HELP! Users of the Podee Hands Free feeding bottles, help me out!

Ok, so my twin boys xavier and logan are one month old and i've posted before about trying to feed them at the same time by myself....i've tried the double boppy thing and it's a huge struggle (xavier moves his mouth and body around a lot while he eats). we tried the hands free bottle system again last night but they get nothing out of it and tire themselves out.

is there a trick to getting them to catch on to this? is it just too early for them? if you used this system successfully, how old were your twins when they caught on? how long did it take them to learn? please let me know any advice you have on making this system successful!

we primed the nipple to get the formula up the tube to make it easier on them but they would just lose suction and the formula level would fall back down into the bottle. most of the time we would just watch them suck the formula up into the tube but it wouldn't stay there, and then it would go back down into the bottle. am i missing something? or is it just too early for them? when do they typically get a strong enough suck reflex to make this system work? any tricks on positioning the bottle or does it matter? we followed the instructions to the letter...but there's nothing in the instructions at all about how to make it really work well.

:blink:

 

I would also prime the podees by getting it up to the nipple but to be honest my girls had to be really determined in order for the podee to work. Sometimes they just couldn't get it. I found that sometimes me holding the baby (even though I wasn't holding the bottle) would get her to use the podee. I guess sitting on me was a cue that it was feeding time, so even though it was the exact same thing as when she was in a boppy, if I was holding them they could suck from the podee. GL! It didn't always work for us but was helpful in times when they both demanded to eat at the same time.

 

I think you are probably a little early on using the podee's at one month old. I could be wrong though. We tried from 3-6 months off and on and they never got it so I gave up. Maybe someone with a better experience can help more.

 

I use the Podee bottles with my LO's twice a day (at least) while my DH is at work. I didn't start using them until just recently, so I do not know about using them earlier. It did not take them long to learn at all. They pretty much got the hang of it the first time we used them. The first time we used them, both my DH and I were here. We just sat the in the Boppy and gave them the nipple. They sucked away! They actually eat faster with the Podee bottles than most of their other bottles and I have yet to figure out why.

My idea (not that I am an expert!) is to use a different nipple than what comes with the Podee. I have never used the one that comes with it. I use the nipple they were using while in the hospital. It is a Similac nipple that fit on the pre-made 2 oz. bottles of formula. Maybe that will help.

I do have one question that is going to make me sound like a complete idiot. How do you prime it so they get less air? I have tried pinching the nipple, but the formula just goes right back down in the bottle. Thanks!

Good luck to you! I swear by the Podee- I believe it has saved my sanity!

 

I tried them sometime around 4-6 weeks of age. My son got it pretty good, my daughter couldn't do it. I primed the nipple, like you described, and used my Dr Brown's nipples - the ones they were used to. It helped that at least one of them could do it, so I could just hold my daughter. But I found cleaning all the parts to be such a pain 8 times a day. I tried the boppy pillow method soon after and found that much easier.

 

Unfortunately, mine NEVER caught on. They never took a pacifier either so I think that was a sign.

Stinky for me cuz I REALLY could've used them. It was sad. Those take some pretty fierce suction to get them to work. I tried it myself and was like "WOW!"

 

Mine stayed in their boxes.

/shrug

No help. . .

 

mine stil cant do it lol. i changed nipples out too and blahhh. glad i only bought one!

 

They got it around 4 months old and they are GREAT! We used the Dr. Browns nipples and used to get it started for them. I think you just need to give it some time. They will get it when they are older and it will make your life so much easier.

 

QUOTE(twinmommy2B2008 @ Jan 19 2009, 04:08 PM) [snapback]1153576[/snapback]
I use the Podee bottles with my LO's twice a day (at least) while my DH is at work. I didn't start using them until just recently, so I do not know about using them earlier. It did not take them long to learn at all. They pretty much got the hang of it the first time we used them. The first time we used them, both my DH and I were here. We just sat the in the Boppy and gave them the nipple. They sucked away! They actually eat faster with the Podee bottles than most of their other bottles and I have yet to figure out why.

My idea (not that I am an expert!) is to use a different nipple than what comes with the Podee. I have never used the one that comes with it. I use the nipple they were using while in the hospital. It is a Similac nipple that fit on the pre-made 2 oz. bottles of formula. Maybe that will help.

I do have one question that is going to make me sound like a complete idiot. How do you prime it so they get less air? I have tried pinching the nipple, but the formula just goes right back down in the bottle. Thanks!
Good luck to you! I swear by the Podee- I believe it has saved my sanity!


To prime the nipple, i squeezed the nipple like a pump until the formula came up into the tube and into the nipple then quickly put the nipple in xavier's mouth. you lose some of it (the level goes back down the tube) but he at least doesn't have to suck the formula all the way from the bottom of the bottle....i'm going to keep trying, i really need at least one of them to catch on! i'm going to try another nipple, thanks for the tip!

 

I just got 2 of these yesterday to try to help with our month old twins - and I'm having major problems but am begging to get this to work.

I tried the same priming trick, and can get the tube to fill with liquid.

My problem is that when they suck you can see formula & air pockets move from the bottle to them - but in between sucks it moves back.. kind of a back & forth action visible in the tube. It makes me think that I have something wrong or air is getting in - isn't the point that each suck should bring it a little closer and should never go back down at all??

I also tried the standard nipple & Dr. Brown's nipples - no luck yet with either. I'm not giving up yet - the upside is just too great.

BTW - on cleaning - I used a steam bag to clean all the parts but for the tubes and it was pretty easy. Or I'm not supposed to be using a steam bag on them. However, if I can get the system to work, I'd probably buy enough to get through a day and just do the cleaning in one bulk shot.

 

I have no experience with the podee hands free but I have read that it doesn't always work. They have to suck pretty hard to get the flow. Yours may be a little too young. Do you have a recliner? The way I feed mine at the same time (since DH works out of town and I am solo) is I lay both babies side by side on the couch. I put one arm under each and scoop them up to a "burping" position on my chest. I walk over to the recliner, took one leg under, sit down, raise my other leg...now sitting in an "indian" style. This allows the legs to be reclined slightly and I lay one baby on each leg, their heads at my knees with their bodies straight alongside the arm rests. I have the bottles and burp clothes close by on the table. This allows me to feed them both comfortably and at the same time. They take turns burping. I keep a paci close because sometimes my little guy isn't patient while I burp his sister wanting his bottle back....hope this helps.