Tandem breastfeeding: looking for advice

babydontforget

I'm having a rough time with tandem breastfeeding, and I'm looking for advice, if you have any.

I have the My Breast Friend twin pillow. I'm finding that I hate it. The "lumbar support" situation in the back just makes my posture terrible, and there's a huge gap in the front under my boobs, right where the babies are supposed to be lying. I have tried all manner of tricks to prop it up fill in the gap with blankets, etc. But it's still not very comfortable. And yet, I really need it for tandem. I can use single pillows, boppies, etc. for feeding just one baby. But breastfeeding them separately simply takes too long, and also it kills me when one of them is screaming beside me, waiting for the first to finish up.

Cal has a more difficult time latching on that Luke does. When I try latching Luke, then struggling to get Cal on, I find that Luke falls off. And same thing vice versa. It can literally take me five minutes or so to successfully get Cal latched. 

Any ideas? 

kelliwill

I had the EZ2Nurse twins pillow and it worked great as long as I sat on the couch.  But I found that I needed a nursing stool for my feet and sometimes a pillow behind my back as well.  I had the same issues you are saying about get one on and the other falls off.  A latched better than G who had a really hard time.  I only lasted 3-4 months and just couldn't do it anymore and would pump, but I wish I could have stuck with it longer.....it just wasn't working for us.  I had a LC come to the house twice though and having her here helped out a lot and she helped me find where I was most comfortable etc.  Have you tried having a LC come to the house??  GL!

sfshawna

First of all, congrats on your babies!! I absolutely love their names, too. Luke was always our boy name, but we never ended up needing it

Secondly, give yourself some credit. You are less than two weeks in, and tandem feeding is not easy. It sounds like you're doing great, and the more you work at it, thebetter you'll get. Within the next couple of weeks, they will be latching so much better too!

I demo'd the my Brest friend for a week when my twins were 2 weeks old (it's a local company) and I have to say that I hated the back support too. I didn't use it at all (it was removable by Velcro in the model I had). In fact, aloof the velcro was annoying! I would try to push the pillow up to your waist so there's no gap, and then put bed pillows or couch cushions behind your back, maybe 2 or 3. I hope that helps! Keep trying and it will get easier! I've been nursing for almost 17 months now, and I know I would not have lasted if I hadn't gotten tandem feeding down! But, it was definitely hard at first, even though I had nursed two singletons before. Give yourself some time and lots of practice and you'll get there

GSwans

I have the my Brest Friend twin as well, and I agree with what you're saying about the gap b/t your stomach and the pillow in the front under the boobs. ?I'm finding that I have to push the pillow back as fa as it will go so that gap goes away, and then babies are pretty much where they need to be. ?I get them latched on one at a time, and when one is latched, I use rolled up blankets to prop/angle their heads so they're in the right position, and then get the other latched on. ?I find that the blankets really help to keep them in place securely. ?

GL!?

jalaiaa

I'm echoing other posts. I have the EZ2 Nurse and at first I was trying to fill in the gap around my belly which didn't work at all. Now I put the pillow up against my belly and use a couple pillows behind my back. to make up the space that way. Also, when they were little I'd put folded up blankets under their heads or roll blankets behind their heads. It gets much easier as they get bigger. keep working on it and you'll find out what works best for you. 

amcam24

Tandem feeding is so tricky!  I'm still trying to figure it out.  I have the same gap.  What I did was took off that stupid rectangle in the back, and I push the pillow back so the gap goes away. I have to use the receiving blankets to prop their heads up too.  It ends up taking me just as long as single feeding!  I'm hoping that it gets easier as they get bigger.  Hang in there! You are doing a great job.