So you’re having twins, congratulations! After deciding you want to breastfeed, your first thought may be “How am I going to manage?”

I won’t pretend it’s not challenging, but as a long time IBCLC and Doula, I have seen many families of twins successfully breastfeed.

There are some obstacles that I commonly see, but keep in mind these suggestions are for twins who are term -- many twins and multiples are born prematurely in which case the feeding protocol may be different.

Get help! If you can afford to hire a postpartum doula or baby nurse, this will be the absolute BEST use of your money. Trust me on this. The first few weeks home with your precious new babies can be a whirlwind experience. Having an experienced set of hands to help you navigate the many new tasks that accompany parenting twins will be a tremendous relief.

If hired help doesn’t fit your budget, ask family and friends to give a few hours of their time, it’s a great way to get to know their new family member and their help will be the truly be the best gift you could ask for. Remember you can always get help from the La Leche League, free of charge as well.

Take a class! Infants are born with the instinct to suckle and the body will naturally undergo lacto genesis II, known as your milk “coming in”, but nursing is a learned behavior for both mother and baby. The more you know and the better prepared you are, the greater the chance that your nursing relationship will get a great start. Attending breastfeeding support groups while pregnant can help you build up a great support system as well, along with being able to ask questions and get answers.

More twins are born by cesarean than singletons, and it’s important to know that medications in your body, as well as supplementation for the baby can make things difficult for both your body and your baby, but don’t get discouraged! Be determined! Make it your goal to nurse as soon as you can, and as often as humanly possible, and try to limit if not avoid supplementation and pacifiers entirely -- even glucose water. Those first 24 hours postpartum are crucial to getting your babies' many systems functioning optimally. Your colostrum and then breast milk play a critical role.

Once breastfeeding is established, the biggest concern I hear from moms is “I’m worried that I won't produce enough milk to feed two babies” and “Doesn’t nursing take a lot more time than bottles?” 

Supply and demand is what regulates your milk production. If you breastfeed when your babies want to eat, or at least every 2 hours in the beginning you will supply enough milk. If low milk supply is a problem, it is usually remedied by nursing more often, and in some cases by using an herbal galactogogue, but check with a CLC, CLEC or IBCLC first.

Simultaneously breastfeeding your babies (with help from rolled up towels or a nursing pillow) may take a little longer than bottle-feeding because most bottles pour the milk into your baby's mouth too quickly (which leads to complications) but you gain time considering your breasts won’t need any special washing, sterilizing, and your milk is always fresh and the right temperature and takes absolutely no preparation.

Feeding schedules are helpful but ideally you can nurse on demand and allow your hungrier baby to dictate the feeding times for both. Another option is to nurse on demand during the day and follow a schedule at night.

Even identical twins are unique individuals and sometimes they just won’t eat when we want them to, (though there are some tricks an experienced LC can show you) but for this reason it can be helpful to keep a feeding log for each baby which tracks daily and weekly intake. You will likely refer to it often, especially on pediatrician checkups when your babies are weighed and their progress evaluated.

Breastfeeding offers countless health and other advantages that make the time you invest pay off in dividends, so don’t feel like two babies means you can’t nurse – you most definitely can!