I'm planning on BFing my twins

I was just wondering if there are any life saving tips you can share that would really help me be sucessful at it.?

 

What works for everyone is a little different, but here are my tips:

- get the ez2nurse pillow and try to tandem nurse as much as you can
- for me, pumping and having DH do one of the nighttime feedings was a lifesaver - it let me get a few hours of extra sleep. Of course this only works once you have your milk supply established and you can afford to sleep through a feeding and then pump when you wake up.
- if you're going to pump - get the easy expressions pumping bra - so you can pump hands free and save your sanity
- try not to get into too much of a bottle habit though - one bottle a day so that you can get a break and they will be comfortable taking a bottle when you need a break.
- if you can have help for the first month or so, definitely do - if family offers to come stay and help, take them up on it. So that you can focus only on feeding the babies - let somebody else take care of you.

Most important: have realistic expectations. Read some of the threads on this forum. Don't expect it to be easy at first. It's a committment that is hard to keep up at first. Know that the feedings will be long and very frequent in the early days, weeks or even months. It's exhausting, there will be tears. Know that you are normal. Don't beat yourself up when the going gets tough - come to this forum and get support. I think too many people quit because it's hard at first, and they can't see the light at the end of the tunnel and know that it will get easier - they assume that it will always be that hard so they quit. Just like pregnancy and birth - it is a labor of love. It is hard work. But it is so worth it.

You're already off to the best start by thinking about it ahead of time.

Congrats on your twins and good luck!!

 

The first two months is really tough but try and stick it out-from what I hear on this board it is worth the wait if you can stick it out! I had issues and took the easy way out by pumping and bottle feeding EBM and now having a tough time getting my babies to nurse...they forget how pretty easy so if you want to nurse make sure they practice lots every day!
You found the best place for advice and encouragement...these ladies know their stuff and are so nice!
Good luck with the rest of your pregnancy and way to go for wanting to bf!!!!

 

Thanks so much I keep hearing it's best to feed them together but isn't that hard to hold them both at the same time and them not slide off or just geting them situated sounds hard....I plan on sticking it out no matter how hard it gets I really feel it is the best thing I just pray my supply will be good enough

 

That is great that you want to bf your twins, you can do it!!!! You asked about feeding at the same time, here are pics that may help:
tandem feeding pics

If both babies are naturals at nursing (latch on right away and suck) then I would try tandem feeding whenever they are both hungry at the same time. If one or both need some "assistence" to bf then you may need to nurse them one on one for a while, but you can still keep them on almost the same schedule by then nursing the other baby right after.
The first week or so of tandem feeding I found having help to get situated boosted my confidence that I could do it on my own. I would get everything I needed w/in hands reach (water for me, snack, tv remote, phone, burpies, paci's, etc), set up the EZ-2 pillow and nurse away!!!

 

Thanks so much the pictures really did help me have an idea of different holds...I'm not to sure alot of them will be possible since I'm not very well indowed.....a small C even after pregnancy.

 

Here is what helped me.

1. Breastfeed as soon as you can, it makes a big difference. Try to tandem in the hospital, it may seem daunting, but your babies may do very well and you will have so much help there with getting babies positioned, etc.

2. EZ2 nurse pillow

3. Have the Lactation Consultant (LC) in the hospital come to see you as soon as possible, if the hospital staff does not ask you, then you ask them. My hospital had great Lactation Consultants that helped with position, latch, burping, pumping for one of my girls that was in the NICU (only one day, but still). They were great!

4. Try to do it alone at home when your help is still there so you can get some practice without the anxiety of being alone.

5. Have what ever you can think of close by, because you are not getting up for a long time!

6. TRUST YOUR BODY. With the rare exception, breastfeeding moms make enough milk for their babies. As long as you feed on demand, you will be fine. But there are things you can do. I drank lots of water, ate oatmeal everyday, and I took More Milk Plus. I only pumped the first week to build supply.

7. My thoughts on pumping. It is great to build up a stash and it is nice so if you have to leave your babies, you can still give them mama's milk. But for me personally, I HATE pumping. It takes so much time and I didn't feel like adding one more thing to my day. Pumping is not required unless you go back to work. I will occasional pump if I need to be away, other than that, my pump collects dust. I would be very cautions of thinking that pumping and feeding EBM will make life easier. It may, when you have help, but after everyone leaves, you will want to just lift your shirt and nurse. However, I did pump when I had bad blisters and cracks because the pain of bfing was too bad. I needed to pump to heal or I would have quit.

8. Come the forums to get help and encouragement. You will need it. It can be very hard in the beginning, but it is so rewarding and will make life easier for you in the long run. A mom of twins saves around 300 hours and $1200 bfing in one year.

9. You can take any approach you want to scheduling, but this is what has worked for me. I tandem for every feeding during the day. I feed according to whoever is hungry first, I never make one wait. But they mostly want to eat at the same time anyway. At night I tandem if both are awake (90%) of the time. If only one is awake, I don't wake the other and feed one baby laying in bed (heaven!) If we are out, I feed one at a time. I didn't start this until they were down to eating only 15 min. Otherwise it was too long to make the other wait.

10. Don't feel like you have to be trapped at home because you bf. Don't worry about who is looking, if one is screaming, if you fumble. Just go out and try it. It is very empowering to nurse a baby while you eat lunch and then switch to the next one.

That was so long!

 

QUOTE(Brown Eyed Gurl @ May 1 2008, 03:24 PM) [snapback]750615[/snapback]
Thanks so much the pictures really did help me have an idea of different holds...I'm not to sure alot of them will be possible since I'm not very well indowed.....a small C even after pregnancy.


Sometimes it is easier with smaller breasts. You don't have to support your breasts as much! I was very overweight with my older ds so my breasts were larger and I had to hold my breast up until he was 6 months old!!! I weigh about 50 less and I can bf without needing any support for my breasts.

 

It's great that you have in mind to BF but just be prepared that if you deliver early you may not be able to right away. While mine were in the NICU I pumped every few hours and the nurses were great about using my milk for them. Have a good pump to get your supply built up. And the Double Blessing foam pillow is great for tandem because it is angled properly to help them hold on. Good luck!

 

Congrats on your pregnancy, and WTG for planning to nurse your twins!

I'll just toss out a bunch of stuff:

-Don't worry about your breast size. I was barely an A before getting pregnant, actually started filling my A bras when I got pregnant :blush: , went up to a D when my milk came in, and since that evened out, have been an A or B. Breast size has never been an issue in positioning for tandem nursing for me! I've heard better-endowed moms complain that they feel like they're going to smother the babies with their boobs, so being small has some advantages!

-Start reading a bit about BFing. It doesn't have to be a huge research project - check out the BFing forum now and then, thumb through books about nursing (The Nursing Mother's Companion is one good one; Mothering Multiples by Karen Gromada is all about BFing twins!)... Also, http://kellymom.com/ is my all-time favorite BFing reference! Tons of good, concise info. It's good to have some idea what to expect.

-What to expect: The first couple months are hard. Feedings are frequent (every 3 hrs minimum, often more like every 2), and may take as long as 45 min. It can be challenging keeping young babies awake long enough to get full, too. BUT - the first couple months with twins are hard no matter what! And after a while, you will turn a corner, feedings will get much quicker and easier, and BFing will start to be fun and enjoyable. A lot of moms suggest that you make a deal with yourself to BF for the first 2 months, and then if you still hate it, you can quit. If you can tough it out through the beginning, it is SO worth it.

-BFing is not all or nothing. A lot of moms go into BFing thinking that they have to be the babies' sole source of food, and do every single feeding, and never give a drop of formula. But it ain't so. It is OK to leave bottle of EBM (or formula) and go out and get a break. In fact, taking breaks is ESSENTIAL. It's also a great idea, as a pp said, to work out a system for sharing the night feedings with your DH. Doing shifts works well for some people (one parent on duty til a certain time, the other on duty from that time until morning). My DH and I took turns with night feedings. You'll see what works best for you.

-However - there is one circumstance where bottles are not your friend: right after nursing. So, so, SO many moms doubt their milk supply, and if the babies are fussy after a feeding, they assume it's because they didn't get enough milk, and follow up with a bottle. This turns into a vicious circle SO fast - babies come to expect the post-nursing bottle, so they don't make as much of an effort to nurse, so supply dwindles; babies get overfed with the bottle, are less hungry at the next nursing session, don't take as much milk, supply dwindles... It's fine to substitute a bottle for a nursing session (and pump to make up for it), but generally, think of a feeding as breast OR bottle, NOT both.

-Which leads me to one of the most important things: CONFIDENCE! Like pps said, go into it assuming it will work. Trust your body. Your body is growing two amazing, wonderful babies right now, and it knows how to feed them once they're on the outside. Just about all new moms doubt themselves about all kinds of things, it's all part of the learning process, and it is very easy to doubt your ability to make milk for two babies - but YOU CAN DO IT!

-Get all the help you possibly can. The best way people can help you is to keep your life running for you while you nurse the babies. Have people bring you food (cooked meals, or almost-ready meals that just need to be popped in the oven), do your grocery shopping, do your errands, wash dishes, keep laundry going, all that stuff.

-Go into it assuming you will succeed - but have backup plans in case you hit a bump in the road and need some help. This forum is a wonderful source of support! But IRL, see if your hospital has lactation consultants, and if not, find out where to find them. Check for a local LLL chapter. Think about taking a BFing class at the hospital. Also, since it's so common for twins to come early and need NICU time, have a preemie plan in place: talk to the hospital about how they handle pump rental, how soon you can pump after birth, how soon they allow preemies to try nursing instead of getting a bottle.


OK, now that I have written War and Peace, the BFing edition, and put you to sleep... :lol: Best of luck to you! Stop by here anytime, there are so many awesome women here to help.

 

I just wanted to say welcome and come back often. This forum was my saving grace! Congrats on the twinkies and your desire to BF. My only tip is to make a commitment to BF for 10 weeks period. That commitment will get you through the tough part and you'll want to continue forever after that.

 

QUOTE(Brown Eyed Gurl @ May 1 2008, 12:12 PM) [snapback]750321[/snapback]
I was just wondering if there are any life saving tips you can share that would really help me be sucessful at it.?



IMO the single thing that will make you successful is you deciding that you can make it through the first 6-8 weeks and havng someone to remind you of your goals and support you. All the rest you will figure out as you go.

Good luck, it is the most rewarding thing I have ever done in my life.

 

Thank you all so much for the advice you've just made me even more sure of my deceision to BF my twins and my DH is so behind me 100% he will be alot of help.

 

Be committed to it. It may not be easy and you may hit some speedbumps but be committed and you will get through them and be SO GLAD you did. I feel like I have a different bond with my girls b/c I BF them. It is the ONLY thing that ONLY YOU can do for them.

Get the # of your hospital's LC. Put it on your fridge. You may never need her but you may find that you do ... and you will be like ... where did I put that stinkin' card?

Tandem and demand feed. When one gets hungry, feed them both. That way, it cuts your nursing time down and it makes it so that both are happy for a while (as in, one doesn't fuss while you nurse the other) and you get some downtime! I kinda miss the days when my little preemies nursed for an hour ... I would just sit and watch a show! Now they are in and out in 5 minutes flat!

Get on this forum a lot ... we are always here to offer our little 2 cents!!!

Good luck ... I have total faith in you!

 

I just wanted to add my support as well! If you know going into it that feeding them will be a full-time job and are prepared for some struggles, then you will feel pleasantly surprised by how well it goes. I think sometimes we think: baby+boob=easy. But the little ones need some help figuring it out at first! Don't freak out about how much you think they're getting--just feed them on demand, and you'll do great! Good luck, and I look forward to getting to know you!

Reyna

 

Thank you all so much I'm so looking forward to talking ot you all more and I pray that I don't get dishearted. I think breast feeding is one of the best things I can do to give my babies a good start and pray I do it and don't stress them out....lol

 

Here's my 2 cents:

- When one baby's hungry, both babies are hungry! This will save your sanity in the early days, as it will probably take 45 min to an hour to feed them both at first...and then they'll want to start again within an hour or two.

- Ez2Nurse, Ez2Nurse, Ez2Nurse! Make it your best friend!

- Drink lots of water. I aim for a gallon a day, which seems excessive...but you'll be that thirsty!

- Turn off your ears, and listen to your gut. Try your best to ignore all the people out there telling you that it's "just too hard to nurse twins" or that "most women don't have enough milk to nurse twins" or that you should just "give formula to give yourself a break". BUT, also remember that BFing multiples doesn't have to be all or nothing. Definitely give it your best shot, but if you do have to supplement a bit, or give a bottle a day, it's OK - you're still breastfeeding multiples, which was your goal!

- When it's really tough to continue, set mini goals: I will make it to 2 weeks, then 4 weeks, then 6 weeks, etc. Once you reach a goal, it's inevitable that you'll feel like making another...and before you know it, you'll have made it to that magic age when they're in and out in less than 10 minutes.