Would You Breastfeed?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No I would not.

+1. You shouldn’t put yourself through it if you will only breastfeed for 4 months. It’s not worth it. There is no point. I would just start with formula from birth.

This is nonsense. Most of the benefits from breastfeeding come from colostrum the first week and the initial three months to build up gastrointestinal immunity. Everything after that is a nice bonus, but not nearly as helpful to the baby as the first few months are.

And no, I’m not a breastfeeding nazi; I totally believe fed is best and I supplemented with formula when I needed to. OP should do whatever she is comfortable with and what works. But acknowledging that doesn’t mean there’s “no point” to breastfeeding if you only do it for a few months. There are advantages to doing it even for a short while, which have to be weighed against all of OP’s other circumstances.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No I would not.

+1. You shouldn’t put yourself through it if you will only breastfeed for 4 months. It’s not worth it. There is no point. I would just start with formula from birth.

This is nonsense. Most of the benefits from breastfeeding come from colostrum the first week and the initial three months to build up gastrointestinal immunity. Everything after that is a nice bonus, but not nearly as helpful to the baby as the first few months are.

And no, I’m not a breastfeeding nazi; I totally believe fed is best and I supplemented with formula when I needed to. OP should do whatever she is comfortable with and what works. But acknowledging that doesn’t mean there’s “no point” to breastfeeding if you only do it for a few months. There are advantages to doing it even for a short while, which have to be weighed against all of OP’s other circumstances.

Adding - here is a nice breakdown of breastfeeding benefits over differing lengths of time. Even doing it for just 4-6 weeks gives a big benefit to baby. (Which yes, again, need to be weighed against your own personal circumstances). https://ashlandbreastpumps.com/blog/the-benefits-of-breastfeeding-a-timeline-for-the-ages/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just curious what your job is and why pumping isn't possible? There are a few types of pumps now that fit discretely under your clothes.

If you want to breastfeed, you should try. Baby will get lots of benefit even if you fully wean after the four months are up.

OP here. I’m a nurse practitioner and work in a wellness clinic. I get 5-10 minutes between patients and a 30 minute lunch. It will be very hard to pump only once and maintain a supply. It sounds like a hassle and not something I want to do.

Plenty of kids are fine on formula from the start. Do what is best for you. Happy mom is best for your child. The bonus of formula is that Dad can feed and help a lot more.

[Anonymous]

I would always breastfeed as best I can.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just curious what your job is and why pumping isn't possible? There are a few types of pumps now that fit discretely under your clothes.

If you want to breastfeed, you should try. Baby will get lots of benefit even if you fully wean after the four months are up.

OP here. I’m a nurse practitioner and work in a wellness clinic. I get 5-10 minutes between patients and a 30 minute lunch. It will be very hard to pump only once and maintain a supply. It sounds like a hassle and not something I want to do.

Plenty of kids are fine on formula from the start. Do what is best for you. Happy mom is best for your child. The bonus of formula is that Dad can feed and help a lot more.

Breastfeeding is good for the mother. It tightens the uterus, burns calories, and helps balance crazy hormones. And after the first few days, it’s so fricking easy for night feedings. And no bottles to wash or waiting for formula to warm while the baby is screaming from hunger. The breast is right there and always the perfect temperature!

Yes, OP, I would - absolutely and without question - nurse for just four months. It’s win-win.

[Anonymous]

OP, you might end up with a great supply and pumping before work, during lunch and right after is totally doable. Once your supply is established you can also nurse just mornings and evenings -- your body will adjust and you will likely be able to maintain that supply. I highly recommend visiting a top notch lactation consultant (at the Breastfeeding Center if you're in DC).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just curious what your job is and why pumping isn't possible? There are a few types of pumps now that fit discretely under your clothes.

If you want to breastfeed, you should try. Baby will get lots of benefit even if you fully wean after the four months are up.

OP here. I’m a nurse practitioner and work in a wellness clinic. I get 5-10 minutes between patients and a 30 minute lunch. It will be very hard to pump only once and maintain a supply. It sounds like a hassle and not something I want to do.

Plenty of kids are fine on formula from the start. Do what is best for you. Happy mom is best for your child. The bonus of formula is that Dad can feed and help a lot more.

Breastfeeding is good for the mother. It tightens the uterus, burns calories, and helps balance crazy hormones. And after the first few days, it’s so fricking easy for night feedings. And no bottles to wash or waiting for formula to warm while the baby is screaming from hunger. The breast is right there and always the perfect temperature!

Yes, OP, I would - absolutely and without question - nurse for just four months. It’s win-win. [/quote


Many Abbie’s drink room temp formula. No need to heat it up. OP needs her baby to get used to a bottle. I vote bottle feed and do formula or pump breast milk. I’ve known a couple of people who had a difficult time back at work because their child refused to take a bottle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just curious what your job is and why pumping isn't possible? There are a few types of pumps now that fit discretely under your clothes.

If you want to breastfeed, you should try. Baby will get lots of benefit even if you fully wean after the four months are up.

OP here. I’m a nurse practitioner and work in a wellness clinic. I get 5-10 minutes between patients and a 30 minute lunch. It will be very hard to pump only once and maintain a supply. It sounds like a hassle and not something I want to do.

Plenty of kids are fine on formula from the start. Do what is best for you. Happy mom is best for your child. The bonus of formula is that Dad can feed and help a lot more.

Breastfeeding is good for the mother. It tightens the uterus, burns calories, and helps balance crazy hormones. And after the first few days, it’s so fricking easy for night feedings. And no bottles to wash or waiting for formula to warm while the baby is screaming from hunger. The breast is right there and always the perfect temperature!

Yes, OP, I would - absolutely and without question - nurse for just four months. It’s win-win.

Many babies drink room temp water. OP needs her baby to take a bottle. I vote feed formula or pump. I’ve known a couple of people who had a difficult time going back to work because their baby wouldn’t take a bottle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just curious what your job is and why pumping isn't possible? There are a few types of pumps now that fit discretely under your clothes.

If you want to breastfeed, you should try. Baby will get lots of benefit even if you fully wean after the four months are up.

OP here. I’m a nurse practitioner and work in a wellness clinic. I get 5-10 minutes between patients and a 30 minute lunch. It will be very hard to pump only once and maintain a supply. It sounds like a hassle and not something I want to do.

Breastfeed. You can find time to pump.

[Anonymous]

I'd definitely breastfeed. Colostrum is like liquid gold.

(My brother and I were not breastfed. He had consistent medical problems and to this day has lower immunity and catches every cold, and I have severe learning disabilities.) We each wanted our children to be nursed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No I would not.

+1. You shouldn’t put yourself through it if you will only breastfeed for 4 months. It’s not worth it. There is no point. I would just start with formula from birth.

This is nonsense. Most of the benefits from breastfeeding come from colostrum the first week and the initial three months to build up gastrointestinal immunity. Everything after that is a nice bonus, but not nearly as helpful to the baby as the first few months are.

And no, I’m not a breastfeeding nazi; I totally believe fed is best and I supplemented with formula when I needed to. OP should do whatever she is comfortable with and what works. But acknowledging that doesn’t mean there’s “no point” to breastfeeding if you only do it for a few months. There are advantages to doing it even for a short while, which have to be weighed against all of OP’s other circumstances.

Adding - here is a nice breakdown of breastfeeding benefits over differing lengths of time. Even doing it for just 4-6 weeks gives a big benefit to baby. (Which yes, again, need to be weighed against your own personal circumstances). https://ashlandbreastpumps.com/blog/the-benefits-of-breastfeeding-a-timeline-for-the-ages/

-1. Virtually none of these claims are backed by science, just so everybody knows.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, you might end up with a great supply and pumping before work, during lunch and right after is totally doable. Once your supply is established you can also nurse just mornings and evenings -- your body will adjust and you will likely be able to maintain that supply. I highly recommend visiting a top notch lactation consultant (at the Breastfeeding Center if you're in DC).

This is what I was thinking. You never know. I had a good supply and eventually stopped pumping at around 6 months but could still nurse morning and night. I would absolutely nurse if possible for those 4 months and see what happens. As others have said, have your husband give at least one bottle in a 24 hour period.

If your supply is low, of course you will use formula.

[Anonymous]

Do what works for you. Are you that stupid that you crowdsource this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No I would not.

+1. You shouldn’t put yourself through it if you will only breastfeed for 4 months. It’s not worth it. There is no point. I would just start with formula from birth.

This has to be a troll. “Put yourself through” what? BFing? Which some moms very much enjoy and find considerably easier than formula feeding and which she hasn’t even tried yet? I EBFed through a year, but the vast majority of the health benefits are at the very beginning. BF through 4 months if it works for you; not being able to do more than 4 months exclusively isn’t a reason not to try (plenty of people still feed morning and night w/o pumping, so that’s an option you’ll have from 4 months on if you want)

[Anonymous]

NP. Of course I would breastfeed. The biggest benefits come from the first 4 months anyway. You might even have an oversupply and be able to pump more and save it to feed for another 2 months (plus morning and night nursing) until baby can start eating some solids. Or maybe not. In any case, four months of breastmilk is DEFINITELY better than nothing!!

- mom of 3