Let me preface this post by saying I am not a nurse, a certified lactation consultant, or any kind of titled professional. I am just a mom who has breastfed five children with different journeys and had the opportunity to learn a lot along the way. Now let's get down to business.
I wrote a blog post when we first started nursing, and sometimes I like to look back at that think wow! We have come so far, and learned so much!! I get messages often asking me for advice, and I think the best way to help everyone is with a blog post! I hope to cover some commonly asked questions by telling our story right to weaning. I also have the pleasure of sharing a great product that I think will truly help many women who need a boost.
It all started with our first latch. Yep, that is me, right after delivery. I told the lactation consultant, let's do two! I knew that tandem feeding would be inevitable for my sanity, and I was eager to give it a go! By that point each baby had gotten some one on one nursing time and I felt they had a pretty decent latch. If you have twins, master the tandem nursing. It is essential. And if you have an experience lactation consultant, make her show you how to nurse laying down. It will save your back and your neck and you will thank me for this later.
We nursed every 2-3 hours in the beginning. It took about an hour and a half to nurse all three and change their diapers and get them back to sleep. This gave me an hour or do to do whatever I had to do before it all started again. This made for rough nights. But after a few weeks we had a good system. When one baby would cry, I would wake another and tandem, then nurse the third. When one ate, they all ate. It was on demand but not. I did not have them on a schedule and I did not wake the first baby. Down the road I tried on demand feeding for all three, but it was too much and I was waking up every half hour with someone and getting zero sleep. I couldn't function, and if I kept on like that I would have weaned them immediately. There comes a point where you have to ask yourself, is breastfeeding making them happy? Is it making ME happy? If you can't answer YES to both of those, then you need to stop or try something new. Breastfeeding (once you get the hang of it and over the initial ouch period) should be pleasant for both of you. So, we went back to on demand feeding one and we all got happy again. There were definitely times when I asked myself if it was worth it. I would tell myself....finish today and re-evaluate tomorrow. Maybe today you're just tired and frustrated, so see how you feel about it tomorrow. Usually when tomorrow came I was ready to keep going.
My favorite time nursing was my one on one time with each baby. Tandem nursing is efficient, and sometimes even cute. But there is something so special about that one on one time. And I think that is why I kept going when it got hard. It is hard to take time for each baby, and nursing them forced me to do that.
I am often asked if I ever supplemented. We never supplemented with formula (we tried once while out because I didn't come prepared with bottles, pumped milk, and I was in the middle of doing something and wanted a break. The babies were not happy with me however and spit it out, and so I ended up nursing them anyway). However, we did supplement with donor milk on a few occasions. When the babies were first delivered, it took a bit for my milk to come in. I had steroid shots which I later learned can delay milk from coming in. It also took a bit for my milk to come in, and because the hospital was pressuring me from the babies losing weight and being sleepy, we used donor milk and milk I had saved from my previous daughter to even out the difference until my supply kept up. It did eventually catch up and then some! I was a milk making machine!
Until of course I got mastitis. I had a wonderful friend who unfortunately lost her baby at the end of her pregnancy. She pumped and donated most of her milk to us (as well as a few other families) and I had a lot in storage. Thank Goodness! Mastitis was no joke. It was hard, it hurt, and I lost a lot of my supply. I went from producing 12-14 ounces a feeding to 6-9 ounces! Our donor milk got us through it, and also allowed me the opportunity to bring a bottle if I didn't have milk pumped beforehand. Sometimes bottles were easier (like a car ride where I could pump but needed milk before) and they gave me a break when I felt burnt out. It was important to me though that they still got breast milk and this worked out best for our family! As a matter fact, once we used our donor milk I was able to pump and store some of my own milk, and when the babies were sick recently (very shortly after we weaned, go figure!) I was able to use my expressed milk to get them through their colds!
How did I make enough milk for 3 babies you ask? It wasn't easy. I survived solely on Gatorade (yes not the best, but it helped me supply more than water truth be told!) and I ate a lot. Nursing on demand (even the one baby on demand method) I think played a big part in keeping my supply up, and I always tried to pump after feeds. I wasn't always successful because-life, but I did it as much as I could. Oh, going for a car ride? Pump! Oh, watching a movie and kids are asleep? Pump!
Sometimes, life really does get in the way and pumping and feeding isn't enough. I found this to be especially true once the babies got more mobile and wanted to eat more table food. Nursing became an after thought, and it was easy to be busy and throw a banana at them instead of nursing like I should have done. Naturally when life gets in the way your supply dips. If this doesn't lead to mastitis (yay!) it can and probably will lead to a supply dip. So here are my tips for the most common question i get on a daily basis.
Help! My supply has dipped/isn't there. What do I do?
Step 1- Power Pump!! What is power pumping? It is basically where you mimick a growth spurt with your pump. Put a movie on and get comfy, you'll be there a while. Start by pumping for 20 minutes. Turn off the pump and rest for 10 minutes. Then pump another 10 minutes. Do this for an hour. 20 on/10 off/10 on/10 off/10 on. Sometimes I went crazy and added some extra time, but an hour will do just fine.
Step 2- Increase your fluids! Water, Gatorade, get it in your system! Chug as much as you can, then continue to drink. Give it 48 hours and that should help.
Step 3- Consider a supplement. I was able to try all the different blends from Euphoric Herbals and I have to say, they were fabulous! My suggestions is to try her trio and see what works best for you. I particularly liked Milk Machine and Dairy Fairy, but everyone is different and your body will react differently. I think this would be especially beneficial if you are trying to relactate or if you have on going supply problems. But, if you find you have a dip, keep some on hand because it will help!
You can find the website here: http://shop.euphoricherbals.com/breastfeeding/
While you are there check out her other products. We got to try the baby balm and it is AH-MAZ-ING. Seriously. My oldest daughter suffers from eczema, and Addisyn suffers from keratosis pilaris. This stuff is phenominal for treating these things, as well as a diaper rash. I used to be all about calmoseptine for diaper rashes, but her baby balm knocks it out of the water. Cindy is so nice, and was so fabulous to work with. And her packaging is beautiful! It isn't just thrown in a box, but it's wrapped nicely with some little surprises!
Step 4- Nurse that baby! Don't give baby a pacifier, just nurse as much as you can! No bottles, no formula. Nurse nurse nurse. It will come back. Baby should gain at least half an ounce a day, so if you're worried about weight gain find a local lactation consultant or chat with your pediatrician!
---
Some have asked me about relactating, and what I would suggest. I personally have never relactated, just known mamas who have. I honestly would suggest you see a lactation consultant. I would love to offer more advice but each situation will be so different!
So my hope is that if you've read this far, perhaps your a mama expecting triplets herself. If you're like me, you might be like "AHHH, what do I do?!" I cried for weeks because breastfeeding, and baby wearing, and all that other natural stuff was so important to me. How could I avoid a c-section and breastfeed my babies? It was so overwhelming, and I had a hard time coping giving up these expectations I had of myself. I searched the internet for help on how to do it. Maybe you've done the same and that has brought you here to me.
I want to share the logistics of breastfeeding triplets so you can be successful. Let be up front, you will be more sleep deprived than you even thought was possible. But it's worth it.
So how do you make enough milk for 3 babies? It's all supply and demand. When you demand milk, your body will supply it. When they first arrived I was not a pro at tandem nursing. So I would nurse one baby at a time. The baby who ate last was the one to eat first next round. So, let's use a b c because by now you're used to those letters. Baby A nurses first on the left, Baby B second on the right and Baby C is offered both breasts last, left offered first then right offered second. Next feeding (which should be about 2 hours from the last feed) Baby C should go first on the left, then maybe A goes second on the right because it ate first and Baby B will get bother breasts. This is a perfect world and this will last for about a week.
Then, when you learn to tandem your life gets so much easier! You can nurse two at once and nursing takes a whole half hour less! So then you Feed baby A and B, then Baby C. Second round just make sure Baby C goes first. Then when you get so tired you can't see straight, you will probably just grab whoever is crying and feed them first. If one baby starts to have green poop, there is a foremilk, hind milk imbalance and that baby is getting too much foremilk so you'll need to let that baby eat last to get more hind milk (the good fatty stuff).
So, you're probably wondering how you make enough. Theoretically babies eat 3-4 ounces of breast milk each feeding. Sometimes more sometimes less. The key here is that the first two babies will take the foremilk and the most milk in volume. This has less fat to satisfy thirst. The third baby will get more hindmilk that is full of fat, so baby will need less volume to be satisfied.
Between feeds you maybe get an hour to do whatever you want. Eventually feeds will stretch out and you will feel more human again. If you can find it in you, try to pump for 10-15 minutes after nursing all three.
--
Now, let me chat about weaning, because there comes a time when this must be done. Each experience is different.
With my first daughter, weaning was so easy. I didn't even do it. She was 9 months old and was crawling everywhere, getting into everything. I wasn't savvy to pumping then, and she wasn't interested in nursing. She would nurse less and less, and one day I realized that I had no milk! We had to switch her over to formula for a few months to make sure she got her nutrients. I was devastated. How did my milk just dry up. I couldn't tell you if it was her lack of nursing that dried me up or if I dried up and that led to her lack nursing. But, I had given it my best and made it 9 months, so I was proud and after a few weeks once the devastation and feeling like I had failed wore off, I was happy to have my body back.
The baby number 2 came. I was a pumping machine, and when we discovered we were pregnant with the triplets (funny enough, I was nursing her on the exam table!) I knew our journey would need to come to an end. The problem was she was a boob baby. She loved her milk and her nursing time and wasn't giving it up easily. I continued nursing until we got to the point where preterm labor was a serious concern. Then we slowly started cutting back. She was 11 months when we got pregnant, so right around 14 months I started cutting feeds. First, we went down to morning, nap, and night time feeds. Then we went to nap and bed. Then it was just the bed time. I took about a week for each stage. Sometimes I would have hubby do bed time routine or nap time so it wouldn't be a big deal. But once she was okay with a binky instead of nursing, I continued to rock her to sleep until I was physically unable to do so because my belly took over. Then, well, she was okay just going to bed thankfully.
Then came the triplets. Really, weaning them was easy. I quickly began to dry up despite nursing and pumping. So, they would nurse but play mostly, and because they were playing it was easier to hand them a bottle of milk. They were ready, and I had no choice but to be ready. It was an easy transition, and them being ready helped. They still pull at my shirt, and sometimes they will nurse for a minute before realizing nothing is coming out and they smile and smack me. It's comical. They got almond milk for a while, and then we switched to whole milk. And they never stop eating. I was sad that our nursing journey came to an end sooner than I anticipated...I planned to make it to 2 years if they allowed. But, God had other plans and so did they! I think Bentley would've made it, but we made it to 15 months and I am proud of that! It was hard work, and we have new adventures to conquer!
Hopefully this helps answer a lot of questions I receive, and gives you some assistance when you hit a road bump. I get so many messages, that I try to help everyone but sometimes it isn't possible to get to all the messages. I've tried to organize my thoughts (which isn't always the easiest task!) and provide a lot of information and I hope that you aren't overwhelmed. As always, I am always available to help where I can if you have questions that this blog didn't answer. My whole point in sharing my journey was to help and encourage moms, and I hope that I have done that.
I wrote a blog post when we first started nursing, and sometimes I like to look back at that think wow! We have come so far, and learned so much!! I get messages often asking me for advice, and I think the best way to help everyone is with a blog post! I hope to cover some commonly asked questions by telling our story right to weaning. I also have the pleasure of sharing a great product that I think will truly help many women who need a boost.
Until of course I got mastitis. I had a wonderful friend who unfortunately lost her baby at the end of her pregnancy. She pumped and donated most of her milk to us (as well as a few other families) and I had a lot in storage. Thank Goodness! Mastitis was no joke. It was hard, it hurt, and I lost a lot of my supply. I went from producing 12-14 ounces a feeding to 6-9 ounces! Our donor milk got us through it, and also allowed me the opportunity to bring a bottle if I didn't have milk pumped beforehand. Sometimes bottles were easier (like a car ride where I could pump but needed milk before) and they gave me a break when I felt burnt out. It was important to me though that they still got breast milk and this worked out best for our family! As a matter fact, once we used our donor milk I was able to pump and store some of my own milk, and when the babies were sick recently (very shortly after we weaned, go figure!) I was able to use my expressed milk to get them through their colds!
Sometimes, life really does get in the way and pumping and feeding isn't enough. I found this to be especially true once the babies got more mobile and wanted to eat more table food. Nursing became an after thought, and it was easy to be busy and throw a banana at them instead of nursing like I should have done. Naturally when life gets in the way your supply dips. If this doesn't lead to mastitis (yay!) it can and probably will lead to a supply dip. So here are my tips for the most common question i get on a daily basis.
Help! My supply has dipped/isn't there. What do I do?
Step 1- Power Pump!! What is power pumping? It is basically where you mimick a growth spurt with your pump. Put a movie on and get comfy, you'll be there a while. Start by pumping for 20 minutes. Turn off the pump and rest for 10 minutes. Then pump another 10 minutes. Do this for an hour. 20 on/10 off/10 on/10 off/10 on. Sometimes I went crazy and added some extra time, but an hour will do just fine.
Step 2- Increase your fluids! Water, Gatorade, get it in your system! Chug as much as you can, then continue to drink. Give it 48 hours and that should help.
Step 3- Consider a supplement. I was able to try all the different blends from Euphoric Herbals and I have to say, they were fabulous! My suggestions is to try her trio and see what works best for you. I particularly liked Milk Machine and Dairy Fairy, but everyone is different and your body will react differently. I think this would be especially beneficial if you are trying to relactate or if you have on going supply problems. But, if you find you have a dip, keep some on hand because it will help!
You can find the website here: http://shop.euphoricherbals.com/breastfeeding/
While you are there check out her other products. We got to try the baby balm and it is AH-MAZ-ING. Seriously. My oldest daughter suffers from eczema, and Addisyn suffers from keratosis pilaris. This stuff is phenominal for treating these things, as well as a diaper rash. I used to be all about calmoseptine for diaper rashes, but her baby balm knocks it out of the water. Cindy is so nice, and was so fabulous to work with. And her packaging is beautiful! It isn't just thrown in a box, but it's wrapped nicely with some little surprises!
Step 4- Nurse that baby! Don't give baby a pacifier, just nurse as much as you can! No bottles, no formula. Nurse nurse nurse. It will come back. Baby should gain at least half an ounce a day, so if you're worried about weight gain find a local lactation consultant or chat with your pediatrician!
---
Some have asked me about relactating, and what I would suggest. I personally have never relactated, just known mamas who have. I honestly would suggest you see a lactation consultant. I would love to offer more advice but each situation will be so different!
I want to share the logistics of breastfeeding triplets so you can be successful. Let be up front, you will be more sleep deprived than you even thought was possible. But it's worth it.
So how do you make enough milk for 3 babies? It's all supply and demand. When you demand milk, your body will supply it. When they first arrived I was not a pro at tandem nursing. So I would nurse one baby at a time. The baby who ate last was the one to eat first next round. So, let's use a b c because by now you're used to those letters. Baby A nurses first on the left, Baby B second on the right and Baby C is offered both breasts last, left offered first then right offered second. Next feeding (which should be about 2 hours from the last feed) Baby C should go first on the left, then maybe A goes second on the right because it ate first and Baby B will get bother breasts. This is a perfect world and this will last for about a week.
Then, when you learn to tandem your life gets so much easier! You can nurse two at once and nursing takes a whole half hour less! So then you Feed baby A and B, then Baby C. Second round just make sure Baby C goes first. Then when you get so tired you can't see straight, you will probably just grab whoever is crying and feed them first. If one baby starts to have green poop, there is a foremilk, hind milk imbalance and that baby is getting too much foremilk so you'll need to let that baby eat last to get more hind milk (the good fatty stuff).
So, you're probably wondering how you make enough. Theoretically babies eat 3-4 ounces of breast milk each feeding. Sometimes more sometimes less. The key here is that the first two babies will take the foremilk and the most milk in volume. This has less fat to satisfy thirst. The third baby will get more hindmilk that is full of fat, so baby will need less volume to be satisfied.
Between feeds you maybe get an hour to do whatever you want. Eventually feeds will stretch out and you will feel more human again. If you can find it in you, try to pump for 10-15 minutes after nursing all three.
--
Now, let me chat about weaning, because there comes a time when this must be done. Each experience is different.
With my first daughter, weaning was so easy. I didn't even do it. She was 9 months old and was crawling everywhere, getting into everything. I wasn't savvy to pumping then, and she wasn't interested in nursing. She would nurse less and less, and one day I realized that I had no milk! We had to switch her over to formula for a few months to make sure she got her nutrients. I was devastated. How did my milk just dry up. I couldn't tell you if it was her lack of nursing that dried me up or if I dried up and that led to her lack nursing. But, I had given it my best and made it 9 months, so I was proud and after a few weeks once the devastation and feeling like I had failed wore off, I was happy to have my body back.
The baby number 2 came. I was a pumping machine, and when we discovered we were pregnant with the triplets (funny enough, I was nursing her on the exam table!) I knew our journey would need to come to an end. The problem was she was a boob baby. She loved her milk and her nursing time and wasn't giving it up easily. I continued nursing until we got to the point where preterm labor was a serious concern. Then we slowly started cutting back. She was 11 months when we got pregnant, so right around 14 months I started cutting feeds. First, we went down to morning, nap, and night time feeds. Then we went to nap and bed. Then it was just the bed time. I took about a week for each stage. Sometimes I would have hubby do bed time routine or nap time so it wouldn't be a big deal. But once she was okay with a binky instead of nursing, I continued to rock her to sleep until I was physically unable to do so because my belly took over. Then, well, she was okay just going to bed thankfully.
Then came the triplets. Really, weaning them was easy. I quickly began to dry up despite nursing and pumping. So, they would nurse but play mostly, and because they were playing it was easier to hand them a bottle of milk. They were ready, and I had no choice but to be ready. It was an easy transition, and them being ready helped. They still pull at my shirt, and sometimes they will nurse for a minute before realizing nothing is coming out and they smile and smack me. It's comical. They got almond milk for a while, and then we switched to whole milk. And they never stop eating. I was sad that our nursing journey came to an end sooner than I anticipated...I planned to make it to 2 years if they allowed. But, God had other plans and so did they! I think Bentley would've made it, but we made it to 15 months and I am proud of that! It was hard work, and we have new adventures to conquer!
Hopefully this helps answer a lot of questions I receive, and gives you some assistance when you hit a road bump. I get so many messages, that I try to help everyone but sometimes it isn't possible to get to all the messages. I've tried to organize my thoughts (which isn't always the easiest task!) and provide a lot of information and I hope that you aren't overwhelmed. As always, I am always available to help where I can if you have questions that this blog didn't answer. My whole point in sharing my journey was to help and encourage moms, and I hope that I have done that.
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