Breastfeeding

It really is completely your noice. I made the decision to stop bf at 6 weeks as I’d had mastitis twice and almost had sepsis. My LO wouldn’t always latch on so I was pumping and bottle feeding anyway. It’s really down to what you think is right for you and your baby because at the end of the day no one knows your bubby like you do. Just remember fed is best 🫶🏻

@Betty thank you! x

There’s a Facebook group called breastfeeding and lactation support UK which is helpful! If you wanted to see what giving a bottle is like then you could pump at the same time to protect your supply? Honestly my diet has been appalling breastfeeding but from what I’ve read baby gets all the best bits and everything they need so i personally don’t worry. I was struggling with breastfeeding a few weeks back but told myself not to make a decision when I was having a bad day, kept going and so glad I did now but ultimately you need to do what you feel is best for you! X

Have you thought about combi-feeding? I just feed a bottle of formula every night and it works great for us. I did it with my first baby too and we combi-fed until she was 1. Of course you could use expressed milk but if you are regularly giving a bottle it won't be a problem for supply as your body adjusts to just supply what you need. If you initially miss a feed you might find you can pump a lot at that time. I missed a different feed a few weeks back and pumped 120ml. So I don't need to pump any other time I only do it if I miss a different feed to protect supply, but if you are giving a bottle at a regular time you don't need to if that makes sense. Honestly I love combi-feeding. I found it relieved the mental pressure of being the only one who can feed and it means I can go out etc and don't need to worry as hubby can feed baby. I try not to miss other feeds at this point but if I do baby will be fed anyway.

Also re diet I've been eating not great as I had gestational diabetes so I've been eating all the sweets and carbs I couldn't! But I'm not worried, they take what they need from you and I take breastfeeding vitamins.

I wouldn't worry too much about your diet. Your breast milk is still pretty much liquid gold. I have days where I am struggling but honestly no one can make this decision for you. I want to EBF as long as possible and I remind myself of that on the bad days. Personally I find the people who say "just give them a bottle" quite frustrating. It doesn't help. Have you had much time for yourself? Don't get me wrong I don't get much but I tend to time it. Give her a big feed. Ensure both sides, hand her over immediately and get out the door. If I'm ready already when I give that feed I know I have at least two hours. EBF is hard and its a long slog and a lot of responsibility, I would join support groups and get down to them if you can then see if it helps. Are you feeding outside the home too? I found as soon as I got a bit more comfortable (which wasn't immediate) with whipping the boob out anywhere to feed I felt a lot better!

I thought about giving up breastfeeding as latch wasn’t great and it was painful. Everyone kept telling giving a bottle isn’t the end of the world (it isn’t but not what you want to hear!). Went to lots of BF support groups and now, we are EBF. Mental health is a lot better too as latch has gradually gotten better (it takes time and isn’t magically there from the start for some babies).

I breastfed my baby for 5 weeks .. he was unable to latch so I had to use nipple shields and then always offer him a bottle after to see how much he needed / was getting … after a good 20 min breastfeeding session he would down a bottle of milk …. So I knew my supply must be really low … so I gave up xx