Tips for successfully breastfeeding twins needed

[mears]

I know there are a few BF mums of twins here on mumsnet.

What are you top tips?

[3missyshohoho]

I haven't had twins but my friend who has said "hold them like rugby balls under each arm!"

[theslownorris]

I only bf mine for 12 weeks so can only comment on the early days .A couple of V-shaped pillows were great (one behind my back and one on my lap). I couldn't get on with one under each arm but I used to feed both at the same time, one in a "rugby hold" and the other the conventional way so she was lying behind her sister. I am well-endowed though so it may not work for everyone .
If I was on my own I would have a Moses basket on a stand next to the chair,put one baby in it,sit down with the other then reach over and get the first out the basket.

[mears]

Thanks for comments.

C'mon, where are the rest of you?

[TheStepfordChav]

Agree about v-shaped pillow. Get your phone, remote control & anything else you might need before you sit down. Expect to spend all evening every evening feeding for the next six months...

We had them in bed with us for the first three months. (Cramped, and they always ended up on the pillow in the morning like a couple of cats.) Was bliss feeding in the night, still half-asleep, on the rare occasions when they didn't both wake up at the same time.

[Overrun]

I bf my twins, and used the rugby hold and the cushions that have already been mentioned. I had to say that even though I had was an experienced breast feeder, I struggled with the tandem feeding. I often fed them one by one. There were some major disadvantages to this, takes more time, you often have to listen to one baby crying while you feed the other if you mistime.
The up side, was it meant I could carry on bfing, I might have had to give up otherwise, and it ensured that I had some quality one on one time with the dts.
Hope this helps

[TheStepfordChav]

It helps a lot if there's someone to give you a hand. One would wake, I'd get him latched on, then the other would wake, crying ever louder, while I'd be thinking 'Hurry up' 'cos I couldn't move & get the 2nd one latched on as well... It helps if there's someone else to pick up & bring 2nd one over.

[crokky]

My mum bf twins and the thing that is very important is help from a person (preferably 2 people) who is/are supportive and prepared to get up in the night with you and help in the day.

She couldn't bf them together as one had a much stronger suck than the other and so the weaker twin was choked by the milk being forced out of the opposite boob by the strongly sucking twin.

I think that you'll be bf the entire time and any nappy changing/settling/comforting that needs to be done either before or after the feed must be done by someone else so that you can either get on with bf the next one or actually get some sleep!

[mears]

Thanks a lot. Looking for tips for my sister who is expecting twins next year.

[MarsLady]

Mears... I tandem fed them. Babymooning was a must because it was so exhausting (esp at the beginning).

If you can arrange a meals rota for her (even just once or twice a week) that would help enormously. Lots of praise and encouragement. The number of people who think it's impossible to exclusively bf twins never ceases to amaze me.

Other than that just normal bfing advice really.

I think having you will benefit her immensely.

Have been away or would have answered sooner. BTW........ how is your STUDYING???????????????

[mears]

Hi Mars - was looking out for you postind.

How easy is it to get twins to tandem feed. Did your want to feed at the same time? Did you just waken them?

Still slogging away with the studying BTW. Have to redo my proposal.

[MarsLady]

You have to be determined. DT1 was smaller than DT2. She was 4lbs 5 and he was 5lbs 14. He took to breastfeeding instantly (still has a major love affair with my breasts). She would fall asleep as soon as she touched my breasts. So I had to really play with her to keep her awake enough to feed enough to stay awake (you know what I mean). That's where the pillow came into its own (I rarely recommend pillows for bf but with DTs its a bit of a necessity at first).

Whoever woke for a feed I would wake the other. I decided that because they were going to feed frequently I would need some sleep so I was not going to waste precious sleeping time feeding one at a time. I'm a stubborn moo and persevered and it worked out. I would even change their nappies at the same time. It didn't take long before they were in sync and it was the best thing that I did.

Those first few months were more exhausting than any I've known. I realised how easy I had had it with the singletons and I remember how knackered I was for the first few months with them!

You will need to really support her with the bfing because the number of mws and hvs who told me that it would not be possible to exclusively feed them shocked me. Non-health professionals I could understand after all they have more limited knowledge about bfing. I "sacked" one mw. I told her I didn't want her in my home again. She had walked in, looked at the 5 children who were all calmly sat on the couch (big 3 holding the DTs between them) and told me that it must be hell. Then proceeded to tell me that I would obviously need to top them up because there was no way I would be able to produce enough milk Got a reputation in the health clinic which was a good thing because none of them bothered me about the feeding again even though DT1 remained below the 2nd percentile and DT2 shot up to the 75th. They're still like it now. She's little miss diddy and he's mr heffalump. I call them fatboy slim!

It's not just my personal experience. Different clients have told me the same story about the mws and hvs (and I know that they are not all so misinformed but sadly too many are).

Have helped lots of the multiple mums on the d'y ever thread with their bfing issues, via email, on the phone etc. So if you ever want to chat about it you can email me. lovelymarslady at aol dot com.

hth (and sorry about the wee rant. Still makes me and the DTs are almost 4!)

[MarsLady]

Hope you don't have to do too much to redo your proposal. Glad you're still slogging away. Now that I'm back there'll be no slacking. Not on my watch!

[Sabire]

Hiya - I nicked this off a breastfeeding supporters yahoo group. Some fab advice for feeding twins!

Breastfeeding is the easiest part of caring for two babies at
once! So it's worthwhile getting it off to the best start. Would suggest:

1. Get personal, face-to-face help asap after the birth to ensure

that each baby separately can latch and suck effectively enough to
really "breastfeed". I don't think there's really any phone/email
substitute that can achieve this so well - it needs to be a person
who is very good at latching babies, and then teaching the mother how
to do it herself.

1. If each baby is not transferring enough milk, then

breastmilk-feed (pump or hand express) until he/she can. Caution
here is that babies will be born by C/sec, may be small, and may not
be competent - this is no-one's fault, but the possibility needs to
be recognized,

1. The MOST important aspect is not "breastfeeding" per se (which

can be learned by mother and babies really at any time - preferably
soon after birth, but not absolutely crucial) but the breastmilk
supply, which needs to be protected at all costs if the mother wants
to breastfeed two babies, and for six full months. In other words,
it is crucial not to sacrifice the fragility of the breastmilk SUPPLY
on the altar of breastFEEDING - a mother of twins needs all the milk
storage capacity she can get, and once breasts are permitted to
become engorged, the damage to the milk producing cells may be
irreparable. In practice, this means, that mother's breasts must
never be allowed to become overfull, and stay overfull - use one or
both babies to drain (if competent) or pump or manual expression (if not).

1. Once each baby can latch and feed fairly well, then mother can

and should attempt simultaneous breastfeeding asap. This will save
her hours of time and - most importantly - enable her to comfort two
babies at once in a way that is not possible by any other method!

1. Once babies can be fed simultaneously, consider feeding them in

the football/rugby hold with enough pillows under/around mum and
babies that she can do this hands-free - so that she has a pair of
hands available for the older child (handle toys. wipe nose,
pat/cuddle, feed etc) or to eat her own food etc. She needs a couch,
lots of pillows, and a coffee table placed in front for drinks,
snacks, toys, tissues, remote control on the TV, books, magazines,
mobile phone.... once you're plugged in, it's very hard to move two
babies without disturbing them, and especially waking them up after
feeding.... It is possible, however, to breastfeed two babies at
once and simultaneously cuddle an older child or play with him.

1. Get someone else to do all the housework! And the shopping!
2. Get husband to prepare meals and cut them up into bite-sized

pieces, bring drinks .....

1. I agree, consider NOT contacting TAMBA, who may not have many

successful BF mothers of twins on their books. Yes, Karen Gromada's
book is great. Email/phone contact later, for endless doses of
reassurance, and mother-support meetings if mum feels able to handle
the logistics of getting out with two babies and another toddler, can
be really helpful. Twin mothers have often seen friends struggling
to breastfeed even one baby, which really saps their confidence about
their own ability to breastfeed two.

1. The mother should follow her heart about their care, eg resist

all "advice" to artificially separate them, especially if they are
identical, unless it really "feels" right - allow them to feed
together, sleep together, play together if that keeps them
happier. This doesn't always mean treating each baby equally -
sometimes one will require more care/feeding, and later the other
one will, but I've observed that the older twins who fight the most,
and seem the least happy, are the ones whose mothers appeared to go
out of their way to foster so-called "individuality" right from the
beginning. They will morph into individuals eventually, in their own time.

1. Enjoy! Breastfeeding twins can be a life-changing experience,

for mothers and fathers, and for their relationship. Fathers often
rise to the challenge, helping more with two babies than with one,
since they can see that the need is so great.... And breastfeeding
twin toddlers is the most amazing thing - it can make their care so
much easier, and they tell you what they like about it too.

[mears]

Thanks guys, really helpful