Multiples

night nurse?

 Just wondering if any of you have experience hiring a night nurse? I have a few friends that I work with that hired one and they swear by it. I will have family help and I won't be going back to work for four months after they are born, so I am wondering if it is worth it.
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Re: night nurse?

  • If you plan to bf (or pump) I don't see the point.  You'll need to get up anyway.  The over night pumping/bf'ing session is the worst one to skip because that is when your prolactin levels are the highest.

    I suppose the nurse could just bring you the baby and then do all the change/clean up, but your husband can just do that too. 

  • By 4 months all of ours were sleeping through the night so I wouldn't worry about a night nurse.  Even if yours aren't sleeping through they should only be getting up once and they eat quicker by then too so if you both feed you should be done in 20 minutes or so.
    Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker Photobucket Visit our blog at www.benandkarisjourneytoparenthood.blogspot.com
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  • I had a night nurse with my singleton a few nights/week for several months.  I will have a full-time nurse with my twins for several months as well.  I found the nurse to be beyond helpful to me and my family and I also wasn't working and had family around.  The nurse is hugely helpful if you don't BF, like me.  If you BF, they can help you tandem feed but I dont' think they are quite as useful.  Nurses just deal with babies, though.  If you want more of a mother's helper (someone who will cook for you, clean, etc.), you should look into a postpartum doula- I had one of them for a brief period of time but they were pricier and not as helpful to me since I didn't need cleaning help or food prepared. 

    I'm happy to answer specific questions you might have- just PM me for more details. 

  • kegkeg member
    We had a night nurse and she was wonderful!!!  I did BF/pump and she was still incredibly helpful.  Since my DDs were preemies (35w6d), it took a while for them to become decent BFers and I never had enough supply that we didn't have to supplement with a bottle after they BF anyway.  When the night nurse was here, she would take care of DDs and I would pump.  Let me tell you, it's a heck of a lot easier to just get up and pump as opposed to change, feed, burp, change, feed, burp, and then pump!  Plus, I could just sleep better since I knew I wasn't "on call" for every wimper or cry.  It's amazing how much better you feel if you get more than 1.5 hours of continuous sleep!  Our night nanny was with us 5 nights a week from weeks 2.5 through 8.5, then did 3 or 2 nights/week for the next four weeks.  By the end though, I was fine without her since DDs were only waking up once a night or so.  I would hire her again in a heartbeat since she saved what little sanity I had left!   
    2004-Started TTC; Nov 2007-Lap with endo removed; Jan 2008-Ectopic (mtx); April 2008-IVF #1 (bfp, twin girls); March 2011-FET (cp); June 2012-IVF #2 (bfp, singleton, EDD 3-19-12)

    ***Twin fraternal girls born at 35w6d in 12/2008***

  • we have one 3 nights a week and it is truly my saving grace.  I do get up to pump, but only 1 or 2x a night.  I know that I can get through the nights we have on our own because I'm going to be well rested the next night...

    she's helped me with BF, and also will do the boys' laundry if needed. 

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