Exclusive BF

They recommend waiting 2 months due to risk of bottle preference but if you’re hoping to move into bottles anyway that might not be an issue for you. I’ve breastfed both my daughters and they’ve both had a bottle from day one. My youngest is 9 weeks old and gets 3 bottles a day so I can pump in the morning then 1-2 in the evening so I can go to bed earlier. If you want to strictly pump it can be very time consuming as you have to pump every few hours day and night but is doable if that’s the route you chose to go down xx

Congratulations on your pregnancy ❤️. I think the best advice I could give you and your partner is don’t overthink the feeding and just go with the flow and it will all fall into place. I was so sure on breastfeeding and never considered anything else. My son was born prematurely and to cut a long story short, breastfeeding didn’t work so after a long time of crying because I didn’t want to introduce a bottle I decided to exclusively pump. This was good because we could both feed him but I ended up with issues because when you are pumping it’s highly likely you will over supply. The first few months I can’t really remember because I was constantly pumping, washing and sterilising parts then doing it all again. It was really tiring and mentally draining. Because he was taking from a bottle he never took to my boobs. A close friend has had the same the other way round where her child won’t take from a bottle because he’s used to the breast.

When your baby is here try them on your breast and see how you go. Once you have breastfeeding established you could give the breast pump a try and see how your LO gets on with a bottle but don’t let it get you down if either way doesn’t work. I’m sure it will all work out ok but don’t put pressure on yourself to exclusively pump and just enjoy your time with your baby and your partner. I got to a good place when I started doing 50/50 breast milk and formula feeds because it meant I could reduce how often I had to use the breast pump and it freed me up to do lots of other good things with my baby. As I said just go with the flow and take it each day. Good luck ❤️ xx

Congrats & best wishes for your pregnancy 💗 I agree it’s really difficult to make these decisions in advance, as every birth and every baby is different. My little one is 3 months now and I always intended to breastfeed, but we didn’t have the best start plus he was jaundiced, so we were instructed to top up with formula just a few days after he arrived. This has continued (mostly down to once a day now) and I use a double pump sporadically. This means he takes both bottle & breast which is great and my partner loves being able to help with some feeds. I agree pumping is really draining and tedious, so be prepared if you go that route. It can also be disheartening when you don’t get much milk, as pumps are less effective than babies at getting milk from the breast. I have found support at a local NCT drop-in and La Leche League has been really helpful 💗