Nine-week old twins and dream-feeding

[Janberryxx]

When one of my babies wakes in the night to feed, I'm dreamfeeding the other one at the same time to avoid the problem of one of them at least not settling back to sleep afterwards. It's working a treat, usually, especially as one of the babies finds it very difficult to settle (it can take a further hour-and-a-half afterwrads to settle her back to sleep- ugh!)
Trouble is, I can't help wondering whether there's a downside I haven't realised- am I making a rod for my own back in some way- things don't really go this well do they?!!! Any thoughts? Thanks in advance.

No, I don't think so. I did the same thing, until a certain point when they were starting to get close to sleeping through and I decided to leave the good sleeper if the other one woke up to see what would happen. Actually I do remember when this was - it was at 11 weeks as it was the first time that one of them managed to go from 11pm - 7am and it was a revelation Once I knew that twin was capable of it I never woke her again if her sister woke up - we had a few weeks where things sometimes seemed a bit harder (if for example they both ended up waking in the night so I had to do two feeds) but otherwise you never know if one of them is capable of sleeping for longer than the other.

You do what you can to get by when you have twins - I think you're doing the right thing and it sounds like it's working well!!

Wow, sleeping through at 11 weeks- that's put a big smile on my face, Lottie! We're your babies breastfed? I think I should take a risk and let the sleeping twin sleep on, as you did- otherwise I'll never know!

Yes, they were breastfed... I won't gloat too much though - remember the first time one of them slept through and I thought 'woohoo!'. It wasn't exactly plain sailing from that point on, it's not as though the first time they do it they suddenly do it consistently. BUT - it feels like a breakthrough and sometimes you need to have those breakthroughs to make you feel like it's all worth it!

Yes, light at the end of the tunnel! Thanks for your messages!

I had a similar experience. The dream feed felt like more faff than benefit so we tried with the better sleeper and he slept as long without the feed as with. Then we tried a bit later with the lighter sleeper when it felt right and had the same experience. Mine slept through from 3-5 months. Then they didn't and we're still trying to get them back to something sensible at 10.5 months...

I breastfed and did the same. Mine slept through from about 6 mths, but before that they were only waking once and going straight back to sleep afterwards so it was really doable for a long time before that. Once they settle it makes all the difference. I would feed them in bed so wouldn't even have to get up except for a wee.

they do have a massive growth spurt/develpomantal spurt about 5 mths so it's not unusual for them to wake more and be unsettled at that age

So don't get too used to it if it starts happening ;-)

Yes, we also had a major regression at about 5-7 months. One thing I've learnt is to never take them sleeping through for granted... even now with them aged 2 I still try to appreciate every night of unbroken sleep I get!