Weening off of Breast

You'll want to continue to breastfeed some while pumping to maintain your supply. Baby is a much better stimulator of milk that the pump. You could do something like every other feeding with formula maybe. I highly recommend the playtex traditional style nipples. They are very soft like the breast. It was the only thing that worked for me when trying to teach my son to breastfeed after being hospitalized for his first 6 weeks and he was used to the nipples they used in the hospital.

Good Morning, E.~ Happy Friday!! One thing I've picked up on in the large quantity of advice we all get from other mothers is that the baby will react to whatever change you throw at them by mirroring your reaction. So, if you act like it's no big deal, they won't either. I'm sure there are many exceptions to this rule, but it makes sence to me. I started my baby girl on formula in her 2nd week and did both breast milk and formula for 3 months. She had absolutely no problem switching between "mediums" (bottle to breast and formula to milk) and I like to think this might have helped her be adaptable to change.

The only thing I'd be concerned about is the type of formula you give her. Taylor has horrible gas and I'm still not sure which formula is best for that, but I give her Simolac Isomil Advanced (and am not shy with the mylecon!). She still has gas, so I'm sure there's one better. I just didn't want to vary the type of formula too much and now we're working on Stage 1 foods (which is going great!)

Good luck and arm yourself with many pics to go back to work with!!
E.

You don't have to switch to formula to build up a supply. In fact you may lose some of your milk if she isn't nursing. What I did was pump one breast while my daughter nursed on the other. That way she still gets the benefits and you don't have to wean her early. Plus it is easier to pump with the natural let down. I have a friend who instead of pumping, supplimented with formula while her daughter was at day care and then nursed her at night and on the weekends. She did this quite successfully until her daughter weaned herself. Not all babies will move from breast to bottle but it may be worth a try. Instead of formula during the day, though, use your pumped milk.You will find that your supply will regulate so you won't have to pump during the day but will still have plenty for her at night and weekends.

Good luck.

You don't have to wean her off of your breast milk. As your demand increases, your body will produce more milk, so you will be able to both keep her fed and build up a supply for later. The earlier you wean her, the more she misses out on developmentally. So, it seems backward to wean now, only to be put back on breast milk when you have a supply. Especially if she has a sensitive belly, it could cause her allot of unnecessary adjustment and discomfort. As for the breast to bottle transition, we had luck with Dr. Brown and Advent. Good luck to you.

Hi E.. I used a good electric pump, stored my milk in zip lock bags in the freezer so my husband could do the feedings and then gradually introduced formula in between these feedings.

I did this with both my sons and it went smooth as silk. By the way, my sons are now 22 and 18!

Good luck!