I am curious to hear from women who made the decision from the get-go that they would formula feed their babies.
There is tons of information and testimonials online and in books about breastfeeding, but very little about formula feeding. I am hoping that maybe there are some women who will be brave enough to write about why they chose to formula feed from the start, their experiences, the pros and cons of formula feeding, etc.
This is NOT a debate post about the pros and cons of breastfeeding versus formula feeding. Any comments about why breastfeeding is better, breastfeeding experiences, non-breastfeeding moms being selfish and lazy, etc. will be deleted. I’ve found tons of info about “breast is best”, but almost no one will talk about formula feeding their babies, probably out of fear of being attacked.
So that’s my curious mom-to-be question for today! Thanks to any formula feeding moms who would care to jump in and share their experiences with us!
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I haven’t read the above comments, but I hope they were kind. I formula fed my precious boy from when he was born. He simply didn’t take to nursing, and I hated trying and it was causing such turmoil in me that I quit and chose formula. I took a lot of flack from the breast is best folks, but ultimately it made my motherhood more joyful. Trying to breastfeed was tormet because my son hated it and I didn’t get to fully enjoy being a mother until I left that behind. It was my saving grace.
Everyone was worrying about his brain, but formula is very good these days. He’s 19 months old now and knows every letter of the alphabet and counts to 9, so I’m pretty sure his brain is fine. Besides, when I found out that my mother-in-law formula fed my brilliant husband with the Physics degrees, I knew my son’s brain would be just fine.
I think it was a great decision for us. It allowed my husband to feed the baby and establish a bond just as strong as I had with him. It was portable, convenient, and I was able to monitor exactly what he was taking in, which really helped me in those early days when I was so nervous.
Whatever you decide I wish you all the best. May God bless you and your family.
I have to jump in here. I think this is a great conversation you have going. I have done both, but I knew from the start whether I breastfed or used formula that I would offer my babies a bottle. That choice was made so that as a mom I would have freedom to leave the baby with my husband or a sitter, and be away from him/her for more than 2 hours. The same goes for church–it was so nice to be able to drop a baby in the nursery, and enjoy worship, and not worry about him/her being hungry.
My firstborn was breastfeed, but I had a low milk supply, so I had to work at it–feed her, then supplement (because I had almost no supply), then pump, to stimulate milk production. It worked, but when she was almost 6 months old, the stomach flu that I caught from her again caused a drop in my supply, so she went solely to formula. Because she started with a bottle when she was 1 week old, as a supplement (prescribed by the lactation consultants even), I didn’t worry. And no, there was no “nipple confusion.”
Baby number two, I really wanted to try to nurse again. Bad supply again, plus a little baby blues, which I didn’t have with my daughter. I quit nursing after about 2 weeks or so.
It’s important to be informed, and it’s important to do what feels best for you as a mom. I know that “breast is best,” but I honestly do not think that there are that many health benefits for baby over the formula that is made to a certain standard. Yes, I did enjoy the cost savings, but other than that, either was fine.
Thank you to all the ladies who left comments here! Rather than leaving a comment, I’ve written a post in response.
Choosing to Formula Feed and Living Peacefully in the World of Good Enough