How Supplementing with Formula Helped My Breastfeeding Journey

This is a sponsored post for Enfamil NeuroPro and all opinions are my own.

While I was pregnant, I decided that I would exclusively breastfeed my son. It was really important to me after waiting so long to conceive – I wanted to have that experience. My OB/GYN had given me a gift pack of Enfamil formula while I was pregnant. I had no plans to ever use it, and initially wasn’t going to take it. But she told me to keep in just in case I might need it; I trusted her and so I took it home.

When I first came home from the hospital after giving birth to Jonathan, I quickly discovered that I would need to supplement breastfeeding with formula. Possibly because of a previous breast reduction as well as hormonal imbalances due to polycystic ovarian syndrome, or for some other unknown reason, my milk supply was slow coming in and just low overall. Our pediatrician was concerned that his weight loss after birth, and encouraged me to consider supplementing with formula while continuing to get lactation support to breastfeed. The Enfamil NeuroPro formula that I had on hand truly came in handy and I’ve been using it ever since.

This cool baby book even came in my Enfamil gift pack and it has images that help stimulate and entertain him even as a newborn. I can trust that Enfamil NeuroPro is helping to care for my baby’s brain development. Enfamil NeuroPro is the first formula that has a blend of DHA and added Milk Fat Globule Membrane (MFGM) for brain-building nutrition inspired by breast milk (In amounts supported by clinical research. As measured by Bayley cognitive scores at 12 months). The exclusive dual prebiotic blend provides immune support, and the gentle proteins are easy to digest.

Jonathan officially hit the ‘I See It, I Grab It’ stage around 6 months. I have a feeling this will be a LONG stage in his development because he hasn’t stopped yet. It’s all a part of his cognitive development – how newborns learn and acquire knowledge, and how he interacts with his environment. He’s learning so much about the world around him. At this age, I had returned to work and Jonathan was attending daycare. I was still breastfeeding with both nursing and pumping at work, but pumping was not yielding enough breast milk. So we provided the daycare with Enfamil NeuroPro formula for his feedings during the day.

Soon after Jonathan turned 9 months, he went on a nursing strike where he refused to nurse. There are several reasons why this happens, like baby teething or being sick, mom taking a new medication – all of which were happening. I was devastated because I wasn’t ready for my nursing experience to come to an end but here we were. And since he wasn’t nursing, my milk supply plummeted and pumping was useless. Thankfully, I can continue to formula feed with Enfamil NeuroPro along with introducing more foods into his diet.

From birth to now, I’m amazed at how much he has grown! He’s meeting all of this developmental marks, has a few teeth, and is walking and talking. It has been reassuring as a first time mom to know that I had the option of using Enfamil NeuroPro for my baby’s brain development and immune support.