has anyone breasfed and formula fed since birth?

I want to do a mix of breast milk and formula from the begining. I will be returning to my job after only 2 weeks and I won't be able to pump at work. I would like to be able to BF in the morning, give the baby a bottle in the afternoons/evening, then BF when I get home from work, formula before bedtime, and breast milk duirng the night (the baby will be in the bassinet.)
Has anyone else done this kind of mixed method? Did the baby take to both sources, or wind up prefering one over the other?

Re: has anyone breasfed and formula fed since birth?

I did both from day 1 and DD never had any confusion...Good luck

Re: has anyone breasfed and formula fed since birth?

I did breastfeed for a few weeks when DD was born - (had some difficulty) - and had to supplement by giving her a bottle of formula.

After giving her the bottle a few times - she didn't want to latch on - so I had to pump and give her breastmilk through this method.

Also - wanted to add that it is crucial during the first couple weeks to have your baby latch to you or pump in order to increase your milk supply. Newborns feed very often in the beggining - every 1-3 hours - so pumping while you are at work would be great to increase your supply.
Would you be able to use a manual pump while you are in the ladies room to keep up the supply?

Re: has anyone breasfed and formula fed since birth?

I did. I had supply issues and my milk never fully came in so they were on both, coupled with being in the NICU. I gave up breastfeeding though and just pumped for them, since I had inverted nipples also.

Re: has anyone breasfed and formula fed since birth?

i give all her milk in a bottle.. i pump and supplement with formula sometimes, esp. her last feeding before bed. no problems.

Re: has anyone breasfed and formula fed since birth?

Re: has anyone breasfed and formula fed since birth?

I responded on a similar thread a couple of weeks ago. Here it is...


Re: breast feeding and bottle feeding

It worked for us...to a point She was 99% BF in the beginning, but from Day 1 (literally) she had 1 bottle of formula in the middle of the night. I expanded that around 2 mos. to 1 bottle of formula at night and 1 at midday. That was working great and I didn't want to give up the BF.

I am a teacher and so at work pumping is not an option (not to mention, I did NOT like pumping), but I wanted to continue to BF. My SIL who also teaches, assured me it could be done. She did it for a year--formula during the day, BF while at home.

Unfortunately, I leave for work around 6am while DD is asleep, so could not BF. I tried to BF for the 2-3 feedings after I got home, but my supply quickly dried up within a few days since I couldn't get the AM feeding in--SIL could, that's why it worked for her. I was so sad to know I had to stop completely!

Well, long story short--it really does depend both on your baby and your situation.

Good luck!!!!

Re: has anyone breasfed and formula fed since birth?

I did both right from the beginning - but not BF, I gave him EBM in a bottle from the beginning. You might have to pump at home if there is nipple confusion or you are unable to BF for whatever reason. Just letting you know so that you consider that possibility too.

But for the most part, no, I didn't have a problem with giving both formula and BM. I had a good supply though. If you end up with a good supply you might do fine but do keep in mind that you will definitely get engorged if you BF in the AM and then don't BF or pump again until the evening - all depending on how long your workday is.

Re: has anyone breasfed and formula fed since birth?

I've fed him both from day 1 (although always bfed more) and he never had any problems with confusion.

Re: has anyone breasfed and formula fed since birth?

How will you actually dance 2 weeks after having a baby? You will still be sore. You may be able to have one of your assistant teachers help you for 15 minutes while you pump a bit. Would that be possible? It is going to be hard to get your supply established with only nursing once or twice a day. You may want to try to get it established for a few weeks and then supplement and then adjust your supply to match your needs.
Molly stopped latching on day 3 when some a$$ ped made me give her a bottle of formula...it was a total mess for me. but other babies are fine.. Some babies will refuse formula..Molly had stomach issues when she needed it for the first 4 weeks while I was fixing my supply problems. So formula was just not a good option for her. I think it really is individual and you need to figure it out iwth your baby

JMO, of course. You have to try whatever you feel will work for you,

Re: has anyone breasfed and formula fed since birth?

I did both from the first day and DS never had any problems or 'nipple' confusion. I BF from around 8pm to 8am and formula the rest of the day. If it's the wknd and I'm home, I BF more during the day but if I can't, I formula. The doctor told me even a little BF is better than none, so don't feel bad if there are some days when you can only formula.

Re: has anyone breasfed and formula fed since birth?

Re: has anyone breasfed and formula fed since birth?

Hi! I did both breastfeed and bottle feed right from the beginning. At the hopsital I was exhausted so I had the nurses give my ds one bottle of formula a night so I could try and sleep. They didn't mention they would wake me up to take my temp for the first couple of nights, though, since I had a c-section. But when we got home my dh continued that one bottle of formula at night so I could catch some zzz's. Eventually I started pumping, but still always supplemented a feeding or two with formula. It worked fine. There was no confusion or anything.