Reddit reviews The First Years 3 Pack Breastflow Bottle, 5 Ounce

The First Years Breastflow is supposed to be very good and somewhat similar to nursing. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001R1SOSG/ref=cm_cr_asin_lnk

But to be quite honest there's a good chance that he's just not ready yet and you might have to postpone your trip. My daughter refused cups and bottles as well and it wasn't till she was a year that I could go anywhere without her. I'm not saying that you should feel guilty for wanting to get away Lord knows I sure did, but sometimes you have to play the cards you're dealt.

These three brands are the ones I have seen recommended, because they mimic the breast the most closely. They claim to limit colic and nipple confusion.

• Adiri
  
  
  
• Breastflow
  
  
  
• Born Free
  
  
  I have heard that this type of pacifier is nice, because it can't be upsidown in their mouth, and it has that little tab on it so that your baby can't easily get it in it's mouth sideways and get it stuck. It's also made of one single piece of medical grade silicone, so none of it can break off and choke your baby.
  
  
  Personally, I'm not putting any pacifiers or bottles on my registry because I don't know if I will actually need to use them or not. I figure people have doing just fine without them for hundreds of thousands of years, and if I have them around I might end up using them just because I have them.

If I decide to pump exclusively after maternity leave, I am going to go with the Spectra. Specifically the Spectra S2 if they're still available (the first and third gens haven't had as many great reviews as the second).

Personally, I am going to breast feed and manually pump during my 6 week leave. I bought these breastflow bottles that I'm hoping will allow hubby to feed baby during the night with my pumped milk and not inhibit baby's taking to the nipple. I'm still contemplating how long I am going to breast feed. I believe I am going to try a combo approach closer to the end of leave and slowly wean baby off of the breast as he will have to be transitioned into day care.

Spectra has some excellent reviews, though, so I would really look into their products if they're covered by Aeroflow. There are two STMs that I work with who tried both Medela and Spectra and opted for the Spectra pumps. The biggest thing for me was the reviews about how quiet they are as I don't want to be announcing to my whole office that I'm pumping, you know?

Yeah, it was a pain in the butt trying to wean him from it, but we did it in one day. He was like 3 months old by then. Hopefully you can find a way that works better. We also used the breast flow bottles which seemed to help correct his latch. http://www.amazon.com/The-First-Years-Breastflow-Bottle/dp/tags-on-product/B001R1SOSG

A few things to think about --

Although there generally isn't harm to suckling on a pregnant woman's breasts, if your wife is at all going to have a high risk pregnancy, you may want to avoid suckling while she's pregnant as there is a chance that the oxytocin released into her body could cause her cervix to soften before it's supposed to. La Leche League suggests that women in high-risk pregnancies wean any existing children. For the rest of us, it's more than likely safe.

Obviously, no breast feeding for the first few days/weeks after childbirth, as the colostrum your wife will produce needs to be saved for the child.

In general, once the child is born, you can drink your fill after the baby is full.

While your wife is pregnant, practice your latch.

Here's a really helpful sticky post from Fetlife on adult latching and other topics.

1. The First Years Breastflow bottle is helpful for adults hoping to practice the vacuum/suction motion required for a proper latch. It's difficult to "trick" this particular bottle into releasing fluid without having a rhythmic latch. Drinking 3 - 5 ounces of fluids in the Breastflow each day should help in building tolerance and tone for suckling. Most adults will find this a bit tiresome and frustrating at first.
   
   https://www.amazon.com/First-Years-Breastflow-Bottle-Ounce/dp/B001R1SOSG?ie=UTF8&*Version*=1&*entries*=0
   
   
2. When initially beginning to latch-on to the breast, the suckler should gradually build their tolerance, as tired muscles do not maintain a solid latch. When the adult suckler's mouth and jaw become fatigued, they typically adopt a "lazy latch", meaning without realizing it, they begin to lightly use their teeth for a bit of natural leverage. No one wants to develop poor habits, so start with short periods of suckling.
   
   
3. The instructional latching videos created for mothers of nursing infants are still helpful for participants in ANRs. Adult sucklers need to ensure their upper lip strikes the breast just above the nipple, with the majority of their mouth falling below the areola. The action of coaxing the milk from beneath the areola, versus trying to "suck it from the nipple", is also consistent in all nursing relationships.
   However, since an adult mouth is much larger than that of an infant's, an adult suckler will not be able to duplicate the nipple placement explained in traditional latching videos. A baby's mouth is so compact that the hard and soft palates consume the majority of its structure. So, the adult nipple obviously reaches a great distance into the infant's mouth or well into the soft palate.
   
   The adult mouth has a much larger surface area, and the size of the hard and soft palates vary greatly, making nipple placement a much more variable factor. Since there is no scientific data regarding adult suckling, the exact nipple placement in an ANR is always going to rely on trial and error. EARLY communication is key. Discomfort should be immediately discussed and patiently problem solved. Remember, once poor habits develop, it's more difficult for the adult suckler to learn new strategies than it is to develop successful ones early on.
   
   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zln0LTkejIs
   
   
4. Pay close attention to body placement when problem solving latch difficulties. When working on latch problems, try to be side-by-side. Take time to make sure you're comfortable. The suckler is frequently too high on the nurser's body, so if there's continued latch discomfort, the suckler should move down towards the nursing partner's feet until the partner expresses greater latching comfort. It may surprise the couple how low the suckler is eventually placed before the latch feels right. Also, the suckler may have to switch sides before nursing the second breast. Sometimes a latch is not comfortable nursing both breasts from the same side; its just an inconvenient truth. In addition, EITHER the upper OR the lower breast may feel more comfortable being nursed on one side or the other; this too varies. Try to be flexible and start without preconceived notions until the latch feels free from discomfort.
   
   
5. Latching can feel uncomfortable during the Newman-Goldfarb protocol and during certain phases of the menstrual cycle. Higher levels of estrogen can cause nipple sensitivity for many women, which complicates the process of achieving a comfortable latch. If a normally painless latch feels uncomfortable, consider current estrogen levels as a potential cause.
   
   
6. Lower milk levels can contribute to a much less comfortable latch. The early stages of establishing a milk supply are generally some of the most difficult phases of latching. However, the more the glands and ducts develop, the more successful latching becomes, and the less discomfort suction causes. Hang in there! Use breast gel packs whenever possible to relieve discomfort and don't let those nipples crack. This is the time to lather on the nipple cream.

We had a long journey from fast flow bottles in the NICU to breastfeeding with no problem. The double nipple bottles (Breastflow) were a huge help for us. They make the baby both suck and squeeze, mimicking the nursing motions. Then we did a nipple shield and slowly weaned off of that. It took about 3 weeks before he would breastfeed without any extra stuff. Now he switches back and forth without any issues.

One thing I've found is sometimes my nipples deflate when he's trying to latch. I tug on them and get them to perk up so he has something to grab on to. It seems to help when he's frustrated. Also try different ways to hold your breast, her head, etc. Different pillows (i.e. Boppy vs. bed pillow) can make a difference too.

Try not to put extra pressure on yourself. It does take time and practice.

EDIT: I remembered something the lactation consultant had me do. Start out with a bottle and give her a little snack so she isn't freaking out. Then try to breast feed. We did this same method to wean off the nipple shield and it worked great.

My LO started doing the choking/coughing this week while bottle feeding. I found that she needs to burp whenever she does it. Of course she throws a fit an gets super fussy because she still wants to eat but still needs to burp. Once she burps she starts to eat again fine.

If you want to slow him down while eating and have more of a "breast" like eating experience I would suggest the Breastflow bottle as it slows them way down. But it's also kind of an annoying bottle. You can't get all of the milk out when feeding. But it's the one our LC suggested when we were still trying to BF.