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I had a C-section to give birth to my beautiful little girl. I was incredibly tired that day, but I still tried to breastfeed her.
She latched on briefly, but as a first-time mom with no experience, I thought she wasn’t getting enough, so I kept trying.
Eventually, I fell asleep, and while I was resting, my mother-in-law gave her formula “on her first day,” thinking she was still hungry.
My husband and I discovered this later, but that was the beginning of my journey to switch from formula to breastfeeding.
In this blog, I’ll share the mistakes I made that affected my milk supply and my baby’s feeding habits, and I’ll offer expert advice on how to transition from formula to breastfeeding.
Breast Milk Benefits for Both Baby and Mom
Let’s start by acknowledging that breast milk is the best source of nutrition for most babies.
It naturally provides the perfect balance of nutrients essential for healthy growth and development.
It also contains antibodies and immune-boosting components that help protect babies from infections like ear infections, respiratory illnesses, and stomach bugs—benefits that formula simply cannot replicate.
Health authorities, such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO), recommend exclusive breastfeeding for about the first six months of life.
This practice supports both the baby’s immune system and long-term health, including a lower risk of asthma, obesity, type 1 diabetes, and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
Breastfeeding also provides health benefits for mothers, such as reducing the risk of breast and ovarian cancers, type 2 diabetes, and high blood pressure, according to the CDC.
That’s why it’s important to follow the best practices of breastfeeding to avoid formula feeding as much as possible.
Below, I’ll share with you the mistakes I made that affected my breastfeeding journey so you can avoid them.
4 Mistakes that Affected My Breast Milk:
Many first-time moms, like me, make these mistakes unintentionally, not realizing how they can impact milk supply:
1. Using Baby Formula in the First Month
After my C-section, the hospital prescribed baby formula along with medicine for my baby—without any clear reason.
As first-time parents, we bought what was recommended, but I didn’t give the formula to my baby.
Unfortunately, my mother-in-law gave her formula while I was asleep. We discovered this later.
This formula feed made my baby feel full, so she didn’t breastfeed for about 5 hours that night, which reduced my milk supply.
When I visited the pediatrician after three weeks, I found out my baby was underweight, and the doctor advised me to give her formula multiple times a day.
This worsened my breastfeeding struggles. Looking back, I regret not consulting a lactation specialist earlier. This caused my second mistake: wrong latching.
2. Wrong Latching
I didn’t learn the correct latching technique before delivery, and this was a critical mistake. Without the right latch, babies can’t consume enough milk, which directly affects milk supply.
Breast milk consists of three layers:
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Watery foremilk at the beginning, for hydration.
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Creamy middle milk.
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Thick, fatty hindmilk at the end, which helps babies feel full.
When the latch is wrong, babies only get the foremilk (like appetizers for adults!) and don’t reach the nourishing hindmilk.
For sure, if you only eat appetizers, you won’t feel full!
Later, I’ll share the right latch technique based on my lactation specialist’s advice.
3. Not Using a Breast Pump
Having an electric breast pump is essential, especially for new moms. When my baby wasn’t breastfeeding well, my lactation specialist recommended using the pump to help stimulate milk production.
She also suggested introducing pumped milk using a medicine syringe, rather than a bottle, to train my baby’s jaw muscles.
Here’s what she advised:
- Wash hands. Baby upright/semi-upright.
- Use a clean, gloved finger (or clean, short nail). Pad up toward the palate.
- Slide the finger in until the baby starts a strong, rhythmic suck (lips flanged, tongue cupping your finger).
- Place the syringe tip at the corner of the mouth (or a thin tube alongside your finger if you have one).
- Do NOT squirt milk in. Only give tiny drops when the baby is actively sucking and swallowing; pause often.
- Stop if coughing, gagging, gulping, wet/noisy breathing, blue lips, or stress.
The key here is to use a good electric breast pump. There are many good brands like Spectra S1 Pro.
4. Introducing a Baby Bottle Too Early
Another mistake I made was introducing a baby bottle too soon, when my baby was still learning how to breastfeed.
Bottles are easy for babies to drink from and can weaken their jaw muscles.
Breastfeeding, on the other hand, is like a workout for a baby’s jaw muscles, which helps them latch better and reach the hindmilk.
Introducing a bottle before the baby masters breastfeeding can lead to confusion, and babies might refuse the breast, preferring the easier bottle.
It’s best to wait until your baby has mastered breastfeeding (usually after 4-6 weeks) before introducing a bottle.
Breast Milk to Formula Transition Schedule
When I visited my lactation specialist at 4 weeks, she recommended the following:
- Massage my breast before breastfeeding to help stimulate milk flow and encourage the baby to latch better.
- Then, breastfeed for 20 minutes on each side while the baby is awake (not sleepy).
- It’s important that the baby is fully awake and actively feeding, as this is when they are most likely to latch well and get the milk they need.
- After breastfeeding, use the breast pump for 20 minutes (10 minutes per side) to ensure the milk is fully emptied and to encourage further production.
- Complete with formula if needed until my baby feels full (using the oral syringe and my finger to train her jaw muscles).
I should repeat this process every 3 hours (for example, if I start breastfeeding at 2 pm, I have to redo it again at 5 pm, and so on). The baby should be fed 8 to 10 times daily at the beginning.
I should do this 8 times daily. It’s so exhausting and stressful, right? But it works!
Additionally, she prescribed some herbal supplements to help increase my milk supply.
However, to be honest, I didn’t notice a significant difference with these.
What really made a difference in boosting my milk was breastfeeding more often and using the pump regularly—the more I fed my baby, the more my milk increased. It’s all about supply and demand.
In addition, she recommended drinking 3-4 liters of water daily to boost milk production and following a healthy, balanced diet.
A “Right Latch” (Deep Latch)
A deep latch is when your baby takes a big mouthful of the breast, not just the nipple—so milk transfers well and it feels comfortable.
Signs baby is latched well:
- Mouth wide open, lips flanged outward (“fish lips”).
- Chin pressed into the breast, nose clear/not squashed.
- You see more areola above the top lip than below the bottom lip (often called an “asymmetric” deep latch).
- Cheeks look full/rounded (not dimpled), and sucking becomes rhythmic with swallowing.
- It’s comfortable: maybe brief tenderness at first, but ongoing pain is a red flag.
Check out more details about the steps and signs of a good latch.
FAQs
Why is mixed feeding not recommended for babies?
When you use formula with breastfeeding, the milk supply will decrease, and you will eventually end up using the formula only. As the milk supply will not be enough for your little one.
The milk in the breast increases by increasing the breastfeeding, and the opposite is true—the more you do it, the more your milk will increase, and the opposite happens when you use formula. The baby will prefer formula because it’s easier than breastfeeding, which requires more effort to feel full.
So, the baby will prefer the formula, and some of them end up refusing the breast.
Is it okay to formula feed at night and breastfeed during the day?
It’s not recommended. Breast milk production peaks at night, so stopping nighttime breastfeeding can reduce your supply.
Is it okay to switch from formula to breast milk?
Yes, I know many moms who succeeded in switching from formula to breastfeeding. One of them succeeded when her baby turned 9 months old.
But the key here is to start early. The earlier you start, the easier it is for your baby to latch, and the more control you’ll have.
Some pediatricians claim it’s possible until the baby is one year old.
How to transition from breastmilk to formula at 6 months?
By increasing the milk supply—the more you feed your baby, the more your milk will increase.
If your baby can’t finish the feed, pump and offer the remaining milk.
If your baby cannot finish breastfeeding, you can use an electric pump to do so. For me, my lactation specialist asked me to follow this schedule to transition from formula to breastfeeding.
It’s hard, but it’s possible to achieve, as our babies deserve the best.
What is the 3-3-3 rule in breastfeeding?
The 3-3-3 rule in breastfeeding is all about storing the pumped breastmilk. It lasts up to 3 hours at room temperature, up to 3 days in the refrigerator, and for about 3 months in a standard freezer, and some doctors say up to 4 months.
If your baby drank from the milk within the first hour but didn’t finish it, it’s generally recommended to discard the remaining milk after 1 hour of being consumed. This is because bacteria from the baby’s mouth can mix with the milk, and after 1 hour, the milk may not be safe for further consumption.
