Breastfeeding & Bottle – How do I do both? Part 2

In Part 1 of breastfeeding & bottle feeding, I discussed how many moms will breastfeed and provide their babies with bottles of pumped breast milk or formula regularly or from time to time.  There can be varying reasons for this, from providing the father the opportunity to be involved in feeding the baby, or allowing the mom to get some extra shut-eye at night, or because mom needs to be away for a few hours to all day because of returning to work.  In any case, there are ways to make breastfeeding and bottle feeding compatible, and I’ll give you some more ideas today.  If you have not read Part 1, you may want to read that post first as it has some good ideas and recommendations there, and then you can return here.

• After waiting the four to six weeks to introduce the bottle to your baby, you may need to be patient.  Although I never had any trouble with my babies accepting the bottle, I did introduce it before they were three months old.  In order to improve acceptance of the bottle, try getting the father or another family member to give the first bottle.  It’s also better if this person does not sit where you normally sit, as your baby may associate that location with breastfeeding from you.
• Introduce the bottle when your child is not frantically hungry or ill.
• Ensure the breast milk or formula is not too cold or too hot. Warm it up in a container of warm water.   Never microwave breast milk (it changes its composition and probably kills off a lot of the beneficial properties) or formula as you can get uneven heating of the formula which can result in scalds in the baby’s throat or esophagus.
• You may want to warm up the nipple to soften it up.
• Try introducing the bottle in the middle of the night when your baby is less alert and is willing to accept it from your husband or another family member.
• If you are in the process of weaning as you introduce the bottle, you may find it helpful to visit this post for further tips.

There are many moms who do both breastfeeding & bottle feeding.  There are ways to make it easier to do, and I hope that some of these tips help you.