Did first BF through night instead of EBM bottles @ 7wks - looking for input

Sorry to be a board hog today! I have been breast feeding tandem during the day pretty much since the twins were home from hospital. They feed about every 2 hours. I've had a lot of help around so I have been pumping at night and the twins get bottles of EBM so I can sleep. They are put to bed at 8 PM with a bottle of EBM, then DS does a 5 hour stretch of sleep, DD does a 4 hour stretch, then they go anywhere from 3-4 hours the rest of the night. They were being fed on demand at night, not tandem for the past couple weeks.

I decided last night to try breast feeding through the night and there were more kinks than I'd like. They still got their bottle at 8 PM which I think I'm always going to keep - give me break at the end of the day and DH gets to help feed), then when DD woke up at 12 AM, I tandem fed them - DS was still asleep and didn't seem to eat as much. Well the rest of the night didn't go so well. The most they slept was 2.5 hours at one time vs the 3-4 with bottles. DD woke up next at 1:45 min to eat. Since was so soon since last feeding I didn't wake up DS. I couldn't fall asleep and got worried DS would wake up so I tried to feed him at 2:30 and he barely took any. Then fed on demand DS at 3:45, DD at 4:15. Finally got a little bit of sleep after the 4:15 feeding, then did tandem feeding at 5:30. By morning my right breast was really full and I thought I had a plugged duct but luckily didn't.

I guess I am proud I went through the night with no bottles - yay! But I would have liked much longer stretches in between feedings so I could get some sleep.

I guess I just need to keep doing this to get the hang. I am guessing the twins were tired and didn't eat as much at each feeding, thus the shorter gap between feedings. I also think I was nervous doing this for the first time and may have fed them a couple times when they weren't ready. I was able to get DD to take a pacifier a couple times when she woke up.

Looking for any input into what I could do to improve this. Thanks.

 

I loved breastfeeding during the night. No bottles to get ready and no clean up. They were efficient so 8 minutes up, change diaper first and then back to bed. If I had to do bottles, then it would have taken longer. Mine seldom got up together. We started that but found that the woken twin was always still asleep and would not nurse, even after a diaper change and s/he would be up the following hour anyway. I will say my nights were rough because of multiple wakings, but I do not think that bottles would have helped. It was nice 1:1 time with the babies. Good for you for trying! Don't give up after one try.

 

Yes I agree with Jackie. Bottles don't save time and create more work. Nursing ks less involved especially if you start nursing laying down. I couldn't do 2 but on the occasion have nursed one that way.

Keep it up- it only gets easier.

 

we had a co-sleeper next to our bed. I would nurse and then put them there. When the 1st twin woke I would pull them into bed and sleep/nurse until I was awoken by the other twin. I would put the now sleeping & full baby back into the cosleeper, and then bring the other one into bed. I got WAY more sleep that way and everyone got to eat when they were ready through the night.
Since you were up so many times, your breast got all that additional stimulation, so I wouldnt think that it was because they didnt eat well, but rather your breast got stimulated way more than they do through the night of you pumping. Nursing at night is one of the best things you can do overall to help your milk production, supress the return of fertility etc. Pumping doesnt do that.
Dont give up. Keep at it. Im sure you will all fall into a routine!

 

Good for you! I agree with the others that once you get the hang of it, nursing at night is so much easier than pumping. I think the advice to wake the sleeping twin and tandem works well when they are newborns, but by the time they are nearing 2m old they are developing different sleep habits. Especially fraternal twins will have drastically different needs. For instance, my DD started to sleep 6-8 hour stretches by 2 months of age, so I could dream feed her at 11P and she would sleep the rest of the night. My DS needed a middle of the night feed or two until he was 9m old! I would keep the bedtime feed as is since it works for you and try a night just feeding the one who wakes. I found it more efficient to not tandem feed at night because the process of getting two latched seemed to make it more difficult to settle them back to sleep afterward!

 

The NICU put my very little guys on a 4 hr schedule that we kept until they slept through the night. Once they got off the high calorie EBM bottles (ASAP) I tandem feed until they stopped nursing at around 20 months. I got more sleep that way. If I were you, I'd start to stretch their night time feelings out.

 

As a lactation consultant I would NOT suggest you do that. Night time feeds are VERY important and not all moms breast storage capacity is the same. Most breastfed babies need to eat frequently and moms breast need to be stimulated frequently. The milk making hormones are highest between 1-5am and the majority of babies take in the BULK of their calories during the night.