Why do you use formula

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Why do you give formula?

cannot physically nurse for a medical reason

10%

[ 9 ]

cannot physically produce a decent supply after trying everything

12%

[ 11 ]

would love to nurse but find it too emotionally/physically draining and prefer to invest my energies into other areas of parenting

10%

[ 9 ]

do not beleive that there is much benefit to breastfeeding and formula is a perfecly valid alternative

[ 1 ]

never managed to establish nusing properly and/or did not get enough support

[ 6 ]

do not have the time (working mom) to invest in keeping up a supply

[ 5 ]

other

12%

[ 11 ]

I do not use formula

42%

[ 38 ]

Total Votes : 90

Raisin

Fri, Nov 28 2008, 6:35 am

YALT wrote:

Raisin wrote:

Or how about: if I give formula I can go out with my husband without having to worry about the baby. (I'm not joking, someone put that as one of the pros of formula feeding in another thread)

I wrote that. It was in a thread, where a mother wanted to be comforted that it's OK to bottlefeed. It is a bonus. I don't think anyone (in their right mind) would change to formula for that reason. But it a bonus.
Someone said that to me when I couldn't nurse DS.

but you can breastfeed and only give formula when you go out. So its not really a bonus. Anyone can do that.

YALT

Fri, Nov 28 2008, 6:45 am

not all breastfed babies take bottles.

Raisin

Fri, Nov 28 2008, 7:23 am

YALT wrote:

not all breastfed babies take bottles.

you have to introduce them early enough. I think at about 2 months.

ShakleeMom

Fri, Nov 28 2008, 9:56 am

Apparently, it’s a combination of fluid ounces and calories. It’s the calories and fat that makes them gain, and the fluid amount that keeps them full. I lack in both departments.

Mama Bear

Fri, Nov 28 2008, 10:25 am

Raisin, thank you!!! I dont get this whole 'nipple confusion' thing and stubbornness not to give breastfed babies bottles. my baby had bottles in the hospital, bottles in seagate, bottles when I was hospitalized, yet he never refuses to nurse as a result. I have no issue leaving him with a bottle with a babysitter. I'm not attached to him 24/7. I dont see a reason to fear teaching a baby to take a bottle.

Raisin

Fri, Nov 28 2008, 10:27 am

Mama Bear wrote:

actually, they don't usually recommend introducing a bottle so early becasue it can cause nipple confusion (I guess your baby is smart, he didn't get confused), obviously you had no choice. The trick is to introduce not too early, not too late.

amother

Fri, Nov 28 2008, 10:31 am

Fox wrote:

I tried to nurse, but my milk didn't come in for a few days. Now, I know that newborns aren't supposed to need a huge supply during the first few days of life, but apparently my babies didn't read the book. They were starving within a day! I'll always remember trying to nurse my youngest son: he would work and work, and finally collapse, exhausted and crying in hunger. I finally sent DH out for some forumula, and he gulped it down and fell into a contented sleep.

Did I do everything I could have to establish nursing? Probably not. I did pump for a month or two, but eventually it was just too time-consuming and difficult, especially on Shabbos.

BTW, my mother is a big proponent of nursing, and I agree that nursing is better. But it's not a religion with me. I made what I felt were reasonable attempts, including working with the hospital's lactation consultant, but for whatever reason, it just didn't work out for me.

Just to add to Fox's comments, I wound up with a baby who was limp, running a 100-plus degree fever, and passed crystal urine. My extremely pro-BF pediatrician gave me a choice -- formula or re-hospitalization with IV fluids. It seemed like a pretty easy decision. Two months, two lactation consultants, and thousands of dollars later, with an infant who was happiest in my arms being given a bottle, miserable when I tried to nurse, miserable when I couldn't hold him because I was pumping, pumping, and pumping to try to establish a supply ... I gave up. Should I note that Lactation Consultant 1 told me that I had already destroyed my baby's life by having an epidural (which didn't take, and gave me no pain relief), that formula was poison, yadda, yadda. Or that I GUARANTEE you that people here -- as people everywhere -- will tell me that I just didn't try hard enough?

Anonymous because the story is personally identifiable, not because I'm ashamed.

amother

Fri, Nov 28 2008, 10:36 am

mommalah wrote:

How does one determine that they have a milk supply?
I never quite understood this (and quite honestly don't believe it)
I think (and I'm not saying this is ur situation shaklee mom) that a lot of ted a baby will a team after a feeding and the mother will just assume it's bc she doesn't have enough milk when in reality the kid just needs to burp first to make room for more milk.

Fine. Don't believe it. I don't believe that there are people as ignorant as you are. There are documented instances of babies who have died -- yes, died -- because their mothers didn't have a sufficient supply, and continued to nurse. As I've written elsewhere, my baby wound up limp and feverish with dehydration because I didn't have enough millk. But YOU say that doesn't exist. I guess I should have kept trying and let him die.

Hashem_Yaazor

Fri, Nov 28 2008, 10:37 am

YALT, I don't mean to intrude, but I have a feeling I know what the issue was with your baby intaking so much and not gaining, and how to help that.
You most likely had a very fast letdown which made your baby take in a lot, but the letdown is much waterier foremilk as opposed to fattier hindmilk, so your baby filled up on that without getting to the dessert.

If anyone wants more info on this or how to help it, let me know.

raizy

Sat, Nov 29 2008, 10:41 pm

mommolah I had 6 different reasons why I had to stop nursing. but maybe for u. I should have died not takin any poison medicines and nursed my baby to heaven. u got to make the choice that is good for someone for the long run.... if I would have nursed they wouldnt have been able to give me the toxic medicines but I would have died so what is better a dead nursing mother or a healty giving formalla mother.... no brainer to me.

and I had so much milk.... too bad.

Yakira

Sat, Nov 29 2008, 10:50 pm

DD never liked it. It was becoming more and more of a challenge to get her to nurse. And as she got bigger, pumping once a day wasn't enough anyway so I had to supplement. I am guessing if I didn't go back to work, I probably would have nursed longer. But I am so grateful that I had an alternative!

GAMZu

Sat, Nov 29 2008, 10:54 pm

raizy wrote:

She never said no one should ever give formula... she said that she doesn't believe no supply is as common as it is claimed. Apparently, you had no problem with supply, so why are you picking on Mommalah?

BTW, how long did you need to take meds for?

flowerpower

Sat, Nov 29 2008, 11:03 pm

My mom tried nursing five times-with her first five kids and nothing helped.

I think I have milk that is like water-what helps for that?

By ds1 I bottlefed because he has stomach issues and had to go on nutramigen(the worst formula ever-smell, sticky...).

Clarissa

Sat, Nov 29 2008, 11:07 pm

I have a friend whose baby nursed but quickly became dehydrated after they were home from the hospital. He wound up having to be hospitalized for dehydration. While there, the lactation consultant watched my friend nurse and quickly determined that he was having latching difficulties, which led to a lot of sucking but very little consumption, which led to a diminished milk supply. So the lactation consultant helped them with latching, and they went home and were able to nurse fine after that, her milk supply quickly catching up with the demand.

I'm not saying people have to continue nursing if there are problems, I just thought the story shows that sometimes people think it's supply, but it might be something else.

Mrs. XYZ

Sun, Nov 30 2008, 12:04 am

Quote:

She never said no one should ever give formula... she said that she doesn't believe no supply is as common as it is claimed.

There definitely is such a thing as supply issue. But the difference is in how far women are willing to work on it. There are those that'll go to the end of the world, trying every sytem, every method, taking herbs, eating this, not eating that etc etc. Others (like myself, I admit) that put in a reasonable amount of effort to try, and if I see its not helping much, dont think that 1-2 bottles a day is so terrible especially since I'm still nursing.
So yes, I do have a supply issue, but maybe if I would have made myself much more crazy it would have helped a bit, maybe not.
But there are probably very few women who really have no milk no matter what.

And clarissa, that scenerio would usually only happen by a first time mother. By the third child the mother would know if its a latching-on issue.

raizy

Sun, Nov 30 2008, 12:11 am

let me think 2 weeks of meds then 5 weeks of toxic iv. then anther 2 weeks of meds. all in all 9 weeks and it all started when the baby was 3 months a little bit less. so forget it. thank hasham for formalla.

Mrs. XYZ

Sun, Nov 30 2008, 1:01 pm

Another valid reason to get a baby used to a bottle? So that when you are on the road, and baby is screeching you should not have to put yourself and baby in danger by nursing in a moving car. (see other thread) Could anyone argue that the risk of nursing in a car is not worse than the risk of nipple confusion?

Clarissa

Sun, Nov 30 2008, 1:03 pm

I don't understand that one. Can't one either pull over to find a place to nurse or let the baby cry for a bit? My kid has cried on city buses or subways. Either I get off an nurse, or I let him cry a bit. I don't see why a bottle would be necessary.

Mrs. XYZ

Sun, Nov 30 2008, 1:08 pm

Clarissa wrote:

Yes they could let the baby cry. But 'lemaaseh' (in reality) we see from that thread how many women DO do it, so wouldnt it have been better to get their babies used to a bottle for such situations? (doesn't nec. have to be formula)

greenfire

Sun, Nov 30 2008, 1:08 pm

with my first I locked myself up to nurse in public bathrooms (never again) so with my second baby he took both bottle and breast ... the nurses gave him in the nursery - he was a big eater and a large baby ... it made life so much easier and he was a good baby ... my next refused every bottle & nipple I tried - even into months when I simply wanted to quit ... my fourth gratefully took a bottle as well as nursing and I was able to quit when I wanted ...

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