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Multiples
pros and cons of EP
Any MoM's EP? I'm having a difficult time with breastfeeding and am trying to weigh my options. I want my boys to have all the benefits from the breast milk however they don't latch well and we've been supplementing with the bottle since we were in the hospital. Since I've been pumping every 3 hrs we have enough milk to supplement with that rather than formula.
Can you tell me the pros and cons that you've found with EP. It would be greatly appreciated!
TTC since 8/08 with MFI
IVF #1 Nov 2010 BFP! Twins!!
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Re: pros and cons of EP
I didn't EP, but I did want to say that my girls were born around 36 weeks and it took several weeks for them to really "get" BFing. Therefore, just because you're having problems at the moment doesn't mean that they won't BF eventually. Mine didn't get it until they were about 39 weeks and that was only after using nipple shields for a little while.
***Twin fraternal girls born at 35w6d in 12/2008***
I EPed until a breast abscess stopped me.
It is time consuming and exhausting. I felt horrible when I had to stop but part of me was also relieved - I had more time to spend with my boys.
Granted, I also had supply issues so I was pumping quite frequently and taking supplements to try and increase my supply.
But I'm glad I was able to do it as long as I did (3.5 months). I feel like it gave them a great start!
My DD was a terrible BF. Lost so much wieght that I was told by the pedi that I had to EP or formula feed. I ended up EP from 6-8 weeks until 4.5 months.
Pros: I liked knowing how much she got at each feeding. No nipple/bottle confusion. My DD ate from a bottle like a champ and that made life easier. Felt like I was done with night feedings quicker than some of my friends. No comfort nursing in the night. She was either hungry or not.
Cons: I was a slave to feedings. Pumping every 3 hours and then feeding a bottle. Clean up the bottles, rinse, repeat! It became too much. When I stopped there was no guilt or sadness at all on my part.
I just visited a friend that EBF her DD. It was so easy. Whip it out, feed for 15-20 minutes, wrap up. She pumps once a day, so DH can feed her or she can get out of the house. Seemed simpler to me after my experience.
I would get a lactation consultant to help with the BF and do a mixture of both. Then you will have the best of both worlds.
I definitely agree w/ PP that it does take time for babies to "get" BF'ing, and sometimes it takes to the 6-8 week mark for this to happen. Also, if you want to continue BF'ing I would also recommend getting in contact w/ a great lactation consultant to help and that way you are not exclusively attached to the pump.
With that being said I EP'd for DS#1 for 6 mos and once I was done, I was DONE. I honestly don't know if I will do it again w/ the twins if BF'ing doesn't work, but we will see what happens.
Pros: I knew how much he was getting, I never had to whip out a boob in public, and he got what BM I could provide even though it was from a bottle.
Cons: So time consuming (washing all parts, having to always think about what time it is b/c I knew I HAD to pump every 3 hours, still had to bottle feed on top of pumping - **although for this having a hands free pumping bra was essential that way I could feed DS the BM from the previous pumping session and pump at the same time = time saver!), had major guilt about not being able to BF successfully, and friends that BF always looked like they had it soooo much easier (i.e. just whip it out and viola feed).
In the end it is just such an individual decision that you have to do what works best for you.
GL!
I personally wished I had given BF more of a shot--I didn't have the patience to wait it out and see if my one DD who had latching issues would catch on. As a result, I decided to just EP for both DDs.
Pros: You see how much milk they're drinking/you're expressing. DH or anyone else can help you feed both babies at once. If you're alone and need to feed both, you can easily prop both babies w/ bottles.
Cons: Exhaustion!! In order for me to exclusively EP and not supplement, I pumped every 3 hours for the first few months (I stopped EP'ing at 4 months). By the time I fed DDs, pumped, and cleaned the bottles from the last feeding, it was too time consuming of a process.
GL!!
I've been EPing twins for 6 months.
Pros: I know how much they are getting. Daddy can help with feedings - when they were eating every 3 hours as mandated by pedi to gain weight he did 2am by himself and i did 5am by myself so we could each have a 6 hour block of sleep. I don't have to deal with breastfeeding in public. No nipple confusion. I can have flexibility with times of pumping if I want to do something.
Cons: In the beginning you are a slave to your pump. From week 3 I dropped the 2am pump and pumped 7x a day every 3 hours (except that 2am one). It's harder to trigger your body to increase supply using just the pump. Lots and lots of dishes... Pumping sucks. My 6 months reward is that I'm going to cut pumping to 3x a day and give 50/50 bm and formula. The only reason I'm not stopping completely is that they are starting daycare out of our house next week and I want to give them a couple months of antibodies if I can.
I EPed for 8 months. I started out tandem BFing in the hospital and continued to do so when I first got home. They both had issues latching and falling asleep and I was also really engorged.
DH had to go back to work 1 week after I had out DDs and we weren't even close to being able to tandem feed while I was by myself all day. I was also supplementing with a syringe so they didn't get 'nipple confusion' and they would choke on the formula, oi! I started pumping to elevate the engorgement and started using bottles to give the BM,
Pros- Being able to see how much they were actually eating was huge. I was able to keep up a great supply was was able to EP without supplementing. I could feed both at the same time (in boppies or bouncers) and other people could feed them too. Since they were used to bottles, we could leave (even overnight a few times!) with a freezer supply and I could pump while away and bring the milk back in a cooler to replenish our stock. It really did work for us and I'm happy I did it.
Cons- Feeding feels never ending! I was pumping every 3 hours during the day and twice over night. It was feeding, then pumping (always seemed to be a crying baby!) then cleaning the bottles and pump equipment and repeat 7-8 times a day. I would pump before going to bed and then feed them the already pumped fresh milk, try to get them back to sleep, pump, clean the bottles/parts and then right when I started falling asleep they would wake again, ahh!
It really got easier when they started STTN at 3 months but I still had to get up once to pump. I stopped pumping over night around 5 months when I knew my supply was established.
Even though I loathed the pump, I'm happy it helped me give my babies the magic milk for 8 months. Now when I look back it was such a small amount of time, it wasn't really as big of a deal than I thought at the time.
Sorry this is SO long. I hope BFing works out for you, but if not EPing isn't too bad
Just to give you some hope, it took me 2 weeks to get my older DS BFing, and he was born at 38w5d. He was a lazy nurser. Earlier babies may take longer. The supplementary nursing system is what helped him (and one of my twins) figure it out. BFing is super hard until about 6 weeks, and that's with a singleton. With twins, I really struggled until about 8 weeks. Now it's not such a big deal.
Pros:
Someone else can give them a bottle.
You could feed both at once more easily at first (tandem nursing took me a while to get down by myself.)
You can make DH do all the nighttime feeds, ha ha!
Cons:
You have to find time to pump with two screaming babies who may or may not sleep well enough for you to do it during nap time.
You have to pump and THEN find time to feed them too.
Bottle cleaning
Very very very hard to keep up a supply with a pump, especially with twins. I only know one person who has done it for a whole year (her goal), and that was with one.
I think EPing would be way harder than BFing. I frickin' hate my pump.
This! I didn't EP but I wouldn't even think of it because I hated pumping. I was never able to get a good output with the pump.
Good luck!
I EP for the most part and I don't mind it. I definitely agree with everything that's been said, but honestly I'm just used to the routine at this point and I pump every 2 hours because i have some supply issues and have to supplement with formula. It's not too bad.
So anyways for me, my girls didn't do well BFing in the hospital at all and it caused me MAJOR anxiety because it was really important to me. So when we got home I just worked with them every day. Even if it was just once. They are 6 weeks now and they are doing pretty good with it, although we still need the shield most of the time, but I think that's due to the fact that I have pretty flat nipples. In fact, today I was home alone with the girls and tandem BF'ed so that was exciting! But I mainly just BF them to "hold them over" if they are acting hungry between scheduled 3 hour feeds or if they are "off scheduled" and I want to hold them over for an hour or so. It works for us.
Would I love to EBF? Sure. But it just isn't working quite yet. Maybe it will eventually. But right now I very much like to see how much they are getting and when we do try and replace a bottle session with BFing, they never seem quite satisfied and can usually only go 2 hours instead of 3 between feeds. Also, it just takes SO much longer. They nurse and nurse and nurse...and honestly sometimes I feel like they are just using me as a paci. but I feel bad breaking their latch since we went through so much to get them to do it in the first place! So right now I don't mind pumping. Just invest in a good hands free bra. Heck, I'm pumping right now!
After 2 years, Injects, PCOS diagnosis and 2 IUI's, we were blessed with our beautiful twin girls!
Baby Girl #3!
congrats on your boys! I happen to have a sweet spot for Graysons
hehe.
I EP'd my singleton for 2 months... and EP'd with the twins for just 4 weeks - I couldn't take it anymore after that - i needed my body back... needed to be able to take an Excedrine for a headache, etc.
EP'ing is great b/c others can feed your babies, they still get breast milk, you can see exactly how much they are eating, etc... but it takes more time (time to pump AND feed AND clean/store)... but many people do it for a long time without issues.
I was too on the go - always out somewhere with the babies - and finding time to pump before i left was a pain, etc... and with 1+twins it was even harder to find the time- so i stopped pumping and weaned when my DH went back to work - after 4 weeks.
Do what works for you - and never feel bad for the choices you make. As long as your babies are eating and growing- that is all that matters... not where it comes from.
My situation was a little different, I did BF for the first six months and then switched to pumping. I was determined not to spend money on formula! I think the only way I was able to do it was because I was back at work. I had a set schedule and was able to pump at the same time everyday without choice (teacher = recess/lunch/etc). I don't think I could have stayed home and pumped and then do feedings right after. Luckily I had a good enough stash that I had enough milk that I was just pumping one day for the next day's supply and if for whatever reason I didn't pump enough I could just go to the freezer. I don't think that you accomplish that freezer stash with just pumping.
I would also suggest having a lactation consultant come out to your house to help with the latching. I hope you are successful with whatever you choose