“I am having trouble breastfeeding my baby and was wondering if I am taking away something from him if I only pump and bottle feed? He latches on and releases over and over several times before he finally stays on. This can take up to 20 minutes and becomes extremely painful for me. Several nurses have told me she and I are doing everything right. I’ve found that pumping is much faster and easier and am wondering if he will miss anything?”
Lisa b
I agree – get baby checked for lip and tongue tie and get a few opinions. I had 2 doctors tell me that my son didn’t have a tongue tie before he was properly assessed. I also had a few nurses tell me that his latch was fine (even though I was experiencing pain). Pain when breastfeeding is not normal and you should definitely investigate.
There are other symptoms of lip and tongue tie that you can check for too (use google) e.g clicking sounds when feeding.
angelica S
As someone who has exclusively pumped for 2 babies due to latching issues – no, your baby is not missing out on anything. You still hold them. They still get antibodies. You just need to watch your storage approach and refine your technique. I’ve now been expressing for a combined 19 months from birth and this time I have donated more that 45 lt to babies in need. It’s not easy to pump exclusively but if you stay on top of it and it works for you, the do it and have no worries.
kayte M
It’s hard to give advice without knowing how old your baby is and how long you have been trying for. 1. Baby will get better at it. Breastfeeding takes practice. 2. If baby is newborn and your milk has only just come in, it’s fairly important to breastfeed during this period to regulate your milk. When baby is latched, they stimulate your breast to create more milk. 3. After a while you may find it harder to have a let down when pumping, you don’t get the same let down pumping as you do breastfeeding, so it may become difficult to pump enough. 4. A bottle fed baby can often guzzle it all down, not stopping when they are actually full, causing them to be over fed and stretch their tummy or give them tummy aches. a breastfed baby cannot be over fed. I’ve found it extremely difficult to find information in Australia about how much expressed milk to give a breastmilk fed baby, as it is not the same as formula amounts.
I think it will also be difficult to cater to baby when he is going through a growth spurt as it will be harder to stimulate your breasts to create more milk in a short time period than breastfeeding. I’m not 100% sure on that though, it would definitely be a concern of mine.
Id recommend seeing a lactation consultant though, and if you don’t like the advice given, try another one. My first lactation consultant hated the idea of pumping and bottle feeding a newborn baby. We found another lactation consultant and have pumped and bottle fed min 1 bottle a day since about 2 weeks old.
TARRAH LEE
I used a nipple sheild until my daughter was 6 months old as she just wouldn’t latch, it was a life saver.
She latched on herself finally after that and we are still feeding now at 2 ?
LAUREN Y
He won’t miss anything at all. X as long as he’s getting fed thats all that matters. It doesn’t matter how. Whether you use bottle, breast or formula. As long as he’s eating, putting on weight and loved then you are doing a wonderful job!
STACEY T
I would say it’s fine 🙂
My first wouldn’t latch at all. She lost a lot of weight in her first few days. I pumped and bottle fed her the expressed milk for her first 10 weeks and she put on lots of weight and was perfectly healthy!
Also have you tried a nipple shield? Some say That helps.
It took me 10 weeks before bubs could breast feed.
> KAYTE M
I wrote a whole bunch on points, rambling on, but I forgot to mention nipple shields!!!!! These saved me and not enough people are offered them by their midwives in the hospital! I used nipples shields for the first 8 weeks and can now feed absolutely fine without them.
sabrina n
I don’t think it takes anything away from you except the practical aspect of breastfeeding. You know, the no-material anytime anywhere thing. I used a breast shield at first to help with the latching and it really made it easier and less painful. Good luck!
larissa s
Join breastfeeders Australia on fb for proper support. It isnt that nice in the beginning as your nipples adjust but the more you latch on the better it will get. Bub will also get more milk rather than what is expressed. I found after 8 weeks it didnt hurt at all and it is the best thing. I expressed alot with my firstborn and ended up giving up and going on formula which I still regret. If you have the option to bf, keep on going, your doing well. Join the group, the ladies are all lovely.
Latching on, gel pads, lanolin cream and expressing for a rest will be your bestfriend
amie l d
1. Have you had him checked for lip/tongue ties? You’re definitely not taking anything away from him by exclusively pumping or even if you formula fed. What ever works best for you and bubba. I only managed to exclusively breast feed one out of 4 of my babies. Other things you could try are different holds so football hold etc but definitely get his mouth checked even if you have before just get a 2nd opinion it’s common to be missed sometimes.
liana g
You can still bond with baby through a bottle. My 1st was bottle fed and my forth was bottle fed for the first 7 weeks and trust me- there is no issue with out bond. So much so he sometimes forgets he was born and I am wearing him around the house in sling.
Tongue and lip tie should be checked though.
Do what you think is best, and all will work out.
jess lea
When my little one is tired or extra hungry she can be hard work! I usually try get her super sleepy then put her on and no troubles or feed her before she gets too hungry.
sarah c
You still bond with bub when bottle feeding. I say go with whats comfortable for you and bub. If pumping and bottle feed works best then run with it
tricia k
All three of my kids have been bottle fed from birth. I don’t feel they have missed anything in terms of bonding. I’ve found it better as my husband was able to feed them and share the experience with me.
vanessa h
Have they checked bubs for tongue and lip ties?
annie j
Go to a lactation consultant
rebecca c
Nipple shields are very good.
allei s
You could have a slow letdown which is normal. Try heat packs help with letdown before feeds and a cool pack after feeds. Make sure you drink plenty of water (the easy way to remember is when baby feeds you drink. Pumping is always faster than baby so its easy to mistake how much bubs is actually getting from you. Breast feeding goes by supply and demand. If bubs is hungry let bub feed. If bubs is able to empty one side, burp and offer the other then pump the remaining. My fifth child was a machine I felt like a never ending milk factory as he fed hourly for the first 6 weeks day and night (he still eats non stop at two years old lol). Depending on where you are located some community centres have lactation consultants that offer free advice and help with different technique’s. I’ve attached a link that explains in detail as the ABA really doesn’t give much info.
