General Chat

My daughter was born at 29 weeks and I was determined to express milk for her but unfortunately my milk dried up, probably down to stress I was told. I felt like a total failure. My mum on the other hand breast fed my brother who's now 8 up until he was 4. We used to joke that she'd be down at the school gates at lunchtime with a boob between the railings to give him his 'snack'!! Leanne x

Christine I was not upset by the question you asked honestly :~)) and to be honest if I had another baby ( I'm not planning on any lol) I would do it all again even with the problems I had Julia

I was a breastfed baby and so were both my children (until they were a year old). I believe it helps keep their immune systems strong and prevents obesity. I am also of the opinion that bottle feeding can lead to digestive problems (even in adulthood). Babies' tummies are just not ready for cow's milk! Also its free, and easy (once established). The support I got in hospital when I had my children (1979 and 1982) was abysmal to say the least. They even 'bound' my breasts for some reason!! The nurses gave my baby daughter a bottle of formula milk the night she was born instead of waking me to feed her - even though I had specifically asked them to wake me. The early days of breastfeeding for the first time are difficult. Neither mother or baby have done it before! It takes patience and determination to succeed. However, once the feeding is established it is far easier than all that bottle sterlising and preparation. I don't think enough new mums are aware of the mechanics behind breastfeeding - it is a supply and demand function, and by supplementing breastfeeds with bottle feeds they are in fact depleting their supply of breast milk. The more often you feed your baby, the more milk your breasts produce. In my experience health visitors and hospital staff are all to quick to suggest that you do not have enough milk to satisfy your baby and too keen to suggest supplemental bottle feeds. Any publicity to promote and encourage breastfeeding is welcomed by me....but I fear too many mums dash off back to work when their babies are still young...and breastfeeding in these circumstances is just not viable. Dee x

No it isn't Bev! My sister breast fed are three children until 6 mnths and two of them have allergies :-) Helen

Well said Dee, you are very wel informed....unlike many new mums. i would like to think that mothers choose the way they wanted to feed thier babied based on good sound currant information. lets face it most of us have made the decision before our babies arrive but a great many of us never have a ll the information to hand that allows us to make an informed decision. One of the things that still sticks in my mind from my first child(now 19) was my health visitor saying......you will never leave your boobs on a bus dear! I think that one sentence was enough to make me realise that breast feeding was for me..... being well known for forgeting things and loosing things i felt that this was something i needed to do!

Bev that's awful... it is not your fault your children have allergies and that woman was totally out of order!!!! I have allergies and my mum breastfed me! People sometimes are just cruel and you should pat yourself on the back for caring enough for your children to want the best for them. Well done you. Julie xxx

Oh Bev......im shocked.....i work quite closley with the NCT and have always found thier mothers to be very kind women. I dont know if this woman realises what harm she has done by saying such a dreadful thing. You did the best you could in a very tricky situation......you have to be lead by nurses and doctors when your babies are poorly.....not by do gooder, tub thumping, sandle wearing, bra burning women who think that breast is not just best but the only right way to feed!!! it is not the case......and it makes my blood boil just thinking about it!

When i was pregnant with my eldest and asked how I was going to feed her, I said breast... however halfway throught the pregnancy i decided i had shared my body for long enough., and changed my mind. Do you think i could get them to change my notes????? not on your nelly LOL. In the end they finally agreed to put breast/bottle on my notes. I never breast fed her at all. I refused to even try. The nurses and the midwifes were awful in the things they said about how i was failing her, or letting her down, even now i seethe when i think about the stuff they said to me. But at the end of theh day it was my chioce not theirs. when she was nearly three i gave birth to twins, again both were bottle fed from the start. Again i was pressured to try and fed them myself.... stick one under this arm and the other under there???? NO thank you. Both twins were slow feeders due to being prem and I would have had them permantly attached I also had to deal with an active 3yr old. At the time I was a single parent. I also have a fourth child born when teh twins were almost three, totally bottle fed and am pleased to say no one expressed an opinion about how i fed him... which was probably a good job as by then I was sure my opinion coounted unlike the first birth where i just accepted what they said, even if i didn't heed their advice. All four children are healthy, no major problems although one twin does have a bowel problem, but I'm reliably informed that it is due to him being premature, not how i fed him. All children doing well at school esp eldest who excels. breast is only best when both mother and baby are happy... I wouldn't have been.

Forgot to add both sister and I were both bottle fed. Our mum and her three sisters were breast fed.

Shelli, well done for sticking to your guns.......you made your decision and it should have been respected!

Wow! I can't believe some of the negative comments people have recieved from health professionals!!! Fancy making a mother feel guilty for opting to bottle feed. How terrible! I am sure baby would rather have a happy relaxed confident mum give him a bottle than a nervous, unhappy, stressed mum trying to 'do the right thing'. Of course breastfeeding is and should be promoted as a GOOD thing, but I am shocked that so many health professionals disregard poor emotional, hormonal new mums. And I also can't believe that some people would be told they are starving their baby when breastfeeding. That is oh so helpful! I have found this discussion very informative and interesting. Claire xx

bev....dont we all become tired stress incompetent idiots on the birth of our children....i for one did.....some would say i still am......and i would agree to tired and stresses but im not saying anything about the rest!

Christine, I know you are not 'anti-bottle', and did not mean to upset anyone. I hope that in all the replies you get you will be able to further your research. There are however people who do think that breast is the only way- as Shelli just said- it is only the best if it suits the mother & child !!!!! Hopefully this attitude will change with research like yours. Good luck!!!

Can i please thank you all ladies.....you have been so open and honest about your experiences and i will use all of this information to try and improve the service that ladies in my area get. I think the main thing i will take from these threads is the negagtivity that helth proffesionals pass on to mothers who are not breast feeding. Who has the right to make someone else feel guilty like that....nobody! Breast or bottle??? i really dont mind as long as you choose one or the other and are happy with your choice. I will continue to monitor the treads and add posts as i see information that might be useful. I may also be in touch with some of you by email if thats ok. I have been at this peice of work for about 18 months and have found women reluctant to dicuss the problems that they have had.....you guys are great!!! thanks christine I just wish i had thought to come here before to get feedback!

Christine happy to have helped :~)))) Julia

I was breast fed and I breast fed both of mine, both for 12 months. M.

Hi Christine. I fed my son for 4 months. My daughter was exclusively breast-fed for one year. I think it is the best and easiest thing in the world and advocate it to anyone who will listen. My husband had a great name for me but I won't print it on a public website for risk of offending someone. Estelle :o)

Current research tells us that babies should be exclusivly 'Milk' fed untill 6 months then weaned onto mixed feeding(milk and solids). How many of you continued to breast feed after a year???? how did you find the experience....did you have problems with biting? did you ever have trouble feeding whilst out??

Morfyyd, you are in the minority as most mother give up before thier babies reach 6 months. I fed all of mine for about two years...they sort of stopped themselves.... the benefits of breast feeding are greater the longer you feed and by feeding for each child for a year you have reduced your personal risk of breast cancer by 17%......thats a fairly impressive figure!!!

My brother and I were breast fed but only for a year or so. I breast fed my eldest until 2, by which point I was 3 months pregnant, and daughter said her milky had turned yukky. Pregnancy obviously changed the flavour. My 2nd daughter self weaned at around 18months. Still feeding no. 3 [11months] I have never given any of them a bottle let alone formula, however when pregnant the first time round, I was adamant the I wouldn't breast feed! My Mum convinced me that I owed it to the baby to at least try, but once she was born and I fell madly in love with her, there was no way I was going to give her anything artificial. I had terrible problems feeding all of them, and when eldest was 3 days old the midwife told me to give her a bottle! Very supportive! By the time she was 6wks my nipples were still bleeding, particualy the right one and she took down so much blood she started bringing her feeds back. I told the HV that I was giving up on the bad side and was told I wouldn't be able to succeed . I have now fed all my babies on just the one side, as the right side doesn't flow properly and I get chewed to bits! I don't think people do get enough support,, and are often given bad advice, ie. supplement with a bottle if you're not producing enough milk! Breast feeding is very difficult and extremely painful at first, and nobody tells you that or that it gets better.