Ok to Breast Milk Thru Bottlr and Formula Feed?

Of course it's ok!!! I'm doing that right now. Would you like some ways to try and help your milk supply? I have tons of ideas... also, try not to give too much formula or she won't want your breast milk. You need to breast feed as much as possible b/c an empty breast gets fuller faster, that's how you can keep milk supply up. You can also mix formula and breast milk in one bottle. The only problem with that is that after she eats (from the bottle) breast milk, if she doesn't want it all you can save it in the fridge for about 4 hours and she can finish it later. However, you cannot save formula. It can only be saved for 1 hour and then you have to dump it out. So, if you mix and she doesn't take all the bottle you may be throwing out some of that liquid gold! If you would like some help with milk supply, just email me and let me know. I'm on a med right now that helps produce milk--and man... does it produce milk!!! :)

How often is she eating with breast milk?? It is normal to feed frequently with a newborn on breastmilk. My daughter ate every 2 hours until she was about 6 months old. It varies with calories, thickness, and such each feeding. Formula has a consistant number of calories each time,..so it stick in their tummies longer. That is why formula fed babies will eat every three to four hours in the beginning.
It is ok to supliment..however remember if you are going to consistantly feed breast milk you need to establish your supply, so keep pumping even if you do formula otherwise you may not produce enough for your baby.
Also, an ounce or three out of each breast in the beginning is very normal and enough for baby. I read somewhere that a normal lactating woman at the peak of breastfeeding will only produce about 5 to 6 ounces out of each breast at a feeding. So, it takes time to build up what is needed.
I wish you luck, breast feeding..even through a bottle is hard in the beginning and very time consuming. But in the end it is very worth it and can turn into a wonderful bonding experience.
Best wishes

Talk to the pediatrician. You don't breast feed at all? Milk production has a tendancy to go down when you are solely pumping because, as advanced as pumps are, they still don't fully mimic a baby's nursing. You can try to pump more often and see if that helps.
Good Luck :)

You didn't say what pump you are using. I nursed my child for 18 months and I used a "Pump-N-Style" by Medela (? I think that is the brand name, you can just type in pump in style on the internet and it will come up). I had no problem having real "let downs" with it (let down being my milk letting down, coming out of my breast at an even flow). I could easily get 5-6 ounces out of each breast several times a day. However, I nursed him whenever I was with him and pumped only when I was at work. I would suggest trying to nurse him, if he will accept you, and that might help your milk production. As for nursing and giving formula, there isn't anything wrong with it from a physical stand point, but I have very strong opinions about formula that I don't need to share. At any rate, your ok for mixing them, but again, if you really want to continue with breast milk (and I really hope you do, there are so many benefits to your baby, you can't even imagine, things that formula cannot ever give) try nursing on and off and getting a pump in style. They are expensive, but well worth it in the savings you will realize in formula.

I also wanted to add that the Pump n Style is very similar, if not exactly the same as a pump you rent from a hospital. My uncle is an OB-GYN and he tells me there really is no difference, except for the money you will spend. You will spend more on your own pump, but if you plan on using it for a longer time frame, it will be a wise investment. If you only plan on pumping for a few months, it would be best to rent one. The Pump n Style simulates the movements a baby would actually make. You can increase or decrease the suction as it works on you. I loved mine and everyone I have talked to that had one loved theirs as well.

The most important thing is for your daughter to get the food that she needs...so give her all of the breast milk that you have, and then supplement with as much formula as necessary.

In my experience, there are some people who make you feel guilty if you do not exclusively breastfeed. And then, there is the pressure that moms put on themselves because of all of the information that breastfeeding is best.

You just take care of that little girl, and know that you are a great mom because she is well-fed and growing! : )

Yes A. to breastfeed and bottle feed at the same time is perfectly fine.The reason I know this is because I have friends that do this.Good luck and take care.

Hey A.,
Pretty much the same situation is happening to me right now. My suggestion is drink LOTS of water and buy Fenugreek. It is a pill you take a couple times a day to increase milk supply. That has helped a lot and then when I need to I feed him Similac advanced. This seems to work real well with my four month old so I hope it helps you as well. Good luck and feel free to ask me if you have any other questions.

K.

Hi A.,
I have an 11 month old little girl. I breast fed her for the first three months. Towards the end of the third month my milk supply wasn't enough to fill her so I supplemented with formula. She did just fine. You are doing a great job with your little one. Keep up the good work!!

K.

New stuff added to reply:

In case I hadn't put everyone to sleep with my original post (yes, I know I can go on a bit!) I thought of something else I wanted to say.

When I began exclusively pumping for my son, I knew next to nothing about lactation, despite having breastfed my older son. Maybe I was just asleep on the day everyone else learned this stuff, but since I found it useful I wanted to pass it on. Also, I enjoy making incredibly long posts :-)

Before I started reading everything I could to help me EP for Nick, I had a vague idea that milk production was a constant thing -- a mother's body constantly produced milk, which would be stored in her breasts until her baby nursed and emptied said breasts, and then the process would start over. Turns out that isn't the whole story. Your body does constantly produce some milk, which is stored in the milk sinuses in your breasts, but the average breast can only hold an ounce or two of milk. When the baby starts nursing and the sinuses begin to empty, the body is triggered to make milk on the fly. Most of the baby's meal comes from the made-on-demand milk, not the relatively small amount that had accumulated in the mother's milk sinuses. Some women experience this instant production of milk as a noticeable lowering of hydration and blood sugar levels -- it can be a good idea to have a drink and a snack nearby. The point is that you don't need to wait until your breasts 'fill up' before you can nurse or pump again. In fact, waiting until you feel engorged will send a message to your body that it is producing too much milk, as will nursing or pumping only a little bit of milk at a time. If you want to stop lactating, wait until you are engorged before expressing just enough milk to feel comfortable, avoiding going into instant-milk-production mode. If you want to increase suppply, pump before your breasts feel full, and pump for as long as your body can keep up the instant production. This will tell your body that more milk is needed, and the amount of milk your body can produce on demand will increase.

Okay, I think I'm done now :-)

Original post:
I pumped and bottle-fed my younger son. Due to a cleft palate he couldn't nurse but I was determined to give him breastmilk. The key things are using a good pump and pumping often. No pump is going to provide the physical and emotional stimulation of a suckling baby so you have to compensate by pumping a lot!

If you're using a consumer-grade pump I strongly suggest renting a hospital-grade pump. Even the best consumer pumps such as the Medela Pump In Style are not as good as hospital grade pumps. After you have established your supply you can use a consumer pump, but at least for the first couple of months you should use a hospital pump. I rented a Medela Lactina. Medela have a newer hospital pump out called the Symphony which I have heard good things about. Make sure that the attachments are new and replace them if they start to look worn. Even if it looks okay, replace the little yellow valve and white membrane thingies every month -- the membranes lose their flexibility with use and this has a huge impact on suction.

You need to pump often. At first I pumped every two hours for 20 minutes. Yes, even overnight for the first week. Yes, it was a total PITA. You want to pump more milk than your baby needs to be sure of getting enough stimulation. Buy milk freezer bags. I found the Gerber bags better than the Medela ones, because the Gerber ones have a ziplock closure and they can be frozen into a flat stackable rectangle, which saves space in the freezer. After the first couple of weeks you can reduce the frequency of pumping. The optimal frequency is going to vary from mom to mom, and may take some experimentation. You need to pump often enough to produce more than your baby needs, enough to freeze a couple of freezer bags every day.

Pumping less than your daughter needs, and making up the gap with formula, will result in your supply diminishing. Initially, as your milk comes in and your build up your supply, you may need to supplement with formula, but if you want pumping to work long-term you have to work toward an oversupply. The formula itself isn't the problem (of course, breastmilk is much better, but formula provides perfect adequate nutrition), the problem is that the less you pump, the less milk your body will produce.

I was lucky enough to be able to be a stay-at-home mom so I could plan my time around pumping, and I was blessed with productive breasts :-) so I did well, but I won't pretend that exclusive pumping is easy. Having done both, I can assure you that nursing is MUCH easier! I was on an EPing support group, and plenty of moms had work commitments that prevented them from pumping, or bodies that just couldn't get all relaxed and maternal and milky about a plastic-and-metal machine. You didn't say why you had to pump instead of nurse, but whatever the reason I applaud you for trying. The first month of breastfeeding is the most important as far as the health benefits go -- yes, longer is better, but the rate of return diminishes -- so if you find that you can't keep up the pumping, please don't feel bad about it. You're doing a wonderful thing and you should be very proud of yourself.

If I can be of any help, please let me know.

Congrats on the new baby! Aren't they precious! Yes, you are doing the right thing. If you can't breast feed the regular way that is fine bottles will work just as well. . . you will just have to maybe pump for a longer period of time. Somehow the baby can pull more milk from the breast in a smaller amount of time than the breast pump can. I feed my twins breast milk most of the time, but when I can't I bottle feed them breast milk or formula (I get frusterated taht my babies seem to get fuller from breastfeeding rather than me pumping!). Hey, we aren't super human! Sometimes it just isn't enough! You are going to be a great mother, just by the few choices you have already made so far. Keep up the good work!