How often and how much?
This varied depending on what was going on with his weight gains, and later, depending on what he demanded. I always erred on the side of waiting and seeing, rather than just jumping straight in with the comp.
Did you have to increase the volume of formula as her grew?
Yes, but only to a certain point. I think by about 6 months (don't quote me on that) he was having 180ml of formula, maybe four times a day? He never really had more than 180mls. He still has bottles , but now that he's no longer on formula, I can just give him however much it seems he wants/needs, which is usually about 180mls.
Was is just a matter of 1 or 2 bottles for the extra calories or was your bub generally unsatisfied after most BF's?
In the early days, yes it was a matter of 1 or 2 (or 4 or 5!) bottles to help with the weight gain. But as he grew older, and knew how to be hungry, he started demanding bottles after every BF! I was very pleased when at about 9 months he decided that BFs only was okay during the night.
Was there a point for you when you realised that "this was as good as it's going to get"?
Um, yes, but it was probably at about 10 months . I was very stubborn with this BFing caper, and I was also determined to get rid of the comp feeds. I had hopes of doing so once we started solids. The problem was that once he developed the bottle preference it was very hard to get rid of them. By 6 months he LOVED boobie, but he also LOVED his bottles, so even if he didn't need them for food, he was used to them being part of his routine. I took Motilium from 2 months to 10 months (weaning off it SLOWLY from 8 months). Once I finished taking it I was so pleased that we were breastfeeding ON OUR OWN that I just accepted that this was the way things were. By 12 months I was totally cool with it all. It did take me awhile though, it really used to eat me up that he had to be comp fed. I'm glad I got past that
How did you know how much to top up
This changed on a daily basis. There were some feeds where I knew he'd have the same amount every day. But others would change all the time.
how do you feel?
Mmmm. Now, I feel great about the fact that we're still BFing. I recognise that I did all I could with the information I had at the time, so although things weren't perfect, I couldn't have done anymore. I feel pi$$ed off with some of the health care professionals who led us down this path, but I'm slowly forgiving them I do feel proud of myself, because it would have been so easy to just call it quits, but it wasn't what I wanted, I never gave it a thought, as BFing my son was so important to me. A year ago, I felt guilt that maybe I'd starved my son, I felt crappy every time I sterilised the bottles, I hated giving him a bottle in public, cos I was a breastfeeding mummy! Meh, I'm over all of that now. TBH, I'm so busy with my DS I don't have time to think about it anymore. It's such a big focus when they're little, because feeding is such a big part of their lives. But my DS is so busy with his little life now, that although he loves his boobie still, he doesn't spend too much time on it. As for how I feel about me.........I don't like my boobs, I'm very lopsided. We don't bother feeding with the right one anymore, haven't done for aaaaages. But I would have been lopsided anyway, as the right one is my 'dodgy' one. I feel a bit crap that maybe I'll never be good at nourishing my babies, but you can only deal with what life throws at you. So I'll just do my best to give my babies as much breastmilk as possible, and try to leave the guilt out of it. FWIW, this condition may not be as rare as you think. I found a great website once, I'll see if I can find it for you.
, but now that he's no longer on formula, I can just give him however much it seems he wants/needs, which is usually about 180mls.
. I was very stubborn with this BFing caper, and I was also determined to get rid of the comp feeds. I had hopes of doing so once we started solids. The problem was that once he developed the bottle preference it was very hard to get rid of them. By 6 months he LOVED boobie, but he also LOVED his bottles, so even if he didn't need them for food, he was used to them being part of his routine. I took Motilium from 2 months to 10 months (weaning off it SLOWLY from 8 months). Once I finished taking it I was so pleased that we were breastfeeding ON OUR OWN that I just accepted that this was the way things were. By 12 months I was totally cool with it all. It did take me awhile though, it really used to eat me up that he had to be comp fed. I'm glad I got past that
I do feel proud of myself, because it would have been so easy to just call it quits, but it wasn't what I wanted, I never gave it a thought, as BFing my son was so important to me. A year ago, I felt guilt that maybe I'd starved my son, I felt crappy every time I sterilised the bottles, I hated giving him a bottle in public, cos I was a breastfeeding mummy! Meh, I'm over all of that now. TBH, I'm so busy with my DS I don't have time to think about it anymore. It's such a big focus when they're little, because feeding is such a big part of their lives. But my DS is so busy with his little life now, that although he loves his boobie still, he doesn't spend too much time on it. As for how I feel about me.........I don't like my boobs, I'm very lopsided. We don't bother feeding with the right one anymore, haven't done for aaaaages. But I would have been lopsided anyway, as the right one is my 'dodgy' one. I feel a bit crap that maybe I'll never be good at nourishing my babies, but you can only deal with what life throws at you. So I'll just do my best to give my babies as much breastmilk as possible, and try to leave the guilt out of it. FWIW, this condition may not be as rare as you think. I found a great website once, I'll see if I can find it for you.
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