Breastfeeding Holds
Not only is it possible, but it is quite manageable to breastfeed your twins at the same time. Here some positions to try. I put them in order of my own personal preference. You might find that you like different positions at different times.
Football hold: Babies latch on to each breast, with bodies and legs to each side of your body. Tuck each baby in close to your side with your arms, and support neck and head with your hands. I like this position the best because you and the babies are comfortable. They aren’t in each other’s way, and if you plan on breastfeeding for a while, this is a great position even when the babies get bigger.
Cradle and Football: Babies’ bodies are going in the same direction. One baby is in a cradle position (like you might nurse if you were feeding just one) and the other has his/her head resting in the lap of the first, with its legs off to the side of your body. I’ve used this when I haven’t had a nursing pillow, because there’s less weight to hold in my arms. It can also work well as the babies get bigger. However, I found that my girls got in each other’s way, and it wasn’t as comfortable as both of them in a football hold.
Criss Cross Cradle: Both babies are in a cradle position, with their bodies across your lap, opposite directions. Their bodies have to cross each other, so one ends up being in front (closer to you) and the other in back. I didn’t really like this position, because they were completely in each other’s way, and as they got older and were more aware of their surroundings, they would use their hands more and push and elbow each other. It was usually unintentional, but it distracted them both from eating.
Lying Down: Both babies lay on your body, parallel to you and each other, with knees meeting at your abdomen. Prop a pillow under each arm to cradle babies against you. I have tried this only once for a middle of the night feeding, but I found it very difficult. When babies are big enough to support their own heads it might work better. But for newborns, it’s hard to get them at the right angle to be able to breath through their noses as they nurse. (And apparently it’s not even common enough to warrant someone drawing a picture of).
October 15th, 2006 at 10:45 pm
I nursed both my babies at the same time. Football hold with a big nursing pillow worked wonderfully for me. Im a mother of a 3.5 year old boy and 2 year old twin girls. Love your blog!
October 24th, 2006 at 6:16 pm
I’m 12 weeks pregnant with twins. I’m just beginning to research things that will be helpful and I came across your blog. This breastfeeding info is great. Thanks for sharing, and I look forward to reading this throughout my pregnancy…and after if there’s time!