Guest guest Posted November 7, 2001 Report Share Posted November 7, 2001 Have any of you had a similar situation? I have a friend who needs advice. She's B'feeding a 5 month old. Finally started sleeping through the night around 3.5 months, but has recently begun waking again. She's assumed it's hunger and is back to feeding him at night, sometimes twice. They've begun weaning onto solids - pureed apples, and he's loving it. However, doctor says his weight gain has fallen and doesn't match his height on graphs, so has recommended weaning onto a couple of bottles a day. She is feeling completely guilty about feeding formula to him and initially he rejected the bottle but now will take it but only from her, not dad. But he's still waking twice a night. She's hoping that the formula will maintain his weight gain. She's getting a bit stressed, I think, about new baby and routines and has no family support and few friends as she's living overseas. I just wondered if any of you weaned onto bottles and carried on with combined feeding (she hopes to continue b'feeding until 12 months) and if you have any advice / support to give. I've never given DD a bottle for anything and managed to successfully b'feed for 6 months exclusively, so never really faced the problems she has. And when you're given advice by health professionals and you're a little unsure of what to do, it's so hard to trust your instincts and you follow their advice. TIA Janet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 7, 2001 Report Share Posted November 7, 2001 Ruthie wrote: > My grandson Rafi eats loads of solids at 8 months but has yet to > accept even a drop of liquid in any other form other than from the > breast. Tavya has tried bottles, beakers, cups...sweetened drinks, > plain water, expressed breast milk.. Dov feeding him, giving him > Isaac did this to me at about 11 months old - he refused the breast completely but also refused liquids in any other form. I spoke to HV and she suggested making his food sloppy, and giving yoghurts etc and not to make a fuss. He finally went onto a cup (never a bottle although I even tried that) but prefers one without a lid - like the big boys! My main problem was that we had a heat wave about the same time and I was quite concerned that he was not taking any liquids. Trisha SAHM to 3 boys Jack 8, 6 and Isaac 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 7, 2001 Report Share Posted November 7, 2001 I did wean both the babes onto bottles when I went back to work (both at around six months), as the tiny amounts of food they managed to eat during the day combined with night time breastfeeding just wasn't enough. I had cut down on breastfeeding in the day (as I had to), and they started waking up much more in the night to make up for it (ie feeding all night) - and it just couldn't go on, so formula was the only alternative (otherwise would have had to give up work). I could write an essay on the trouble of getting babies to accept the bottle, but it sounds like she has managed that first hurdle? Is her main concern that she wants to continue to breastfeed as well? If so the best (I found) was to have some form of routine, so the bottle is used for specific feeds (eg morning and early evening) and the breast for the other feeds - that way the breasts know what to expect and are not constantly feeling empty or full. Or does she disagree with the advice and would prefer not using bottles at all? I know lots of people who have breastfed for 12 months (very common in Scandinavia) and some have used only breast milk - but most of my friends would recommend introducing some other liquid at around 6 months (even if only water with meals), and many have supplemented successfully with formula without losing their milk. Karina > Have any of you had a similar situation? I have a friend who needs advice. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 7, 2001 Report Share Posted November 7, 2001 My grandson Rafi eats loads of solids at 8 months but has yet to accept even a drop of liquid in any other form other than from the breast. Tavya has tried bottles, beakers, cups...sweetened drinks, plain water, expressed breast milk.. Dov feeding him, giving him the drink to take himself..he just aint interested. Ruthie > > Have any of you had a similar situation? I have a friend who needs > advice. > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 7, 2001 Report Share Posted November 7, 2001 >Have any of you had a similar situation? I have a friend who needs advice. > >She's B'feeding a 5 month old. >Finally started sleeping through the night around 3.5 months, but >has recently begun waking again. >She's assumed it's hunger and is back to feeding him at night, >sometimes twice. >They've begun weaning onto solids - pureed apples, and he's loving it. > >However, doctor says his weight gain has fallen and doesn't match >his height on graphs, so has recommended weaning onto a couple of >bottles a day. >She is feeling completely guilty about feeding formula to him and >initially he rejected the bottle but now will take it but only from >her, not dad. But he's still waking twice a night. >She's hoping that the formula will maintain his weight gain. >She's getting a bit stressed, I think, about new baby and routines >and has no family support and few friends as she's living overseas. > >I just wondered if any of you weaned onto bottles and carried on >with combined feeding (she hopes to continue b'feeding until 12 >months) and if you have any advice / support to give. > >I've never given DD a bottle for anything and managed to >successfully b'feed for 6 months exclusively, so never really faced >the problems she has. And when you're given advice by health >professionals and you're a little unsure of what to do, it's so hard >to trust your instincts and you follow their advice. > >TIA > >Janet DS1's weight gain went a bit wobbly once I started him on solids (not a day before six months in this house!) He ate really well (ah, those were the days!) - I had trouble keeping up with him. He'd started waking in the night (after sleeping through almost every night since under a week old) and solids made no difference to that. LaLecheLeague was especially good at this point - that was when I joined in fact (might well be a group in Greece as it is an international thing). Someone who'd had the same problem suggested encouraging the breastfeeding more (plenty of calories in breastmilk) - ta da! (Didn't solve the sleep problem - I think that was just a developmental issue - the notion of 'finally' sleeping through the night at 3.5 months is laughable :-)) Is he quite a mobile child? I was never quite convinced by that as my mother's reasoning but.... -- jennifer@... Vaudin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 7, 2001 Report Share Posted November 7, 2001 This happened to both my DDs. They were biggish babies (8lbs 15 and 7lbs 15) but DH and I are quite slender people (read " was " in my case!). I totally ignored the HV telling me to put them on the bottle as (a) my babies hated it ( I did not want them to have artificial milk and © they were happy healthy alert children. If they had been grizzly or shown signs of hunger then I might have paid some attention! Maybe he needs some more solids? (I'm not an expert though and I don't have boys who so I'm told have totally different appetites to girls!) HTH Francesca Weaning onto Bottles > Have any of you had a similar situation? I have a friend who needs advice. > > She's B'feeding a 5 month old. > Finally started sleeping through the night around 3.5 months, but has recently begun waking again. > She's assumed it's hunger and is back to feeding him at night, sometimes twice. > They've begun weaning onto solids - pureed apples, and he's loving it. > > However, doctor says his weight gain has fallen and doesn't match his height on graphs, so has recommended weaning onto a couple of bottles a day. > She is feeling completely guilty about feeding formula to him and initially he rejected the bottle but now will take it but only from her, not dad. But he's still waking twice a night. > She's hoping that the formula will maintain his weight gain. > She's getting a bit stressed, I think, about new baby and routines and has no family support and few friends as she's living overseas. > > I just wondered if any of you weaned onto bottles and carried on with combined feeding (she hopes to continue b'feeding until 12 months) and if you have any advice / support to give. > > I've never given DD a bottle for anything and managed to successfully b'feed for 6 months exclusively, so never really faced the problems she has. And when you're given advice by health professionals and you're a little unsure of what to do, it's so hard to trust your instincts and you follow their advice. > > TIA > > Janet > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 7, 2001 Report Share Posted November 7, 2001 I had a hell of a time establishing breastfeeding and started " mixed " feeding from 7 weeks (after help from every sort of professional you can imagine). I slowly reduced the breastfeeds to 2 per day, roughly 6.30 morning and night. For me it was a huge achievement to continue bf in some form and I then successfully breastfed like this until DS gave up at 11 months old to the day. It also helped as I went back to work when DS was 4.5 months and he needed to be on bottles for nursery by then anyway. I know this isn't the same circumstances at all as your friend, but does go to show you can successfully mix the two. Todman Treasurer, Stansted Branch (R5) Mum to , 3¾ > I just wondered if any of you weaned onto bottles and carried on with combined feeding (she hopes to continue b'feeding until 12 months) and if you have any advice / support to give. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 7, 2001 Report Share Posted November 7, 2001 Ruthie, my DD2 was just like this. Our solution was that we found she liked drinking from a straw (although this might be something to do with the fact that she has a big sister who she idolises who likes drinking through wiggly straws!). Anyway, that solved our problem as once she'd cracked that we moved onto those beakers with integral straws. Worth a try .... HTH Francesca Re: Weaning onto Bottles > My grandson Rafi eats loads of solids at 8 months but has yet to > accept even a drop of liquid in any other form other than from the > breast. Tavya has tried bottles, beakers, cups...sweetened drinks, > plain water, expressed breast milk.. Dov feeding him, giving him > the drink to take himself..he just aint interested. > > Ruthie > > > > > Have any of you had a similar situation? I have a friend who > needs > > advice. > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 7, 2001 Report Share Posted November 7, 2001 Weaning onto Bottles > > Have any of you had a similar situation? I have a friend who needs advice. > > She's B'feeding a 5 month old. > Finally started sleeping through the night around 3.5 months, but has > recently begun waking again. > She's assumed it's hunger and is back to feeding him at night, sometimes > twice. > They've begun weaning onto solids - pureed apples, and he's loving it. > > However, doctor says his weight gain has fallen and doesn't match his height > on graphs, so has recommended weaning onto a couple of bottles a day. > She is feeling completely guilty about feeding formula to him and initially > he rejected the bottle but now will take it but only from her, not dad. But > he's still waking twice a night. > She's hoping that the formula will maintain his weight gain. > She's getting a bit stressed, I think, about new baby and routines and has > no family support and few friends as she's living overseas. > > I just wondered if any of you weaned onto bottles and carried on with > combined feeding (she hopes to continue b'feeding until 12 months) and if > you have any advice / support to give. > > I've never given DD a bottle for anything and managed to successfully b'feed > for 6 months exclusively, so never really faced the problems she has. And > when you're given advice by health professionals and you're a little unsure > of what to do, it's so hard to trust your instincts and you follow their > advice. > > TIA > > Janet > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 14, 2001 Report Share Posted November 14, 2001 Never reread sent Emails if you are dyslexic, the typos are depressing :-( Sue Hutchinson, Mum to 30/01/98 and Isobel (HB) 23/02/01 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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