common problem of breast fed babies- some eventually figure out that the bottle is not so bad, and some will never do it again. Like mine who never took her bottle again, and finally started on the sippy at 15 months when I quit nursing!
This whole thing was very stressful for me and my whole famly and support system. Talk to your pediatrician. Feel free to contact me! Good luck!

...and you also might want to be prepared for what is looking like the most likely thing to happen which is your daughter may very well decide NEVER to take a bottle, and this is the most hazardous situation to anyone's health here. Are you able to get a letter to your boss from her doctor stating it is medically necessary for you to stay home or bring your baby to work with you so that she may eat?

A friend of mine had the same problem. She had to start using sippy cups and her son would take those.

I had the same problem and after many weeks of trying my mom suggested the platex nurser with the nipple that looks most like her pacifier. She still wouldn't take the bottle from me and it took about 3 days for her to take ot from the daycare provider but she got used to it. She started solids at 4 months and began to refuse the bottle again at 5 months because she just wanted food. So the daycare mixed my brest milk with rice cereal and still does to this day, she is 9 months. Trying a sippy cup is a good idea too. It's a very stressfull transition, I know, but it will get better and she will eat it when she realizes it's her only option. Good luck!

Hi S.,

Call the local La Leche league person if you can. there may be a number in your phone book. This was a huge help to me with my second child when i had to return to work and was breastfeeding. I was able to continue breastfeeding!

your baby knows what's good for her - if there is a way to pump a few ounces for her to have during your work time that would be ideal. regarding nipples, I'm guessing the softest most malleable are most like yours and could work.

I think 411 is a number to call for various resources like la leche.

best wishes to you!
K. C

I have had a few babies in my daycare that have been breast fed and had some trouble transitioning to taking breast milk from a bottle. The latest little girl really took some patients :) We tried several different bottles and nipple types to find something that she was happy with. We ended up with a Playtex Nurser with the wide nipples. If she still has trouble I rub her tongue with the tip of my finger while the bottle nipple is also in her mouth. I don't know if it is the texture or taste of the skin but it REALLY helps her latch on. (yes, I wash my fingers first)

She would have some trouble on Mondays after breastfeeding all weekend but now she is a trooper and does great.

There are lots of things you can do - spoon feeding, flexible cup (like a medicine cup - baby will lap at the milk like a kitten), syringe or dropper, medicine spoon, etc. A different type of bottle is the Adiri Breastbottle, found at this website:

http://todaysbabies.com/breastbottle_nurser.html

They are making a new bottle style which comes in 3 stages - probably a marketing thing, cuz you have to buy the three different bottles for different size babies. But these bottles are very popular with nursing babies/toddlers. The new design looks less like a breast (which might make dads/caregivers more comfortable with using it) but still has the soft, flexible, warm feel of the breastbottle.
http://todaysbabies.com/adiri_natural_nurser.html

Good luck!

Hello there
This is your first baby right? Baby will take a bottle fine once you leave for work. WQhoever is caring for the little tike may have to keep trying for a good while at first, but I can assure you that if he/she is hungry that they will come to LOVE their bottle! Relax all will be ok!

I was reading in a baby book that someone who had this problem tried sippy cups and it worked. I have not even tried to give my daughter a bottle yet so I don't know from experience...

My husband stayed home with my son after I went back to work. We had the same problem, but here's what worked. My son prefered a latex nipple (we ended up special ordering them), my husband wrapped one of my "dirty" shirts around the bottle so it would smell like me, and lots of patience on the part of my husband. It can be a tough transition, but I'm sure you will both do just fine. Good luck!

S.,
Not to sound harsh, but I'm sure once she realizes it is her only option if she wants to eat at daycare, she will take the bottle. My son was a little reluctant for a while when he first started at daycare, but he picked up on it. Don't get stressed out, she'll be okay.

Do you have to go back to work? Can your husband carry the financial burden while you take care of your daughter? It doesn't have to be forever, but a year would be nice.I know it sounds old fashioned, but our bodies were designed to nurture our children, and bottles are a slow second. Some of the suggestions seem cruel to me when your daughter really seems to need you.

I'd try the Adiri Natural Nurser, a bottle that is nearly identical to a breast and very soft. It think it's the best transition bottle on the market and ends nipple confusion. It's also 100% bisphenol-A and phthalate free so it's safe for baby! Here's a link to a review I've written on it: http://uggamugga.blogspot.com/2008/03/adiri-natural-nurse...

I'm convinced that there is no solution to this. My daughter was at day care for 4 weeks without drinking from a bottle. I would nurse her right before dropping her off and as soon as I picked her up (about 7 hours apart). The daycare teachers said she was perfectly happy and content and only cried when they tried to give her a bottle. On the first day of the 5th week at daycare she suddenly drank an entire bottle. This being my first baby I worried myself sick about it, and she was FINE! When she was hungry enough, she drank from the bottle, I guess. Don't worry about it. Hope your daycare providers are as patient and kind as my daughter's were.

HI, My name L.. When I was getting ready to go the bottle, after nursing. I would use the Playtex bottle. That seemed to work very well will both my boys. I have a 7 yr. old and a 10 month old. I always went for the nipple that would have some simliar look to the breast and it helped us.

Have you tried leaving the house & having someone give her a bottle? She will get hungry enough to get used to the bottle.

Are you able to go to the daycare over lunch at all? My daughter was the same way when I went back to work. She refused the bottle for 4.5 weeks at daycare. I nursed her in the morning, at noon and then when I picked her up. Eventually she figured out that she was hungry and took the bottle. Eventually they give in, and she will be fine. Don't stress out too much about this. My girl liked the little gerber bottles with the small nipples. She didn't like the Avent bottles at all, which is of course what we had from our first!