6 Month Baby - Rejecting Formula

Have you tried mixing the formula with expressed milk? My daughter would not accept straight formula but would drink a combination. We did about 3/4 milk - 1/4 formula at first, but were able to move up to half and half. I try not to give her more fomula than that, but she has taken the formula without milk on a few occasions.
I have also heard that it will work better to put the formula in something different. Since she associates the bottle with milk, try the formula in a sippy cut.

I wouldn't do the formula, especially since you have come this far as a boobie feeding mom. Remember that if you substitute nursing sessions frequently with a bottle, you still need to pump some of those sessions or your milk will decrease.

I would just nurse her at the boob and pump only as needed for a quick trip to the spa :) She is 6 months - pretty soon she will be eating rice cereal and baby food, which will round out her food supply.

Ditch the rocket-fuel laden, BPA leaching formula (yes - go ahead and google that). Stick to the Super Juice (breastmilk).

Great job!
:)

My oldest child >never< drank formula - not once. We tried every brand out there, powered and ready-to-serve. He didn't take any of them. It wasn't too much of a problem because I had planned on breastfeeding for awhile anyways (he stopped around 15-16 months). By 6 months it was much easier to leave him because he was eating other foods. If you are only going to be gone a few hours, just have the sitter feed him pureed or fork-smashed foods and not worry about the formula/breastmilk. (I could never pump, either). Our kids were also drinking for a sippy cup (we had to hold it for them for the first couple months) by 4-5 months old (my son never took a bottle, either) so he would drink water at meals when I was gone and the sitter was feeding him so he'd get some liquid.

And don't feel bad about skipping a nursing session once in awhile. Doing it once in awhile won't hurt your milk supply at all at this point. Maybe in the first few months, but not now. You may be uncomfortable, but by 6-8 months I was never engorged by skipping a feeding -- your body will adjust. And I had more than enough milk - all my kids breastfed until at least 15-16 months -- some almost until their 2nd birthday and we never had any problems.

Some people say 'rearrange your schedule'.... well... you are more than just a mom to that 1 baby. You are a wife, maybe mom to other children, a woman with friends and a life and an identity. You can't be expected to be around your child 24/7 for an entire year without losing your mind and losing the intimacy with your husband. In the old days, moms had nursemaids so they could leave and get a break now and then - today we have formula and pumps.

Have you tried it? It's really quite disgusting, especially compared to the sweet breastmilk she's used to. I'd just add a pumping session in each day so you can up your supply and get a little back up in the freezer. Then you don't have to worry about forcing it on her and the contaminants and chemicals, and sterilizing bottles and heating it enough then cooling it and everything else.
PM me if you need info on how to up your supply and pump enough. Good luck!!

I can't blame her for rejecting it. It smells and tastes nothing like the sweet breastmilk she is used to. You've done fantastic continuing the breastfeeding to this point. There are certainly ways to time your/her schedule so you can minimize the amount of time she might need to spend with a bottle. I would say try pumping in between nursings on a regular schedule and freeze the milk so you have a little stockpile.

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Try doing a half and half combo....1/2 Breast mIlk and 1/2 formula. I had to do that with our daughter when wheening her from the breast. I aslo had to do that when wheening her from formula to whole milk.
If you have a pump, then pump some out and put half in the formula mixture. your baby (obviously) preferrs the taste of your milk (why wouldnt she...its natural) Once you do the half/half for about a week, slowly increase the amt of formula in the bottle until there is no BM in the bottle and the only time she gets the BM is when you feed her from you
Good luck

I second mixing the formula and breast milk. Slowly increase the amount of formula in the bottle and see if you can trick her into it.

Smart baby! she knows what the good stuff is! If this is just an occcasional thing, she can probably have water or juice (or mix the two) from a bottle or sippy while you are gone. She can nurse extra when you get home. Kudos to you for breastfeeding and pumping. Enjoy your little one!

K. Z.

Try mixing a little formula in with mostly breast milk in a bottle the first time, then sneak a little more formula in the next time, etc. Hope this helps!

wow lots of great pro-breastfeeding info. obviously you need to do this or you wouldn't have asked. You can attempt to just keep offering it and hope she comes around, (and I don't know if this is possible, maybe ask a doc) but maybe mix bottles of formula and breastmilk. I know plenty of moms that do that when they start introducing milk.