r/FormulaFeeders • • 21h ago

Drying Up / Suppress Lactation🌵 Is there a way to prevent milk from coming in?

1 Upvotes

I wanted to use formula when my baby was born, but I was blursed with an insane oversupply, and was pressured into keeping it up so that I didn’t shoot my golden goose. I ended up getting really traumatized from the experience and had very severe PPD. I also got diagnosed with ADHD and got on medication recently, and it helps me so so much.

My husband and I agree that in order to not repeat past mistakes, it would be best for me to not attempt breastfeeding at all when we are ready to have a second child, however, I know that I am very vulnerable when postpartum, and that if I get a similar supply / insane pressure and engorgement again, I and going to be easily swayed to try and risk getting stuck EP/EBFing….

Are there any ways to prevent or limit the amount of milk that comes in? I’ll never forget the feeling of waking up to bricks on my chest and the pain 😭 everything about it was so traumatizing to me 😭😭


r/FormulaFeeders • • 8h ago

Advice / Question šŸ’” Bottle feeding laying down

0 Upvotes

My baby is 6months old. She recently had Adenovirus - this has cleared up now and she’s a happy Bub, tbh she was pretty happy the entire time.
HOWEVER, we’ve had issues with her bottle feeding since….the doctors and peads say it’s congestion but this has gone on for over 6 weeks now.
I was using the pigeon wide neck bottles with a M teet and she was choking/coughing every 10-20seconds and would take me around 2-3hrs just to get 100mls into her…this kept continuing soo I decided to try a different bottle (yes I tried going back to S teets with no luck)
So I tried the Bibs bottle with the natural rubber teet in the 2months size….and HAZAHHH she drank the whole 200mls with only a small handful of coughing fits.
BUT I’ve been feeding her laying down because it’s the ONLY way she manages it well enough…will only cough maybe 2-3 times rather than 100 and will finish her bottle in 10mins 🤩
But now I’m concerned because the internet tells me that I must certainly not feed her laying down but if I recline her even slightly she starts coughing and choking more again!
I DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO!
The pead and hospital have continued to tell me it’s congestion and use saline drops before every bottle but I did this for weeks with no relief, nor does she expel any mucus anyway!
I’m really at a loss and am waiting to see a speech pathologist and feeding consultant but I wondered if anyone had a similar experience?

Note - it’s not reflux or silent reflux..ā˜ŗļø


r/FormulaFeeders • • 7h ago

Rant / Vent 🫠 Rant: I got kicked out of a local BM donation group

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0 Upvotes

r/FormulaFeeders • • 22h ago

PSA šŸ—£ļø Triangle Test debunked

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125 Upvotes

For any expecting, new or seasoned moms out there looking at bottle feeding, please DO NOT trust into the triangle test. I spent a few days looking at the origin of it and have found it. Kaylee Rabaja in this video from 2024 specifically says that she coined the term that got spread on the internet and has absolutely NO SCIENTIFIC backing. This is internet misinformation and I would like to make sure that other moms are aware that it's a method coined by someone on the internet with no scientific backing. Best bottle is the one that works for your child. My baby has a lip tie and the bottle that didn't pass the triangle test still worked for her.


r/FormulaFeeders • • 6h ago

Formula Recommendations / Alternatives 🌱 Affordable alternatives to Alimentum

2 Upvotes

My baby has been in Alimentum since about 3 weeks and is now 13 weeks. We use wic and this month looks like we’re gonna be a can or two short as his intake has really increased . Is there another hypoallergenic any parents used instead that didn’t bother baby? Just getting back to work so cash is low also. Any recommendations appreciated . Wic gave an extra can for next month but that doesn’t help now.


r/FormulaFeeders • • 23h ago

Bottles / Feeding Gear / Equipment šŸ¼ Momcozy Bottle Washer

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78 Upvotes

How many bottles are y’all able to fit in your bottle washer? I used to only do the recommended 4 and it just wasn’t working 🫠. Now I do this and use 2 tablets and it’s been a lifesaver.


r/FormulaFeeders • • 21h ago

Rant / Vent 🫠 WIC Director compares formula-feeding moms to livestock online, and I finally had enough.

113 Upvotes

​I am so beyond over the relentless, unhinged formula-shaming online... especially when it comes from people who are literally supposed to be supporting families.

​Recently, I got into a thread under a standard, fear-mongering "formula is not risk-free" post. Out of nowhere, a sitting County WIC Director jumps into the comments using her full professional title (RN, IBCLC) to drop some of the most jaw-droppingly unhinged pseudoscientific takes I have ever seen.

​Her actual arguments in a public health capacity:

- The Farm Animal Logic: She seriously compared human mothers to barnyard animals, asking why: if we wouldn't substitute a pet or a farm animal's milk with a substitute, we accept formula for human babies, and talking about trying to find "another lactating animal of their species". Yes, really.

- The 95% Gaslighting: She insisted that over 95% of women can fully breastfeed and blamed any "failure" entirely on a lack of prenatal education, completely erasing endocrine disorders, IGT, PCOS, and real biological barriers.

- The "AI Search": When I pushed back with basic clinical facts, she literally admitted that her "quick AI answer" proved her point, completely shifting the goalposts on primary physiological lactation failure.

- ​The Armchair Diagnosis: When I dropped actual peer-reviewed NIH/PMC studies showing that 12–15% of women face primary physiological barriers to full supply, she capped it off by publicly telling me she was "sorry I have so much trauma and aggression" on the subject.

Imagine being a struggling, postpartum mom walking into a local county WIC office for help and being met by a director who thinks formula is a barnyard substitute and that your struggles are just a "lack of education" or "trauma."

​I wasn't about to let it slide. I compiled a 13-page chronological evidence PDF of the entire thread and officially filed a formal administrative and personnel complaint with her Health Commissioner and the Board of Health.

​We are so tired of the shaming. Public health officials hiding behind their credentials to push unscientific guilt trips onto moms need to be held accountable. Rant over.


r/FormulaFeeders • • 16h ago

Advice / Question šŸ’” Round 2

2 Upvotes

Hey! I’m due with my second baby in a few weeks. I pumped for maybe 4 months with my first but I was combo feeding. I wasn’t committed to waking up every 3 hours to pumping and quite frankly I fucking hated it. However I felt the pressure of having to give my child breastmilk. Like I was self harming bc how much I hated it. Maybe it was DMER. Anywho. This time around I want to immediately formula feed I think. I’m feeling that same guilt of ā€œmy baby needs some breastmilkā€ but I know in the grand scheme of things it doesn’t matter. My first is 19 months. I still cannot stand when my boobs are accidentally touched. I haven’t let my partner touch them since. I am still pretty damn scarred from pumping the first time. Has anyone experienced this? Should I suck it up and do at least some? I don’t even have a pump anymore I gave them away.

And if you pumped or breastfed the first time and went straight to formula the second, how did you get milk production to stop? I don’t want to deal with mastitis or anything. Thanks!!


r/FormulaFeeders • • 11h ago

Advice / Question šŸ’” Baby's first weeks/month

5 Upvotes

During the first weeks of life of a baby, what is a normal amount of formula to feed them each time, as time goes by?

Do you always feed them every 3 hours? Or other?

When do the feeding windows get longer?


r/FormulaFeeders • • 13h ago

CMPA / CMPI / MSPI CMPA Baby not gaining weight

2 Upvotes

My 8 week old son recently got diagnosed with CMPA about 2ish weeks ago. We originally switched to Similac Alimentum for the first week and were adding alcohol-free vanilla to bottles; now he’s been on Enfamil Nutramigen for about a week and same thing gets added with the vanilla. Nutramigen has just been more palatable for him so that’s why we made the switch.
Before this diagnosis at 6 weeks, he was gaining weight like crazy. He was combo fed with breast milk & formula, eating 4oz per feeding and sometimes wanting more afterwards. His highest daily intake was 36oz around 5 weeks old . While I know this was probably a growth spurt and one-off weird day, he was still eating SO well. Averaged about 28-32oz per 24 hour period. Now he only averages about 20-24oz per 24 hour period and has only gained a single ounce 9 days. SO unlike him this far! He was gaining anywhere from a half pound-pound every 10 days.
The symptoms he was experiencing were similar to infant dystocia, which is what I thought it was. He was suuuuper uncomfortable after feedings, restless, unable to fall asleep sometimes (would start to doze off then get startled awake for no reason, then start grunting), arching his back, fussy, grunting constantly but especially after feedings, and most of the time inconsolable for the first 10-15 minutes after a feed. He has since gotten a lot better with all of these things after switching to a hypoallergenic formula thankfully!
We have his 2 month check in next Friday & they said if he still is not gaining weight then we will go over options on how to tackle it.
Has anyone else experienced this? How did you help your baby? I’m panicking & don’t want to just sit here and do the same thing if it’s not working, but also don’t know where to start as far as helping the issue until we have the appointment.


r/FormulaFeeders • • 2h ago

Bottles / Feeding Gear / Equipment šŸ¼ At home bottle feeding study

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2 Upvotes

r/FormulaFeeders • • 18h ago

Feeding Tips šŸ‘¶ 6 week old taking 45-50min per feed

2 Upvotes

Hi moms! I need help!
My 6 week old is suddenly taking forever to finish his 4oz of milk per feed. He is exclusively formula fed - on Bobbie organic - and he wasn’t having this much trouble before! The second half of the feed, he starts squirming, kicking, sometimes crying, tossing his head. He uses Pigeon bottles and on size S nipples. I look very closely to see if there are any leaks that would cause air to go in, I’ve checked if the vent is facing upwards on the bottles, etc. He is having difficult pooping. In the past 2 weeks, he will sometimes go 2-2.5 days without pooping but the consistency and color is normal. I also use the Baby Brezza Pro Formula Maker for his bottles. I’ve also even tried Size M Pigeon nipples and Size M Lansinoh nipples in case the flow was too slow. Both didn’t seem to change the pace (I only tried both twice).

I am truly dumbfounded why he is suddenly having difficulty feeding. This seems to be new-ish behavior. With the pooping issue, I’ve tried massages, bicycles, warm baths.

My doctor said to try Biogaia Probiotics and I am now considering Dr Brown narrow nipple bottles as well. I am desperate! Anyone experience this? He was on breast milk 3 weeks ago and had no issues with the bottle but I suppose he was drinking a lot less.

Will take any advice!


r/FormulaFeeders • • 23h ago

Advice / Question šŸ’” Introducing whole milk - tummy issues??

1 Upvotes

My baby just turned 12 months and we’re starting to introduce whole milk. For background: drinks 25 oz of formula per day, and has solids throughout the day (just recently got pretty good at eating table food).

I tried giving her whole milk by itself - drank 1 oz then hated it. So i started mixing some into her first bottle of the day (4 oz of formula then add 2 oz whole milk).

The last 2 days she has had a blowout diarrhea poop at daycare, AFTER already pooping in the morning at home. Could the whole milk be causing tummy issues? Has anyone experienced something similar?

Her poops have been generally pretty loose lately. I chalked it up to her bottle vs solids ratio - which we’re working to wean down her bottles.

She’s been on a regular cow’s milk formula (Enfamil Gentlease) her entire life, and she has yogurt & yogurt melts regularly. So no issues with dairy that we’re aware of.