Exclusively pumping for twins
I'm mostly a lurker, but now that our due date's approaching, I'm looking for help/advice/reassurance from you more experienced MoMs that this isn't a crazy idea...
I have been struggling for months over the decision of whether to BF the twins when they get here. I'm not sure exactly why, but I was never that jazzed about the idea of breastfeeding, and am incredibly intimidated by the idea of breastfeeding two babies, in terms of logistics, stress, etc. DH and I have discussed this a lot, and for our family, it just seems easier and more sustainable over the long term to bottle feed so DH and other family members can help with the feedings. Plus, I'll be going back to work when the babies are a few months old and would have to pump or switch to formula then.
That said, I'd like my babies to have the beneifts of breastmilk, at least early on. Currently, I'm leaning toward renting a hospital-grade pump and exclusively pumping and bottle-feeding. We're okay with supplementing with formula if we need to.
My question - is EP'ing for twins doable? Has anyone done this, and if so, what was your experience? Were you able to get your supply up enough for two babies, and if so, how long did it last? Did you start pumping in the hospital, or did you BF first, then switch to pumping? Any other advice? Thanks.
Re: Exclusively pumping for twins
I had the exact same plan and thought process as you. Multiple babies, I will need help, never loved the idea of BF anyway, going back to work, but wanted my babies to have the benefits of breastmilk, hospital grade pump, etc....
Some women successfully EP.
I was not one of them. It was a disaster for me and I quit a few weeks in. If I had it to do over again I would make an earnest effort to nurse and supplement with formula as needed even though that would mean I would have to wean them when I went to work at 2.5 months. For me there was just not enough time in the day to pump and take care of the babies. I regret trying to EP and failing at it and not trying to nurse from day 1.
It's do-able and there are ladies on here who've done it for an extended period of time.
I only lasted 3 weeks EPing for my boys. I had a serious production issue and my boys had some latch issues. For me, pumping was really hard once DH went back to work and I was alone with the twins.
I gave it up and once I was over the guilt, we never looked back. The boys are doing wonderfully on formula....
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I BF my girls with supplements of formula after each feeding for their first month. I was also pumping after each feeding. I have now switched to EP and its much better! I rented the symphony from the hospital and decided to rent it for the 2nd month. I am able to pump enough to feed them most of their daytime feedings BM and their evening feedings are formula. I feel that formula stays with them better at night so they are sleeping 4hr stretches instead of 3hrs like during the day. I was very frustrated with BF and feel like pumping is a pain, but I want the girls to have those benefits, at least until I go back to work.
my guys were in the NICU for roughly 2 weeks and during that time I was able to BF in the NICU and pump a lot. Then when they came home that all fell apart. I BF'd a little but it was way easier to feed 2 at once with bottles, so then I mostly bottle fed and pumped, with occasional BF'ing if there was time and only one was awake. I kept pumping for 3 months, however, my supply decreased significantly during that time and I always had to supplement with formula to keep up with the demand. I would just pump & then mix it with formula all in one bottle. It's a game of supply & demand, so if you are diligent about pumping like 6-8 times over a 24 hour period (yes, over-night too), then your supply should stay up, but for me, when the twins ate at 2 in the morning and THEN I was faced with the choice of pumping or going back to sleep, I ended up choosing sleep. I did manage to pump like once overnight for a couple of weeks but then I stopped. Then during the day, once they went down for a nap, & I had like 2 hours before they got up, I would have to pump for 20 min then hope I had time to eat & shower & empty the dishwasher before they got up...you see the dilemma? NOT enough time to get it all done. So gradually I started doing less and less pumping, & eventually it got down to 2-3 times per day between 11 am and 11 pm and my milk started to dry up because I wasnt using it enough.
I'm not trying to discourage you from pumping- I enjoyed BF'ing, and I recommend that you BF and pump for at least the first few weeks to a month because it's so good for them- especially the colostrum that you produce during the 1st week, but be prepared to supplement with formula and get some good books to read during those pumping sessions
I tried to do this and it was way too stressful. I HATED pumping. I had supply issues and even with meds I just couldn't keep it up. I BF for about 6 weeks but it was making me crazy. I cried every time I thought about the next time I had to pump bc I felt like I couldn't provide enough. Yes, I had 3 babies but even then I was feeding them every other bottle with breast milk. Ditto the pp about choosing to sleep over pumping, I'm sure that didn't help
I would try to breast feed and/or pump for at least the first few weeks since BM is so good for them. If it doesn't work for you then it doesn't work, don't beat yourself up over it. My babies are doing GREAT on formula and my sanity has been restored. Beware though...formula is freaking expensive!
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I haven't BF twins yet, but I BF one, so take this with a grain of salt. I think it would be exponentially harder to EP, especially for twins. When you BF, you feed and you're done. When you pump, you have to pump whether somebody feeds them or not. If you're by yourself, that's you, so it takes 2x as long. If it's somebody else, you still have to pump. In the middle of the night when they get up to eat, you still have to pump. If you want to have any chance of keeping up your supply for 2, you'll have to pump a LOT. Plus, babies tend to be more efficient at getting milk out than pumps, so you probably have to pump more than when you nurse.
When you nurse, everything's the right temperature, nothing needs to be cleaned, you don't have to remember to bring anything or to keep it cold. I just found it so much more convenient than pumping ever was, even if it meant I was in charge of all the pumping. If I needed a break for whatever reason, I definitely pumped, but I had options in a way that EPers don't. The first 6 weeks BFing are HARD because you and the baby are learning what to do, but after that steep learning curve it becomes ridiculously easy.
A lot of women who are weirded out by the idea of nursing find they're not so weirded out once the babies are here.
i EP'd my singleton for 2 months, and EP'd the twins for 4 weeks- i couldn't wait to stop b/c with 3 kids it was just too much for me.... i did it while DH was still home but that was 4w so i stopped when he went back to work.
do what works for you- give it a try - some women EP for a year! You'll never know what your supply will be like, etc.
I EP'd for 6 months, and never had any problems. It started when the babies were in the NICU. I pumped religiously every 2-3 hours and once overnight to get supply up. Once my supply was established (which it was by the time the babies came home), I never looked back. I loved that the chore of feeding wasn't entirely on my shoulders. The idea of nursing two babies made my head spin, so EP was what worked for me and my family.
To answer your questions -
Yes, it is totally doable. Yes, my supply was great (16-24 oz 4-5 times a day) and I maintained it for 6 months. I started pumping right away in the hospital. I did BF occasionally, it was nice that the kids "knew how" so they could nurse if i got in a jam. best piece of advice - have a really supportive husband! He can't get mad when you leave the room for 20 minutes stretches every few hours. And during the day when I was home alone with the kiddos, I'd bring my pump into the living room so I wouldn't have to leave the kids alone. There are some really good EP websites out there too.
Good Luck!!
EPing for twins is doable, but it is A LOT of work!
I have been EPing since the girls were born (9 1/2 months) and I pump for 30 minutes every 3-4 hours. I use the hospital grade pump, Medela Symphony, and I have had a decent supply using it. I did have to take Fenugreek and eat oatmeal for a month or so to help keep my supply up, but for the most part, I get around 30-36oz a day.
I would agree with the PP that if you are able to BF, go for it. I hated staying up after feeding the girls and getting them back to sleep, while my husband got to crawl back into bed, I had to pump. Thankfully, once your babies start STTN, you don't have to wake up to pump at night if you don't want to.
Good luck! The only reason I am still pumping is because my girls were born at 32 weeks and I am trying to get them through RSV and flu/cold season. That, and I think we would be broke buying all that formula!!
It is doable, I pumped for 6 months, although by the end I was ready to kick it to curb. I started pumping in the hospital, every 3 hours around the clock and then once they started sleeping longer stretches at night I adjusted my pump schedule to match their schedule. I was able to keep up with them until 3 months and then I started trying to loose the rest of the baby weight and my supply tanked, I was able to supply half of the feeds after that. I did BF DD a couple of times because I had a blocked duct or if I was in a jam.
Like you, I did not want to have to be the sole feeder, they say you bond with the babies during BF sessions and to me, I wanted DH to be able to have that bond as well. So I pumped so they got the benefits of BM and help with feedings.
Must haves are a hands free pumping bra, I can't count the number of times that I sat in the floor to feed the kids and pump at the same time. Extra pump parts for the sessions in the middle of the night, no one wants to stay up longer just to wash them.
I EPed for my twins for 8 months, it is doable! I was OK tandem BFing in the hospital but after I got home and I didn't have a nurse there to help, it was so difficult and frustrating! DH also was only off work for a week and I wasn't comfortable having anyone else helping me get them to latch, ect.
I was pumping 8x/day around the clock for the first 3 months. It was so great to have DH and family help with the feedings, even though finding the time to pump alone was tough. I established a very good supply and was able to slowly cut back to 4-5 pumping sessions per day while giving them only BM.
I got really sick in July when my DDs were 6 months and my supply started to drop a little then. I started cutting back then and very slowly weaning until I stopped at 8 months.
Looking back, even though I hated doing it, it was so worth it and I'm proud I could do it for my babies. I didn't go into it having a goal of how long I would pump for and I didn't put lots of pressure on myself, which I think helped.
If you do decide to pump I definitely suggest a hands free pumping bra (you can make one), drinking tons of water and remember to eat well and snack a lot. A good tip to pass along, if you don't want to wash your pump parts after every pump (esp over night) you can rinse them and put them in a big ziplock bag in the refrigerator until next pump.
Good luck with everything!
I did it for 6 months with the twins (until I got pg with the next one and it all but dried up). It is doable and if you are going to do it I would just buy the pump. It is a great investment if you plan to use it for an extended period of time.
That said, if I had to do it over again, I would have tried BF the twins. They were in the NICU for about a week and I could never get them to BF after having bottles for so long. But having only BF the 3rd one it is so much easier. No pumping, no heating up bottles, no cleaning bottles...
Here is an example of pumping with the twins and then BF...
Wake up, heat up bottles, feed babies, pump, clean pump stuff so it is ready for next pumping session and then finally after over an hour go back to sleep (but I was usually wide awake after all of that.
BF, unbutton nursing bra, stick kid on boob, put kid back to sleep and all that time I was never really awake.
Granted that was one vs two but I still think it would have been easier to just get them to nurse.
Hi!
My girls were born @ 32 weeks, and I have pumped for them for the last 4.5 months. While they were in the NICU we tried some breastfeeding, but didn't have a lot of success (my girls aren't very strong in the eating department)...
When they came home I continued to pump and BFed a couple of times a day, however, they didn't gain weight well so I went to exclusively pumping and bottling. I have never really had a problem with supply and have a freezer full of milk to prove it. Only recently their daily volumes has caught up with what I produce and I have started taking domperidone to stay a little ahead... I prepare 4 oz each for them @ every feed, and I typically pump7-8 oz.
I pump after every feed during the day and sleep through the night and still manage to have enough for them. I find pumping inconvenient at times and wish that BFing would have worked out better for us, but I am happy to be able to give them the nutrition in some way. It can be difficult to pump when I am home alone with the girls but I found that a handsfree pumping bra has worked wonders... also I have a Medela Freestyle on the way so that should make me even more portable.
It IS possible to do it... but takes dedication, and be prepared for frustrating times too!
I tried to EP but I had a bunch of issues that I won't bore you with and ended up having to mix formula & BM. But I still pumped for 4 months. Anyway, I wished every day that BFing would have worked out for me. I HATED pumping. I had ample supply, pumping didn't hurt and in retrospect it didn't even take *that* long. But I still hated it. I swear pumps can send signals to kids' brains and tell them to start screaming. Once I couldn't handle pumping at night my supply started to go down. And once I didn't have enough to pump exclusively it was only a matter of time before I gave it all up. I'm so jealous of people who can EBF their twins b/c I wanted that so badly.
Now that I've said all that, since you are going to end up pumping anyway (or FF), you can totally EP at home for a few months. It will suck, but a lot of things suck in those first few months. I would not have regretted pumping if I knew I would have had to pump anyway. Sometimes people have a lot of issues BFing and I really don't think I would have tried to work through all that just to end up EPing when I went back to work. But if EBFing worked well then definitely do that and just pump at work b/c your supply will be better and it's way less time consuming.
Hi! I'm mostly a lurker too
I'm only 24 weeks along but am trying to figure out this whole BF'ing issue myself. I've never been crazy about BF'ing but assumed with one baby that was what I was going to do. Then when I found out about the twins I began to get worried about what to do given that my plan was disrupted and I knew nothing about BF'ing one let alone 2! A friend and MoM recommended Mothering Multiples by Karen Kerkhoff Gromada.It's full of feeding info and so far seems pretty useful. You might want to check it out.
Good luck with whatever you choose to do!
I have not been EPing for very long, but I love it as of now. Even after having a blocked duct for the past 2 days (hurt like helll) because it is now fixed.
But I have not had an issue with doing it, it does et frustrating because I have had a roller coaster of supply. For what it is worth I am nt a morning person and I thouroughly enjoy my sleep, so I never thought I could stay awake and be ok with it to pump throughout the night, but I have been doing it with NO issue so far. I just find about an hour during the day to take a nap and Ihave had plenty of energy!
My babies are in the NICU so I have been EP and haven't had a chance to try BFing but I don't know that I will try very hard bc I agree with PPs that I want others to be able to help in the feedings and bonding!
Also, I have one of those hands free bras and I highly suggest this! I can do anything while pumping (I could be using it right now while typing). They are about $33 at BRU. I plan to pump using this while I feed my babies when we get home, so that it does not consume my entire life!
If this is your plan just realize that your outings will be pretty limited to about three hours, so if you do not think you can do that, it may not be the way to go for you. But good luck in your decision making!!