Need Advice on Getting 9 Week Old to Drink from a Bottle

My little 5 month old girl had fed fine from a bottle her whole life, even though she's breastfed primarily. All of the sudden, she wouldn't take one from me anymore. I had to put her in her infant seat and feed it to her that way so she wouldn't even be in the position to breast feed. I hope this helps!

Just keep pumping and offering her the milk in a bottle. My daughter is breastfed and didnt want to take the bottle at first either. Dont worry, when they get hungry, they'll take it. Elizabeth is now 6 months old and switches between the breast and bottle with no problems. I had to go back to work when she was just 6 weeks old and hence i pump on my breaks. By the time she was 10 weeks, she was doing much better on bottles and now she drinks 15 ounces while at daycare as well as a jar of babyfood and she's happy as can be. Good luck and don't give up!

K.....try the knuk bottles and nipples. my son was never given formula but evetually had to bottle feed because of work. he never even wanted a pacifier.. the knuk nipples work. Good luck and congrats for breastfeeding. It really makes a difference.

I had the same problem with my daughter. Have you tried different kinds of bottles? In the end, she ended up only liking the playtex bottles with the brown latex nipples. It was a total pain to use them, but it was the only thing that ever worked for her.

It sounds like you're doing everything right! Several people have mentioned trying different bottles, and that gets my vote, too! She may not like the nipple of the one you use. I know my second one wanted Avent bottles and didn't like some of the others, although we went to a Playtex to get her to start holding it when she was much older.

If money isn't super-tight, there are bottles that are breast shaped silicone - they tend to be expensive. The one we used previously was an Adiri, but I know there are a couple other ones on the market. You might check in the back of baby mags for advertising.

Good luck with the bottle switch!

K.,

I had the same problem with my baby and just like the other mom's here it was the nipple/bottle. I used the Playtex Nurser and it worked beautifully. They use liners so it's a lot less washing of bottles, too. Good luck!

My daughter, now 10 yrs old, did that when she was a baby & I went back to work. It turned out it was the bottle nipple. After trying several different ones, she found one that she liked. She was fine after that.

This might sound kind of strange, but try feeding her the bottle just like she is breast feeding (with your shirt open, so she can feel skin). I had the same problem with my daughter and once I tried this she did much better with the bottle. You just need to do it for a few times and then she should start to do better. Good Luck!!

http://www.adiri.com/products_html/nurser.asp
This is something worth trying, there is a learning curve because it 'seams' to leak, but once you figure it out, it's amazing.

There IS a bottle out there that looks and feels exactly like a breast. I ended up nursing my daughter exclusively for 18 months because she wouldn't take any bottles. But, my hubby was facinated with what we dubbed the 'booby bottle'. It was expensive, but it might work for you. I agree with everyone's advice to just keep trying different kinds until you find one she likes.

My son did the same thing. I was able to go home for lunch, so I guess he wasn't starving, but he often refused to take a bottle. All I can say is that once you go back to work, she'll figure it out for herself. Try to find a bottle she minds less, and then be ready to breastfeed lots when you get home from work, all through the night, and in the morning.

Good luck!

Is she just not taking it from you? Or is it others too? If it's you, it's probably because she can smell your breastmilk and only wants that? I hope this helps, Take care J.:)

She Likes you better, but if she gets hungry enough she will take it...warming it may help....did with my oldest. Otherwise, as the ped. told me they will eventually give up the fight when they get hungry enough...it is usually a battle of will if they already know how. Your are loved :) Good luck!

Put your breast in her mouth. Then within seconds slip the bottle to her. Do not offer her your breast again. She is manipulating you. If she's hungry, she'll take the bottle.

i breast and bottle feed my son because i sometimes pump when i get sore. He loves platex bottles. They are called natural latch. the nipple is very much like ours, large. :) give it a try they cost about $4.00 with tax and have liners. The liners take a little longer then other bottles to prepare but the stop the extra air from getting in that other bottles do sometimes allow. My son in 7 weeks old and takes to them very well. best of luck!

Playtex bottles with the drop in's and brown latex nipples!

I had the same problem with my son. Whoever is trying to bottlefeed her, have them hold the bottle where their breast is and hold her the way you hold her when you breastfeed. Good luck.

One thing that I have noticed with babies is that they pick up on how you are feeling, so if you are tense she will be more tense also and less likely to latch on to the bottle (and it is good to have others do it rather than you - she is used to getting her milk her familar way from you). Whatever you (or whoever is feeding her) can do to relax before trying the bottle (and I know that is much easer said than done) do that - and if you get upset at her struggling you may have to take a break and try again. I also recommend the playtex nipples, you might try different materials (silicone, rubber, whatever they come in now) to see what she prefers - if she takes a pacifyer I would try something similar to the one she uses. Just know, this too will pass, and before you know it she will be going back and forth just fine.

Happy mothering!

I used to attend La Leche League meetings when I was nursing my daughter, and they suggested a dropper or spoon for babies who wouldn't take a bottle. You may want to attend a meeting yourself or talk to a LLL leader. You will gets lots of support and great advise for all your breastfeeding issues.

My first two children were exclusively breastfed and were pretty rotten about taking a bottle (they never did, even breast milk). But I didn't really push it like I could have.

It wasn't until my third child was born and I didn't have nearly the milk supply that I had with the first two. As someone who had nursed before, I KNEW my baby wasn't getting enough milk. At 4 months old, she had only gained 3 pounds.

It took me 10 days to get her to take a bottle! I offered one to her every time she needed to eat. She cried hysterically and wouldn't even put her tongue around the nipple. I was so scared for her because I knew she was hungry. On the 10th consecutive day of trying,she was screaming and stopped for two seconds to calm down and she sucked the bottle nipple. When she found out that something was coming out of it, she never turned it away again.

Now, my baby was starving and was happy to have food, but many moms only breastfeed for a few months and then go right to formula. She can do it, you just have to try every single day over and over again.

I personally really liked breastfeeding my older children, but when I found the freedom of the bottle, it was absolute heaven! I had trouble nursing my fourth child as well and had to supplement very early on. Bottles are good friends.

Remember, do it every day over and over when you would normally feed her. You might want to give her a bottle once a day so she is used to it when she needs it. If you are trying to get her to eventually drink formula, you might want to mix it half and half in the future.

Good luck! This is a tough one, but consistency is the key.

A.

I had the same problem, and it turned out that the hole in the nipple was too small. Cutting it wider with scissors finally did th etrick, though it took us _forever_ to figure it out.

I think you are on the right track and it will just take time. One thing I may suggest is trying different types of bottles...i know..expensive test! We used the avent with one son and Dr. ?? with the other. The dr. bottles were for collic babies but the nipples were great, small like the mom and easy to latch on....
Just a thought...Hope and pray you find the solution soon

Hi K.! My name is S. Jameson. My son (who is now 3) was born 1 month early, had jaundice and never latched on well. Therefore, I was not able to breastfeed him but he would not latch on to a bottle either. We had to go to a feeding clinic in Plano. It was amazing and he was sucking from a bottle within in minutes of being there. It is so much to explain. I will be in Sherman next week for my JBF sale if you would like to drop by, I would be happy to show you what I know and remember. I know you probably want to know now, but if you are still struggling next week I would be happy to help. You can find my info at www.sherman.jbfsale.com
This will give you info about the sale, my info and you can look at the calendar for when I will be there. My cell is also on there.
Thanks!
S.
www.sherman.jbfsale.com

We went through this exact same problem with my daughter. I usually couldn't leave her for more than a few hours because she would refuse a bottle and scream and cry until she got the breast. When she started day care they offered her a sippy cup and it worked! They used the "Take and Toss" brand sippy cups. You can buy really short ones (maybe 4 oz?) that are indented for the baby to grip (it will be a while before your daughter grips it, but she might enjoy trying to grasp it.) If that doesn't work you can also have the care-giver use the cup with out the sippy lid and just tilt it slowly for your daughter to drink (one advantage is that she might learn to use a cup sooner on her own this way.) As a last resort, you can try "feeding" her breastmilk with a spoon (plastic is best, and the "Take and Toss" line makes some great baby and toddler spoons.) The sippy cups are sold at most grocery stores and at Target, but your best bet for finding the short ones I described is to go online or go to Babies R Us. Good Luck!

What bottles have you tried?
I EBF both my girls untill well over a year - and as little ones they were both very picky about what bottles they had BM in when I was away.
Try the Adiri Breastbottle. I know they have it at BabiesRUs. It is shaped like a breast - AND (most importantly) it has a nipple that works more like a real nipple. It is pricy ($14 i believe) but if you keep your refrigerated or frozen BM in a different contianer then you really only need 1, as it can be washed out.
Other options from there are ortho nipples (on a playex drop in) or Soothie wide neck nipples. Both havefound favor with the majority of BF'd kids I know.

Some EBF'd babies actually prefer drinking from cups. At 9 weeks your caregiver could give her 2oz at a time in the litel Medela feeding cups. Although, that would be a last ditch effort in my mind.

I'm sure it will work out, your baby will not let herslef starve. She just knows that she wants her momma milk from MOMMA. :)
It may work out - and alot of babies do this - where she will take from the bottle *just* as much as she needs during the day while you are away. Then she will want to breastfeed ALOT when you get home. Often times that kind if cycle can last a few weeks after the inital return to work. Take it as your chance to just sit and relax and chill with your baby after you get home :)

Good luck! Don't give up.

I don't mean to sound negative, but my daughter NEVER took a bottle. She has a crazy gag reflex and both rubber and latex nipples made her gag. I tried all shapes and sizes and she never would take it...I couldn't even go to the gym for two hours, she would scream the whole time. Two things...I just realized that when she was ten months old, I transferred her to a soft nipple sippy cup with the narrow flat nipple...don't know if she would take one of those...also, make sure it is warmed enough...breast milk is about 98degrees and a few degrees different could make a difference. Good luck, Bless you both.

I really HATE to say this cause it is a HUGE pain...but...it could be she doesn't like the nipples on the bottles you are using. My advice is to buy one or two of a couple different type of bottles and keep trying until you find one she is happy with. Unfortunately this can be expensive if she picks the more expensive ones or it takes several types before finding the right one.

Unfortunately with babies sometimes you get lucky and they will take anything you give thim, but sometimes you get one that's a little on the picky side.

Good Luck

Congrats on your baby girl!! What a good feeling that your baby girl ONLY WANTS YOU!! That is, until you return to work :) My suggestion is to try different bottles as suggested below, but don't force the issue. Let her try for 5-10 minutes EACH feeding & if you feel she's liking a certain type, stay w/ that bottle unless she absolutely refuses it. My son was born a month early (18 months ago & I'm a 1st time mom too) & had trouble latching onto the breast, but each feeding I kept trying until he really got the hang of it & we lasted 13 months!! He did have bottles from day 1, but I knew I too was returning to work & my hubby (who is the caregiver) would need to feed him in my absence. If she senses your frustration in trying the bottle, it'll only make her not want it that much more. So, give the bottle each feeding for as long as you feel neither of you are frustrated, but don't completely force the issue - it'll stress everyone out & you'll get nowhere! Keep your head up & I agree w/ earlier responses...she'll eat it if there's nothing else!! Good luck & God Bless!

I used playtex bottles for my son. He liked those better than any other bottle. I breast fed for a couple of months before giving him a bottle.

I had the same problem and found out that the nipple hole is not big enough so it takes a lot of work for your baby to suck. I used a toothpick and stretched the hole on all of my nipples and this has been working great. It made sense when my friend told me to do it because the milk from your breasts comes out really fast, so your baby does not have to work very hard. The nipple is work and both of my children would not take it until I made the hole larger. Also, make sure the milk is warm in the bottle. If it is cold, my son doesn't drink it. Good luck

I quit my job after having the same problem. My advice: Analyze your budget and see what you can do. Your baby is most important..........

I had the same problem with my daughter. I had breastfed her pretty much exclusively until she was almost 6 months old so she wasn't used to taking the bottle. I started her in part time care 2 days a week when she was 6 months old and the few weeks before she went she wouldn't take a bottle and it had pumped milk in it too.

We tried every kind of bottle and eventually she took the Avent bottle. She eventually took it from me. I just put the bottle sort of near where she would normally breastfeed and then she eventually started to suck from it!

Good luck!

A.
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The best thing you can do is to be consistent and keep trying. You leave the house while someone else tries to feed him. My son ended up only taking the bottle from me! My mil came over and very calmly (and with no expectations) got him to take the bottle and we continued that for a few days until he was used to it. Also try different types of bottles. We tried several until he finally took Dr. Browns.
Good luck.

I would go to a consignmet shop and buy one of each type of bottle they have. Try them all. I even had a friend that went straight to a low-flow sippy cup from the breast.
Akso, here is another bottle to try:
http://www.onestepahead.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId...