By: Shelly Vaziri Flais, MD, FAAP
How to handle feeding a crowd? Here is the golden rule for feeding twins: when one wakes up to eat, both must wake up to eat. Your heart may break to wake up a sleeping baby, especially when they look so precious lying there sleeping, but remember that you will not have enough hours in a day to feed one after the other is fed, day in and day out.
Once the babies are awake to eat, feed them at the same time, with burp breaks throughout and a good burping session at the end. If you have a helping hand to feed one twin while you feed the other, great. But if you are breastfeeding, or ever plan on being alone with your twins (which eventually is all of us), you’ll need to teach yourself how to feed both babies simultaneously.
How to feed twin babies at the same time
The best way to feed both twins at the same time is with a large twin-feeding pillow, which works for both nursing and bottlefeeding. It is a large U-shaped pillow with a firm foam core that fits around your waist, with the opening at the back. Most versions have a safety belt to latch in place so that the pillow remains snug to your body.
Each twin gets their own side (alternate who gets which side with each feeding) and feeds in the football hold position. You will likely need help positioning the babies on the pillow in the early days. With practice and time, though, you will learn how to position them yourself.
Feeding your babies after a C-section
If you’ve had a
cesarean (C-section) delivery, you may need to wait a week or so before starting to use a twin-feeding pillow, since the pillow’s front edge crosses your healing abdomen. In the postoperative period, use bed pillows propped on both sides to nurse your twins in a double
football hold position. An alternative breastfeeding position has one baby in the traditional
cradle hold and one baby in the football hold.
It is critical that you position yourself and the twins properly for feedings, whether breastfeeding or bottle-feeding, to prevent backaches from poor posture. Hunching over for 20 minutes at a time, 8 to 12 times a day, can really take its toll on your body!
How to establish a feeding and sleep schedule for twins
When your twins wake up to eat, look at the clock and make a mental note of the time. Newborns often can only tolerate being awake for an hour or an hour and a half at a stretch, 2 hours tops.
The fact that they can only be awake roughly 90 minutes at a time can help you adjust your twins to live on the same schedule.
How is the time awake spent? Feeding and burping will take quite some time (especially as both mom and dad work on positioning the babies correctly). After feeding and burping, the twins should get some time upright to help them digest their milk. This is a nice time to interact and play with them.
Remember
Don't hesitate to talk with your pediatrician for more tips on feeding your twins, or to discuss any questions you may have.
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About Dr. Flais
Shelly Vaziri Flais, MD, FAAP, is a board-certified practicing pediatrician and mother of 4 children. An Assistant Professor of clinical pediatrics with Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, she is the author of the American Academy of Pediatrics books,Nurturing Boys to Be Better Men: Gender Equality Starts at Home and Raising Twins. Dr. Flais is also editor-in-chief of Caring for Your School-Age Child, 3rd Edition, and a contributor for Sleep: What Every Parent Needs to Know. She has shared her reality-based parenting approach with national and local television, radio, online and print news outlets.