Nursing mom..going Back to work.....my Son Refuses to Take the Bottle! Help

My son had a hard time taking a bottle at first. We got the playtex bottles with liners. (more expensive, I know) What I did was every time I would try to give him a bottle, I would push on the liner to squirt some milk into his mouth. That way he got a taste for what was in the bottle. It still took some work, but just watch for his signs, and don't get frustrated. If he senses you getting upset, it'll be even harder for him.

just wondering how it is going. here is a great resource for info on breastfeeding, and they have some local support groups for moms too, last i knew. maybe you can find some info there.

http://www.lalecheleague.org/

You will probably start supplementing with cereal and other foods soon, if i remember right. I used to nurse a little, then offer the bottle or cereal, when the edge was off the hunger and the baby was not so stressed out. keep us posted on how it goes.

God bless!

hi S.,
i had the same problem with my son when he was five or six months old. i only nursed him and never gave him a bottle but i went of vavation and my mom watched him. the only way he would eat for her was to have him facing outward away from her because if he looked at her he wouldnt drink. he eventually got over it. maybe your son is just confused about it because he is used to looking at you nursing him.i dont know if this will help you but good luck!
B.

Can he sit up by himself? you might just want to try a cup....are you weaning him or just need to feed him while you are gone at work? not that it would be easy on his care giver but make them try the bottle....while you are GONE...if he knows you are around of course he will want to nurse. If you can let him drink from a cup....suck on a pacifier...maybe even start cereal or bananas or something to hold him until you can get back to him. I had the opposite problem, my son loved his bottle and food at day care and started to get very frustrated with breastfeeding. I persisted until about 9 months but he had been showing less and less interest from about 6 months on....who is your care provider? Day care personnell have seen this before!

Hi S.-
I had to go back to work when my son was 3 months old. He was not into taking a bottle at first. I was persistent and he finally took it. I started with the Dr. Browns bottles which were great. I ended up switching to Avent because the Dr. Browns have so many parts. Are you using pumped milk or formula? Of course, he is more likely to take it if it is pumped milk. You could try, like others have said, having someone else feed him and maybe that will provide positive results.

Have you tried a cup with a straw? Or you could finger feed. There are many alternatives to bottles, you could call your lactation consultant if you have one.

My daughter was a breastfed baby and I worked full time. She didn't eat much from a bottle and basically waited for me to get home at night and ate then. A lot of babies will reverse cycle and eat primarily at night and not eat much during the day. You may also find that your baby will eat a bottle from someone else but not you.

Good luck, you and your little one will figure it out!

I used a baby syringe and 1st squirrted some milk into my daughter's mouth, then popped the pottle in. it takes som manuevering to do it fast, but it worked. I think the bottle i use is a playtetx nurser too.

S.,
One of the best things to do is to have another person introduce the bottle to your son. At that age, they get confused, because they know you, and know what they get from you. I had the same thing with my son(who is now 7), and I had my hubby introduce the bottle, because that was what our dr advised. It worked wonderful for us. Hope this helps

Try Doctor Brown bottles and if that doesn't work you will have to in a sense let the little one go hungry until he takes the bottle. I had to do that and let me tell you it is not easy at all but eventually they get the point also try to have some one else feed him not you and leave the room because if he senses your there he may not want it. I hope this helps.

Hi S.,

I know what you are going through. I've been nursing my son for 8 months now, but when it was time for me to return to work he would not take a bottle. In fact, he has never used a bottle. Instead at around 5 months we began using a sippy cup, the slow leak ones are good to start with, and regular cups. He now uses a sippy cup when I am not at home and can also use a regular cup with help. It will be tough and will take time, but if you deny him the breast he will learn to get milk from another source. I wish you the best of luck and hopefully you will find a solution that works best for you both.

I JUST STOPED NURSING MY SON 3 DAYS AGO AND I USED THE DR.BROWN'S BOTTLES AND LET ME TELL YOU HE LOVED IT. HE WOULD NOT DRINK FROM THE PLAYTEX NURSER'S YOU SHOULD GO OUT AND BUY THOSE ONES. HOPE IT GOES GOOD FOR YOU

HI S.,
I WOULD KEEP INTRODUCING THE BOTTLE UNTIL HE WILL TAKE IT AND OR LET HIM GET HUNGRY ENOUGH THAT HE MAY HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO TAKE THE BOTTLE. THIS IS JUST A SUGGESTION BECUAS E MY SISTER WENT THRU THE SAME THING AND SHE KEPT INTORDUCING THE BOTTLE TO HER DAUGHTER AFTER STRICTLY BF AND EVENTUALLY THE BABY TOOK TO THE BOTTLE BUT AGAIN ALL BABIES ARE DIFFERENT SO GOOD LUCK. KELLY

I don't know if this will help or if you already tried it, but it worked with my son. I held him like I was going to nurse him right next to the breast and fed him the bottle instead. He refused a few times but finally took it and once he got the hang of sucking the nipple he was fine. Good luck.

HI S.,
I breastfeed for 7 months or so, and after 4 months went back to school. At first my daughter was having a hard time taking a bottle also!! I used platex nurser bottles. I tried first nursing her and as it let down swich to the bottle sometimes that worked. Other times ahe would take the bottle from someone else as long as it wasn't me, ( it think since she associated me with breast!!) but after a few of those struggles and about a week of just bearing with it, she took the bottle. hope this helps.