Hi everyone
I'm personally not sure that a mother ever needs to worry about
when to introduce a bottle because she will be going back to work.
It really depends on the circumstances:  full or part time, number
of hours of separation, age of the baby, is the baby receiving
other foods, caregiver attitude, baby's personality all impact on
the answer for each mother - baby dyad.  For example:  my second
baby would never take a bottle.  She was exclusively breastfed for
almost 8 months and I went to work part time when she was 4 1/2
months old.  She preferred to crawl over to the bed where we
usually nurse and wait.  I was only gone for 4 1/2 hours once a
week and my husband was home.  He played and held her.  She did
nurse non-stop for a while when I returned.  This is the same baby
who woke up at age two, when I had gone out for a short errand,
stood in my room and shouted" I want mommy, I want nurse!"
repeatedly until I came back (about 10 min.)  She always knew what
she wanted.
The point is we always need to listen to each mother and each
baby and be flexible about things.  Early introduction of a bottle
can often interfere with supply and I personally put it in the same
category as a routine IV in labor that is 'just in case'.

Sarah Friend Barnett, M.A., LLL leader, IBCLC
Bronx (New York City), NY
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