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Q : How do I feed two babies at once ? Will I be able to breastfeed my twins ?

A:

• Its not at all unrealistic to breastfeed them both. I planned to breast feed one and feed the other expressed milk (swapping each feed of course!). I thought it would be too difficult to feed both at once, but in fact, faced with two screaming babies and two full breasts it was much easier to put them both on. I did this by sitting in the middle of my sofa/bed and putting heads on my lap and bodies out to the side. It helped to have a v-cushion on my lap so that my back wasn't bent over to reach them.
  
  I breast fed them both for 4 months and then I had really had enough so I stopped. I breastfed my first little girl for 8 months and really enjoyed it, but it took a lot longer to get started so I would perservere for the first few weeks even if it seems difficult. I stopped feeding them together at about 8 weeks as they were too big and wriggled too much! Then I just fed one after the other. I always found I was too physically tired to express since feeding them both is very tiring. If you manage to breastfeed I suggest you eat anything you fancy during this time and forget trying to lose any weight - although it happens anyway with the breastfeeding. Nikki

• I have 10 month old twins and from when they were a few months old we have fed them in their car seats with the bottle propped up by a cushion then took the babies out individually to wind them. It has worked very well.Verity

• It's not unrealisitc to feed both at the same time, I only wish I could have gone on longer but as one of mine was poorly she had to have the bottle. It was a great feeling though even just for those first few weeks and the bonding is wonderful. I fed mine one after the other. I particularly liked the contact bit so tried to get them into a routine one hour apart during the first few weeks so when I was on my own when all the help had returned to work I could cope alone. Fortunately I didn't have to very much but I enjoyed the cuddling. Margaret
  
  
• I used to feed them in their bouncy chairs or if it was in the bed I used the 'V' cushion. I winded one whilst the other was sitting upright then swapped them round. It does get easier with practise! Carol

• I have 3 wk old twins and they were born 3 wks early. I breastfed my son (13 yrs ago) and had a few problems with sore nipples etc. But I found it virtually impossible to feed the twins. I persevered, but found it so stressful and as they were so small I was feeding hourly and was so shattered. After 10 days I gave up. I know lots of people manage it and are happy. But I just couldn't do it and the midwife told me that if I was stressing about feeding the babies, then they would pick up on it. I hope that you manage to breastfeed successfully, but if you can't, then don't feel like you have failed them, we can't be supermums. But its also heartening to see the other mums who have been successful. I just wish I had found this site before I gave up..! Sue C.
  

• I had a 19 month old girl (who I breastfed until she was 9 months) when my twins were born. I breastfed the twins until they were 10 months old. I didn't have any problems with it and spent the time when feeding reading to my toddler. Jane H.

• I had two other children before I had twins and never managed to breastfeed either of them past two months. However when I had the girls I wanted to try feeding them as I really couldn't face making all those bottles up. They were great, them seems to know what to do from the start and when after a few weeks I tried to give them a bottle as they seemed to always want feeding, they refused! Which looking back was a good thing as we soon got into a routinue and eventually they went a bit longer between feeds. I just kept an open mind to feeding, give it a go and if it works, great. The only thing I did different with the girls which I never did with my other two was feed them within the first hour of birth which is supposed to be a great help. Lynne
  

• I breast fed for the first 2 weeks and was totally exhausted and stressed as I never seemed to have a minute to move from the bedroom. I also had a 3 1/2 year old girl who wanted my attention at the same time - she was very good with the twins but I found myself being torn in 3 directions and ended up taking it out on her and my husband. I was just secretly longing to "give in" and give a bottle for the night time feeds. I had a friend who had twins 4 months earlier who advised me to give a bottle at the 11/12pm feed which was the best bit of advice I had received in those first 2 weeks. She fully understood and was just the support I needed to go ahead without feeling a total failure.
  
  What a relief it was - it meant my husband could help with the night feeds, my daughter could do her bit and felt included and I was much easier to live with, so I was told!!! I still continued to breast feed up to about 5 months and enjoyed doing it but looking back my expectations were too high. I think its best to keep an open mind as everybody is different. If I didn't have an older child then perhaps I could have sat and fed all day long! Sue

• I used to feed my boys one after the other. That way I spent time with them individually as I found that apart from nappy changing I really wasn't getting much body contact with them. It didn't take long before they held their bottles on their own. Other than that, my partner would feed one while I feed the other. I still feed them separately now and yes I know it is time consuming, but it won't be forever. Sam

• I was very positive that I would breastfeed my twins despite the stories from others about the pain and stress. I was therefore very let down when my girls arrived 3.5 weeks early and they kept falling asleep when put to the breast! They had very poor sucking instincts and after 5 days of putting them to the breast and expressing every 3 hours with 2 midwives cup feeding the girls I was sensibly advised to make the decision to bottle-feed. I was so determined to breastfeed and suffer sore breasts, nipples etc., that the last thing I had expected was that they wouldn't take to the breast. I feel positive that I made the right decision but I think it is best to wait and see and 'Go with the flow' when your babies arrive. Carol

• I have 14 week old twins and breast feed them during the day but they have a bottle at 8.30 then bed and they sleep till 6.30am. I also have 2 other children 20mo and 4 yrs, so only feed one at a time so that I can get up and deal with them if I need to. I started to give them the bottle at about 3 weeks. One took to it straight away and the other took some persuading and a few different bottles to get the hang of it. I hope to feed them till at least 6 mo. I think that one of the best pieces of advice i was give was to set a target. I set mine for a week, then 6weeks and now 6 mo. Then if I wanted to give up I could say at least I reached my target. Go for it - it is possible but you do need to rest and feed on demand certainly for the 1st few weeks. Alison

• I breastfed mine til 16 weeks, but did have a similar problem. I always gave a bottle of formula to both at night. When I gave an occasional bottle in the day, I found they settled much better to sleep and were more content playing even though when breast fed they had as much as they wanted! Also I got the stage when if they fed all they wanted in the day, then slept through the night, my breasts were bursting by about 1am and I actually resorted to sleeping wrapped in a towel because there was so much milk. This resulted in mastitis at about 12 weeks. I know your body is supposed to adapt even to changes in daily feeding routine, but mine didn't seem to for about 2 weeks after they had stopped waking up! After the mastitis I kept going for another month and then called it a day. I was getting to dread feeding times and I don't think this is helpful for mum or babes, but at the same time I was quite disappointed because I really enjoyed feeding my first daughter until 8 months and had intended to do 6 months with the twins. Nikki
  
• I breastfed my two boys until they were about 6 months but also introduced a bottle of formula for their early evening feed from the day they got home from hospital. I found this had worked well with my daughter (now two and a half) and it gave me a break as my husband could do the feed. I did enjoy breastfeeding but found it quite stressful trying to get them both latched on when I was home alone, so I gradually introduced more bottles until they were fully bottle fed at six months. I feel that I gave them a good start, but it just made more sense bottle feeding because I could get others to help plus have a break if I needed it. Jill

• I breastfed my girls for around 11 months - giving them a bottle of formula in the evening from around 10 weeks. You can wind one while the other feeds. If she is latched on and supported by a pillow she shouldn't let go while you sit the other up and wind her. Each twin had her own breast. It was a bit of a struggle at times - I watched a lot of tv and didn't do much housework in the first 3 months. Deborah

• I've got triplets and used to feed 2 at a time. I'd have one lying lengthways on my knee, and the other down the side of my knee propped on a cushion. That way, I could scoop one up onto my shoulder to wind while still feeding the other. I tried feeding in car seats and bouncy chairs but it did knacker my back which wasn't brilliant after carrying the three. I was able to feed like that till they weighed around 16lbs. Bernie
  

• In the beginning when breast-feeding both together I would "rugby tackle" them, one under each arm on a V cushion. This worked well until they got heavier and then I had trouble latching the second one on. Later on when bottle-feeding I also fed my two boys in their car seats, sitting on the floor, with one either side of me. But to save my back I lent against the bed, which was brilliant. Maybe try leaning back against a wall with a V cushion. Another tip I found really helpful was to bank their bottles up with a blanket which enabled me to have hands free to wind the faster drinker! Sue
  
• We found that feeding them in my 4 year olds bean bag was alot easier as this tended to mold round their bodies and stops them moving around. The only trouble is they then fell asleep in it after the feed and got quite warm! - they did look really cute laying there together so close though! We now feed them in car seats at the same time, sitting in the middle but it does, as previous people have said, kill your back. Lesley

• I planned to breastfeed but as one of my girls was hopeless at feeding, she refused to open her mouth wide enough to latch on properly - and my milk supply dwindled a bit. In the end I went for half breast and half bottle and this gave me the best of both worlds I think. I tried lots of different combinations, alternating which baby was breast fed for each feed, alternating breast and bottle feeds for both - if you can think of it I probably tried it ! I managed to keep breastfeeding until they were 10 months old and actually found that breastfeeding two at once was easier than trying to bottle feed both of them when on my own. I used Avent bottles for the twins and my first child and found they switched between them and me quite happily . I know I got loads of conflicting advice first time around so when I had the twins I just did what felt right for me. Steph

• Have you tried feeding them in their car seats (assuming you have the kind you take out of the car) I found this the easiest way to do bottle feeds. It wasn't brilliant for my back as I sat on the floor with a seat on either side of me, and often had my toddler on my knee as well, I think it was his weight that did for my back. or try those bouncy chair things. I also found that as they were feeding propped up quite high this meant they didn't get as windy. You could try winding them one over your shoulder and one across your knees - nobody tells you that being a parent of twins turns you into a contortionist - LOL. I found it got easier as they get a little bigger and you get more confident handling them two at once.
  Goodness knows how the mothers of triplets cope!!
  It can take a lot of experimentation to find the ways to cope that work best for you and your babies. Steph

The answer then is yes, it is possible to breastfeed twins, and yes, you can feed two babies at once. But not everyone does it, and there are lots of factors which can effect whether or not your babies will take to either bottle or breastfeeding. For more advice on breastfeeding positions, see our separate article. Don't beat yourself up about feeding - the one message which comes through the answers above is that sometimes it is successful, sometimes it isn't AND IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT!

Also visit: www.breastfeeding.com/helpme/helpme_images_twins.html

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