bottle feeding/breastfeeding

[Maybelline]

i have 6 week old DD..have started to do bottle as well as breast..she seems way more satisfied from bottle...not sure what to do..obviously the more i bottle the less milk i produce...totally lost!!!!
who does both..or has advice

[JessieLee]

Your baby is more satisfied because formula is harder for her to digest, therefore it keeps her fuller for longer. There are pros and cons to this. She might sleep better and be less cranky but she may also end up with constipation. My son ended up in hospital when he was six months old due to constipation from formula. I wish I had breastfed longer as it's much cheaper and there's no need for sterilising and making bottles. It's hard in the beginning, but I believe it gets easier.

A friend of mine gave her son a bottle at night so that he would sleep a little longer but gave him the breast throughout the day. Maybe this is something you could try if you feel you need some relief?

[Milliner]

6 weeks is growth spurt territory. If you are committed to breastfeeding and wish to continue, throw out all bottles and formula. Feed, feed, feed build up your supply.

During a growth spurt babies just want to feed all the time to build up your supply so it's normal for them to seem unsatisfied. Many mother feel that their no producing milk or their supply is inadequate.

Maybe have a read of the ABA site or Kellymom. Education is the key.

[Pregnor]

At 6 weeks generally babies have a growth spurt, which is why she might seem unsatisfied with your milk production. This is why many people say their milk 'dried up' at this time. You just need to be patient and let her feed as much as she wants, and within a week, you should be producing as much as she needs. From my experience the people who I know who have started introducing formula have ended up fully formula feeding within a at least a few months.

There is a recipe floating around on here for lactation boosting cookies if you want to try giving things a little bit of a push along. If you do want to still keep giving her a bottle, you can start to express after each feed, so your body thinks she is eating more, and when you give her a bottle you will need to express as much as you can, or your supply will actually drop.
Also I found when I gave bubs bottles of EBM on occasion, i found I had a lot of problems with him fussing on the boob, as the milk comes out of the bottle so much faster.

[jo101]

I too let BF slip when my last was 6 weeks old, and started using EBM in addition to BF. My supply dropped and he started to reject the boob as bottle feeding is easier for bub so I've been told. It was all over from then on once the bottle was introduced. If your really keen to continue, as the others have said, I would pack the bottles away and get some advice from Nursing Mothers. Good luck, but don't feel guilty if you do decide to bottle feed, its a personal decision, and youv'e got to do what you feel works best for you and your family.