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Multiples
For those who breastfed
was it extremely difficult with twins or more? I breastfed DD for 6 months but it was awful! She always squirmed and didn't want to pay attention. I had supply issues too. At night I would have to supplement because I would only make 2 ounces and she wanted 8-10!!! I really want to breastfeed my two babies but am wondering about the logistics. I would assume BFing in public is out of the question too. So how did you do it and for how long? How was your experience? I need some advice. If these two kids are anything like DD I'm afraid it won't last long but since they're likely to be preemies I think they need it the most!
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Re: For those who breastfed
i'm worrying about the same thing. I EP'd for DS for a little over 2 months- but don't want to deal with that with twins... I'd like to try to BF them.
BUT- i don't want babies that ONLY take the breast- b/c i know i will need help with feedings... i'd rather they be bottle only than totally breast only, ya know?
DH and i have discussed it... we might switch back and forth between babies (if they will let us) between bottle and breast each feeding.... if it works out- great- if not- we may end up just bottle - or if they are preemies and really need the BM- i will pump.
Not sure if it was harder than nursing one or not. Twins were my first. I never really bf in public. I did once when we were at PT but it was just one at a time. If I was at home or someone else's home, I just excused myself to a quiet room and we were able to nurse fine. I nursed the girls for 16 months. I didn't supplement for the first 6. I had a lot of milk in the beginning when their appetites were small and I tried to keep up. Supplementing isn't the end of the world. Pumping output and nursing output are not the same. In the end, my body started to refuse to letdown with a pump. They kept nursing though. I think we were pretty lucky considering we didn't get to nurse until they were almost a month old and they latched on right away despite still being premature.
Get in contact with a local La Leche League leader even before the babies are born just to get some helpful hints and to surround yourself with other bf friendly moms.
Honestly, it was really hard in the beginning. ?It took a long time for all 3 of us to learn and DH was really supportive and helpful. ?That went a long way. ?I've been BF for 11 months, no supplementing. ?I was always afraid to supplement, the thought being if I supplement I'm teaching my body not to make that much more milk. ?I had supply issues on and off--especially around 6 months and again at 9 months. ?But I was pretty militant about BF (for myself, not for others, although I do think it's really good for babies). ?And I was fixed on making it work. ?And it did. ?And I do BF in public (sometimes both at once but only if its really urgent) and I've learned to be really discrete about it.
?
So...you can totally do it! ?At 11 months it really is a gift. ?To have that special time with them. ?And they're so healthy
?GL!?
Hi
My twins are my first, so I don't know if it is harder than one. It was a lot of work the first couple of weeks. They were both nursing (or trying to) and we tube fed a lot. DS had latch issues and we worked really hard to get through that (LLL, LC, nipple shield). I didn't give them bottles for a month; so that my body would learn to produce enough and their skill would improve. I remember at 6 weeks thinking, wow this is finally easy. I still bf and the kids will be 1 next month. I gave them formula the first 2-3 days with the bm tube feedings and I just introduced whole milk yesterday. I am hoping to drop my night pump and start weaning the day feeds over the next couple of months. I plan to continue the morning bf as long as they want. Like jooliagoolia, I had supply issues at around 5 and 9 months (I added pumping sessions and ate and drank like a fiend to get it back up) and dd has gone through several biting spells. Besides that, I am thrilled with the convienence and financial savings bf has provided for our family.
HTH
Trina
I'm still working on getting my babies fully breastfed but we're still not there yet.
I had 34 weekers so they were in the NICU. I never reacted well to the pump and they weren't allowed to nurse while there so my supply was very low to begin with and they got all bottles with mostly formula. Once they came home we tried to do exclusive bf with them but they were not gaining any weight so on the advice of our lactation consultant we started doing supplementation. I pumped after every feeding to give them the breast first, then a bottle of ebm but then I never had quite enough so we'd still give them a bottle of formula as well.
Now that they've put on some weight they are better at bf but I don't have time to pump as much so we're pretty much doing bf first and then a small formula bottle during the day, and during the night I do pump so we do bf and then a small bottle of ebm. The amount they take in the bottle is slowly going down the better they get at nursing, but it's been a VERY slow and VERY frustrating painful process for me.
I hope that it goes well for you but if you have to supplement it's really not the end of the world. My babies are still healthy and getting the benefits of bm but just not exclusively. It's something I struggled with accepting but that's just how it is.