Nursing twins
Ever wondered how you breastfeed twins?
We did, so in this week “real stories” concept we have spoken to twin mom @denisekeh to find out about her experience.
This picture is taken only 5 days after they were born, and they had just come home from the hospital.
Tell us about your breastfeeding journey.
“I was quite lucky when I started breastfeeding that the milk came quickly. And even more lucky that I had a fantastic midwife at the hospital who had experience and could show me many good positions. I thought breastfeeding was very cozy for the most part but also a little stressful.”
How long did you nurse them for?
“For about 6 months and always at the same time. If not, I would have done nothing else but sit and breastfeed.”
How were the nights?
“The first few months my partner had to wake up with me and help me put them on the nursing pillow. But, as they started getting older and stronger it was easier for me to do it myself. I probably breastfed 3-4 times during the night.”
Did you prepare anything before they were born?
Not really, other than getting a nursing pillow. However, it turned out not to be so great, so got another one once they were born. I also had an electrical pump and pumped a lot! I could pump 1.5 liters on top of breastfeeding. That made a huge difference as we always had milk in the fridge and freezer, and we could top them up with a bottle after nursing as they sometimes were too lazy to eat enough. It also allowed my partner to feed them so I could sleep. We had so much in the freezer that when I stopped breastfeeding them they could continue having my breast milk for another two months.
Where did you breastfeed?
Everywhere, restaurants, parks, the car etc.
What positions did you use?
I usually sat with a nursing pillow but if I ever breastfed them one at a time I loved to lie down instead.
Was it as you imagined?
Everything worked better than I thought! I was lucky and never had any pain during breastfeeding. I didn't think I would have enough milk for two babies, but I had more! The challenge for me was mostly my hunger, extreme thirst (drank 8L water / day) and mood swings .. unclear if they were 100% breastfeeding / hunger related or lack of sleep!
I thought it was very nice to top up the babies with a bottle of breast milk or formula after breastfeeding because it was difficult to get an idea of how much they actually ate and they were pretty small to begin with.
What breastfeeding clothes did you wear?
I have small boobs so I often just used a top instead of a bra, would have liked to have better looking breastfeeding linen!
Would you have changed anything?
No, I do not think so. Maybe breastfeed them more one by one and enjoyed it but survival comes first.
Thank you so much for sharing your story Denise!
We'd love to hear yours, send us a DM if you want to tell it 🤍