Will not take a bottle...I feel trapped

[Doodlebug]

Kate, I'm sorry if I made you feel that way. I was totally suprised when it worked for my ds2, I didn't expect it to and I guess I was hoping it would be as easy for you. Sorry

I have no more suggestions to offer. All the best with getting your baby to take a bottle.

[Michelle71]

No Kate - it won't. And some babies just won't (clever little monkeys they are!!!) My DD did not easily take EBM. DS1 took a bottle and a dummy. DS2 takes an EBM bottle on occasion (he was in NICU for a little while) but refuses a dummy. He has started to refuse a bottle and he is almost 5 months.

DD would not take bottle or dummy. At 4mo we started the sippy cup path and DH tried to be the one to do the feeding. Nope. No luck. It took until about 6mo and persistence to get her to take anything and her reluctance meant I was delayed in going back to work too. Close to 9mo because she was BLS and not drinking much. The take and toss cups were our success and the Heinz basics too. Anything with a valve didn't work - too much (and a different type) of sucking. DD is still BF. Tandem feeding with her baby brother. She still loves her boobie and who can blame her

[leesha]

Thanks for the suggestions girls! I have tried fresh and frozen EBM and Formula.....she took one bottle of formula but then wouldn't have a bar of it after that....and i found it constipated her ;-(

Doodlebug I have left the house and ended up having to come home cos she was beside herself then I felt bad ;-(

She has taken random bottles here and there since about 5 weeks old but she is very hit and miss. Then the last two months she refuses it full stop. Just pushes the teat out with her tongue then gets all upset! I have the close to nature bttle and teat and a hundred diff teats from my first bub and nothing works!
I even virtually starved her one whole day because I refused to give her my boob and only offered her a bottle which she never took. So she had no proper feeds all that day. Then I got the guilts up and thought I'm not doing that again!

Barb she is a funny little thing..happy as larry if I'm out and the minute I walk in the door she sees me and starts whinging and "mummm mmmm mummm". so she def knows where her milk comes from! I think poor DH gets a bit miffed....I have now started getting DH to resettle her at night when she wakes so she doesn't get fed back to sleep...I was just getting too tired from doing this! and she is pretty good and goes back to sleep...however last night she just would not settle and
I got up and took over and fed her!

My DS was born with a cleft lip and couldnt breast feed so I spent 9 months expressing and bottle fed it to him. This seriously was a big job but i tell you what I much prefered it because I had a life! This little miss makes me feel trapped and Hubby and I can't even go out for dinner together or do anything because of this problem!

I'm def going to try the sippy cup and Michelle the take and toss are a great idea!!!!!

Any other suggestions I am open to trying and will keep you posted with my progress so other mums might get something out of this thread and all your good advice ;-)

Oh and she has never had a dummy either so I was thinking this may be why she doesn't like anything else but nipple in her mouth..lol

[~Raven~]

Angus wouldn't take EBM from a bottle at all. Not ever, so I understand your angst! I went back to tafe one day a week when he was 6 months old and he would last the entire 6 hours I was gone without a drink so I'd be ready for loads of feeding when I came home. I was really quite full anyway so he did get a huge drink to make up for it. I don't recall there being wakeful nights and he never got dehydrated.

He did start on a straw cup by accident because I caught him stealing a drink out of his brothers when it was left on the floor. I can't remember what age but I do remember he wasn't crawling so before 8 months. I think it had to do more with him mimicking his brother than my idea so maybe you could try getting one the same as Mr Mischief and see what happens! One I noticed with mine is that they copy the older ones and do things a lot younger than your first did so there is a good chance that yours will do the same.

[Rouge]

My DS would never take it either and had random EBM bottles from about 4 weeks old but then refused. Some children just won't and I don't believe that forcing them is a good move. I feel it is just as distressing as CIO. There were times where I had to go out and I was late for a feed but he was fine and DH had a bottle there to offer but I never ever tried to force it. And he self weened at 12 months but had he not I would have survived.

[black_rose]

Dd2 never took to bottles which was hard to get used to and it was a battle to keep her weight up.

Ds has been great but I have learnt if the hole in the bottle is to small he cracks it and won't go so sometimes I have to make it bigger.

[MantaRay]

Most babies will take a sippy cup from about 4 months, and a straw cup from about 6 months. For those that won't, you can feed them by holding a cup up to their mouth - all babies can feed from a cup from birth, but of course it's more time consuming. Another idea that works for some mums is to put a flannel over the sippy cup and have them suck through the flannel. Sounds odd but I know a few people that's worked with.

Also, as a few posters have mentioned, after the early weeks, babies can go for a few hours without a feed if need be. If you really want to go out, it's fine to do it sometimes and your baby will be ok. It sounds like you are getting past the most dependent phase so hopefully things will be easier for you soon