Hey everyone, first time dad here feeling a little desperate for guidance!

My partner has been breastfeeding our 3 week old boy and she's been doing a fantastic job.. however due to a recent diagnosis of mastitis and also how demanding he is with cluster feeding etc I've been doing some combi feeding to take the pressure of her a little.

Initially I was using the Tommee Tippee closer to nature bottles but had to stop as even the slowest flow teats we're overwhelming him. I was advised to get the Medela Calmer system which has made a bit of an improvement, as he has to actually work for the feed, however he is still suckling furiously and gulping like crazy. He will take so much milk so quickly that he spits a load back out, pushes the bottle away, arches his back and almost chokes on it.

I've tried paced feeding and burping every few minutes but all that does is get him worked up and go even faster! The Medela bottles are great but it's not a flow issue, it's speed.. presumably he has to work quite hard on the breast so he's translating that onto the bottle when he doesn't need to make as much effort.

It's causing me quite a bit of anxiety and I hate seeing him in discomfort afterwards 😔 I spent the whole night in the lounge with him so my partner could sleep and recover a little, she was really ill last night due to the mastitis and also having toothache bless her so just wanted to let her rest.. every feed was frantic 😔 it's not enjoyable for me and it can't be nice for him so I'm just hoping someone may have ideas! TIA 😊