Reply to Electing not to breastfeed

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[quote=Anonymous]OP, I formula fed from day 1. I didn't want to breastfeed, that was my reason. When milk came I did try it a few times - after the bottle, just to understand what it feels like.

Pros of bottle feeding from my point of view - your baby gets consistent composition of nutrition. No crazy allergies or elimination diets because you ate smth or other.

In my case I had no help, husband went back to work after 1 week. BFing would have made me a zombie. As it is, I had to have a lot of coffee daily just to care for the baby and ate crap frozen meals. So I wouldn't have been a great source of nutrition.

DH was able to bond with the baby during bottle feeding and took 1 or 2 night feedings, which helped A LOT.

Negatives: I do feel some regret not having the full experience, it passes by so quickly, and I wonder if I would have bonded more by BFing. No way to tell, maybe it would have made me crazy under pressure and resentful. Another negative is that DH had very strong opinions about everything feeding related - what brand bottle to use, what flow nipple, when to change nipple, etc. Arguments about these matters were exhausting. We argued about other non-food related issues too, but with BFing at least the feeding arguments would have been off the table.

On the balance, the baby is 18 mo now. He is very healthy, meeting all physical milestones and exceeding developmental ones. It may not be due to formula, but at least I know it didn't hurt anything.

These are my personal views based on the choices I made and resulting experiences. They may not apply to anyone else. Lastly, I found Cribsheet by Emily Oster to be a helpful reading, if you're looking for an overview of relevant research.[/quote]

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