How do I get EBF twins on a schedule?

[gatorsmom]

Update: Woohoo! I did it! Two months later, i finally have the twins on a sleeping/eating schedule. And I"m posting here to help anyone else who may want to try this.

I've noticed lately that Greenbean will fall asleep on his back. So I started to think that maybe his reflux issues-or whatever the issue was- has healed. I've also been noticing in the past 2 weeks some consistency to their needs. They always seem to wake around 6am and fall asleep around 8pm. Other things seemed to happen at the same times too. So, for the past week, I wrote down every time they ate, got fussy, how long it took for them to fall asleep, how long they slept, etc. I did that for each twin. Pretty much didn't leave the house that week and just wrote everything down. Then for each twin I counted how many times they ate each day, how many hours they napped, approximately what times of the day they napped if there was any consistency to that, and I did an average for each baby. I found that they both nursed about 5 or 6 times per day and they averaged about 6 hours of naps per day (which would be the healthy amount of sleep needed by a 4 months old). They seemed to like to be awake for a couple of hours before bedtime and they seemed to like a long morning nap. Also, they sometimes they went as long as 4 hours between nursing sessions so I think as long as they get in enough feedins, I could stretch it to 3 hours. So working with all this information, I came up with a schedule. I feed them every three hours starting at 6am and ending at 8:30pm. They get playtime after each feeding and then I figured out consistent naps after each play time that space out 6 hours of sleep throughout the day. So far, it is working great. The schedule is absolutely flexible, I mean, I'm not going to make them starve if they need to eat sooner, but this has been WONDERFUL. I am able to plan things more easily. For example, during their naptime today, I took my older 2 outside to enjoy the 60 degree weather for 2 hours. I had the baby monitor outside with us and not a peep was heard. WONDERFUL. And the babies have cried less since I started this, I swear. They haven't even fussed before sleeptime whiich is unheard of. They ALWAYS fuss before sleeptime. This is such a relief.

Just had to share my happiness!




I got both my first 2 babies on a feeding/sleeping schedule after three months (using the Ezzo "Babywise" method). But I"m not sure how to do this with the twins. They are ebf every 2 or 3 hours and Greenbean has reflux. I'd like to know if someone has experience getting breast fed twins on a regular schedule? I'm really lost on how to do this, but I"m sure it's possible. I did it with my first 2 singleton babies. I know that NICU twins are all on schedules, even the ones eating only breast milk. So, how do I do it?

any help is greatly appreciated.

[fivi2]

Well, the whole schedule thing is complicated I am not a babywise person, so can't comment on that, but it really just depends on your kiddos. Mine were in the NICU and on a schedule, but once they came home I was told not to continue with that schedule but to let them feed on demand. The NICU schedule is because many preemies won't ask to eat ever and so would starve if not forced to eat at regular times. Mine were tube fed (breast milk) while in the NICU because they wouldn't eat. Not to go on a tangent, just trying to explain that NICU schedules are sort of a different animal.

As far as a schedule goes once they get home, I was lucky in that my mz girls have always tended to be on the same schedule. (we bottle fed expressed breast milk, so slightly different than direct nursing). But I have heard and read that dz twins are much harder to get on a schedule. I think yours are dz, right? A local mom is trying to nurse her dz twins and having a rough time.

So, my long winded point is that I don't know of a way to force them on the same schedule. I hope it works out, though.

[barbie757]

I read baby wise & highly recomend it. Some of it I could do Some of it I could not. but whats important to remember is your the boss. When one of the babies wakes up to be fed you have to wake the other one. You can feed two babies at once using boppies. To go an extra hour add another oz or two of milk. Sometimes you have to let the babies cry a little bit, I know it's hard but it does work. Also, what seemed to work for me is only putting the babies in the crib at night. During the day keep them in the room your in with daylight. Don't try to keep the room quiet, let them hear your normal daily routine. I'm no expert but my little girls were sleeping through the night at 6 weeks . Good Luck !!!

[kfk]

Lisa,
This may not be good news, but my guys didn't start to get onto a daytime schedule until closer to 6 months when my ped. ordered us to get them napping on a schedule and to start delaying their nighttime feeds because I was SO exhausted. Anyway, once we got them napping at 9ish and 1ish (which I admit, was hellish, and involved crying on the part of my boy who isn't an easy sleeper), the daytime feeds fell into place. Additionally, we started solids around this time, so all of a sudden we had a "lunch" of solids which also provided an order to the day. As we stuck with the nap schedule and slowly moved to 2 and then 3 solid feeds (by about 9 months), the schedule emerged and stayed pretty much in place until they shifted to one nap at 18 months. As for nighttime, we instituted a 6:30 pm "bedtime" around 10 weeks. However, they didn't stay asleep until I started doing a modified CIO, again, around 6 months. I just slowly extended the time between their night-time nursings. For one boy, it was relatively painless, for the other, well, it was a hard. I think they were truly "sleeping through the night"-- from 6:30 pm to 5:30/6 am at 9 months. Finally, I always woke them both when one wanted to feed (within reason), and I did this until my one easy sleeper started to naturally extend his own pm sleep starting around 3-4 months. I didn't want to mess with his natural and blessed sleep rythm. Sometimes this backfired, and I wound up waking MORE, but eventually, it worked out and both boys slept through the night.

Now, if I could just be as practical with my baby girl. . . She gets to nurse all night, still, because I fear her waking up DH and the boys!

[egoldber]

Not a twin mommy, so feel free to ignore me at will. But I had to comment on this:

I know that NICU twins are all on schedules, even the ones eating only breast milk

The ugly truth is those twins are on schedules to force the nurses to interact with them at LEAST every 3 hours. Amy was breastfed in the NICU and did NOT thrive NOR gain weight on their schedule. We had to fight them tooth and nail to get them to allow us to do a more normal "schedule" of breastfeeding her every 1.5-2 hours. It wasn't until then that she started to gain weight. So don't assume the NICU schedule is a gold standard created from evidence based medicine because it isn't.

Also, many many reflux babies cannot handle the "tanking up" type schedule that feeding them every 3-4 hours demands of their tummies. When they get too full they reflux and it hurts and it can also create long term damage to their esophagus.

I'm not pretending to try to understand how hard your life is right now. But forcing them onto a schedule, especially a reflux baby, may not make your life easier. It just may make different problems than you have right now.

[gatorsmom]

Also, many many reflux babies cannot handle the "tanking up" type schedule that feeding them every 3-4 hours demands of their tummies. When they get too full they reflux and it hurts and it can also create long term damage to their esophagus.

This is an excellent point. I'm really new to this reflux thing. I had completely forgotten about this. And from previous experience, "Babywise" is all about tanking up. But I absolutely won't do that to Greenbean if it will cause him any reflux pain.

Ugh, I'm so frustrated. I just want them to eat every 3 hours instead of every 1.5-2.5. It's so unpredictable and really makes life tough. I went to Target the other day and spent like 3 hours there, 2 of which were spent in the dressing room nursing! I had to nurse when I got there and then again before I left because Greenbean was rooting again. Trips to Target are suppose to be fun. sigh.

Maybe I'm asking too much (I can hear you moms out there going, "duh, ya think?" )

[egoldber]

I don't think you're asking too much. I think you're tired, overwhelmed, frustrated and worn down which is all totally normal for a mom with any little baby, much less two with two more littles!!

I think you do need to cut yourself some slack. Be patient with yourself and your babes and give them time. Heck, if you're in Target with all four kids I am in awe at your togetherness!!!

[gatorsmom]

I think you do need to cut yourself some slack. Be patient with yourself and your babes and give them time. Heck, if you're in Target with all four kids I am in awe at your togetherness!!!

Ha! no, oh no, I don't take all 4 kids to Target. I left the older 2 at home with DH. No, if I had tried that, the older 2 would have been climbing out underneath the dressingroom door. Just not possible. Even with the 2 babies in the dressing room, I bf one, changed and burped him then fed the other changed and burped her. Then they both filled their diapers. So I changed them. Then the first one filled his diaper again as I was getting them out the door of the dressing room. So back in we went. Then we did that all again before we left the store. Imagine that with 2 more kids. I'd be a mess.

editedto sound sane.

[Lolabee]

It took me a while to get my twins on a schedule, probably by five months or so. I tried to be as gentle about it as possible (Ezzo just seemed too rigid for me, and I had heard some negative things about him on the internets, but I did find some of the Weissbluth stuff helpful for figuring out sleepiness cues) and really the key was to make sure that I fed them at the same time as much as possible. So I would nurse the hungrier baby first, and even if the other twin didn't seem all that hungry I would feed him immediately afterward regardless. I also tried to be get tandem feeding figured out as quickly as possible (maybe by 3 months or so,) which also helped to get them synched up. I wasn't all that successful in getting them to go more than 3 hours or so between feedings during the day, but I just kind of figured that was normal for twins anyway.

I tried to do the same thing with naps, so I would put them both down at the first sign of sleepiness (even if that meant that only one of them was all that sleepy, because I knew the other twin couldn't be all that far behind the sleepy baby.) Finally, I developed a sleepy time ritual with them very early on (dim the lights, play quiet music, speak softly, turn on Aquarium, get them in their crib and then rub tummies until they fell asleep.) We still follow a variation on this ritual today, and my twins are now 2 1/2.

Hope that helps, I managed to EBF my twins until I weaned them at 13 months so it can definitely be done!

[Lolabee]

It took me a while to get my twins on a schedule, probably by five months or so. I tried to be as gentle about it as possible (Ezzo just seemed too rigid for me, and I had heard some negative things about him on the internets, but I did find some of the Weissbluth stuff helpful for figuring out sleepiness cues) and really the key was to make sure that I fed them at the same time as much as possible. So I would nurse the hungrier baby first, and even if the other twin didn't seem all that hungry I would feed him immediately afterward regardless. I also tried to be get tandem feeding figured out as quickly as possible (maybe by 3 months or so,) which also helped to get them synched up. I wasn't all that successful in getting them to go more than 3 hours or so between feedings during the day, but I just kind of figured that was normal for twins anyway.

I tried to do the same thing with naps, so I would put them both down at the first sign of sleepiness (even if that meant that only one of them was all that sleepy, because I knew the other twin couldn't be all that far behind the sleepy baby.) Finally, I developed a sleepy time ritual with them very early on (dim the lights, play quiet music, speak softly, turn on Aquarium, get them in their crib and then rub tummies until they fell asleep.) We still follow a variation on this ritual today, and my twins are now 2 1/2.

Hope that helps, I managed to EBF my twins until I weaned them at 13 months so it can definitely be done!