Back to breast after bottle feeding - Zaahirah
- Gwynneth Jacobs
- Feb 27
- 2 min read
On the Parow La Leche League South Africa WhatsApp group, a few mothers were posing questions about how to encourage a baby who was getting too used to bottle-feeding back to the breast.
Hi there. My baby is just over a month and has been combo feeding due to issues with milk supply. He now gets lazy on the boob and does not drink much and ends up being crabby and hungry all the time.
I have a 4-month-old baby who is primarily breastfed, though I occasionally express milk for him to drink from a bottle when my mom baby sits. He was also using a dummy quite often. Suddenly, he started refusing to nurse from me directly, and it was a very stressful time. I decided to consult my local La Leche League Leader in person because my baby would cry from hunger but refuse to feed when I offered the breast. Sometimes, he’d get so tired from crying that he’d fall asleep without eating. To ensure he didn’t go hungry, I gave him expressed milk in a bottle, which he accepted. However, this became a pattern—he’d keep refusing the breast and would only drink from the bottle.
The Leader explained what was happening. She said that feeding from the breast requires the baby to work and put in effort to get the milk to flow whereas with a bottle, the milk flows automatically and easily. Over time, my baby became used to the ease of the bottle and started fussing at and rejecting my breasts. The Leader recommended removing both the bottle and the dummy for a few days to address this issue.
I must admit that I struggled to leave the dummy out completely. So, instead, I limited its use by only giving it to him when putting him to sleep-whether for naps or bedtime-instead of offering it throughout the day when he was fussy or needed comfort. This small adjustment really helped.
To encourage him to nurse directly, the Leader advised me to squeeze a little milk from my breast into his mouth before latching-almost like motivating him to start feeding. I found this trick very helpful and used it during feeds whenever he seemed reluctant. She also reminded me to stay calm during feedings and to talk to him -giving him time to latch on his own.
One important tip she shared was not to force him to nurse, as this could create a negative association with breastfeeding. Following her advice, I removed the bottle, limited dummy use, practised the milk-squeezing technique, and stayed patient. It made a world of difference, and my baby is now nursing much better.
I’m so grateful to the Leader for her guidance. If you’re going through something similar, I highly recommend trying these techniques-they worked wonders for us!
Zaahirah Parker Regal
LLLSA suggested useful links:
Video on Paced bottle feeding method https://youtu.be/UH4T70OSzGs
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