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This week wrapped up another World Breastfeeding Week, which is held during the first week of August every year.
Supported by the World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF, and many Ministries of Health and civil society partners, the theme for 2024 was Closing the Gap: Breastfeeding Support for All.
One of the most effective ways to ensure the health of your newborns is to breastfeed your babies. A mother's breast milk provides the nutrients needed during the first months of life and contains antibodies that help protect your little ones from several common childhood illnesses.
You can encourage and promote successful breastfeeding through things like skin-to-skin contact immediately after the birth of your babies and breastfeeding on-demand.
According to the WHO, "breastfeeding remains the preferred mode of infant feeding in almost all difficult situations, including low-birth-weight or premature infants," which is usually the case with twins or higher-order multiples.
While our twins were fed both by breast and bottle, having the right support in place was integral to the success of our breastfeeding journey.
One thing that made breastfeeding my twins easier was having the right tool within arm's reach at all times—once everybody had graduated from the neonatal intensive care unit and were reunited back at home.
The Twin Z Nursing Pillow for tandem feeding was that tool.
Tandem is a total timesaver
If you decide to breastfeed and are able, try tandem feeding your babies. It can be tricky in the beginning, especially when they don't have much neck control, but if you can get set up with a dual feeding, you'll save a ton of time by being able to feed both babies at once.
Twin Z Nursing Pillow
The Twin Z Nursing Pillow is our pick as the best nursing pillow for tandem feeding your twins. It's specially designed for feeding two babies simultaneously and has many uses beyond breastfeeding your twins.
If you aren't sure of the best way to actually feed both babies at the same time, be sure to check out this article, which covers the best positions for dual feeds with your twins.
After you've fed both twins, it's important to pump on each side (we like this hands-free, double electric breast pump by Medela), so your body recognizes it needs to make more milk to keep your supply up to meet the ongoing demand of your babies.
It's versatile
If there's one thing parents of multiples are looking for when buying things for their household, it's versatility to help prevent unnecessary clutter.
The Twin Z Nursing Pillow is incredibly versatile and has many uses beyond its intended purpose.
It can be used for breastfeeding your babies, of course. The foam-free and hypoallergenic pillow is thoughtfully designed to allow a mother to comfortably breastfeed multiple babies at once.
But it can also be used for supporting your little ones while you're bottle feeding each baby separately. The pillow is purposely constructed as one fluid piece to allow both babies to bond.
The way the pillow supports each baby can also help with minor infant reflux issues, which I know was a problem we dealt with after almost every feed in the early days with our twins.
This pillow also does a wonderful job of supporting two napping babies (while supervised, of course) and can be used to provide support when your twins are learning how to sit upright.
This well-designed pillow can also be used for dual tummy time to help your babies strengthen and further develop their muscles and core strength.
If that wasn't enough alternative uses, it can also be used as a pregnancy pillow for the mama-to-be before your dynamic duo arrives, allowing you to navigate prenatal discomfort and postpartum feedings with the same product.
It's supportive
Any new parent is familiar with the stiffness that creeps into their neck or back from leaning over while feeding a baby. And any breastfeeding mother knows the extent of that pain is compounded when they're tandem feeding their twins.
The Twin Z Nursing Pillow is designed with a special backrest that flips up to provide optimal support while you're using the pillow and provides support in all the right places...for mother AND babies. This feature keeps comfort as close as possible while you're feeding your twins.
It's secure
One thing twin parents become accustomed to quite quickly is juggling multiple things at once.
Getting set up with your twins and your tandem feeding pillow can be quite the feat, and you may need help getting everyone into their correct spots. Once everyone's in place, an adjustable buckle helps keep everyone securely in place.
This feature is also handy for when you're using the pillow to help support your babies while they're sitting upright, ensuring they're safely and snugly held in place while you supervise them (and maybe even have a minute to enjoy a cup of coffee that's still pipin'?).
It's soft
The covers for the Twin Z Nursing Pillow are oh-so-cozy. Made of an ultra-soft and velvety minky material, the plush microfiber covers are perfect for cuddling and are gentle on your babies' sensitive skin.
The cover is machine-washable and can be dried on any cycle. Plus, the fabric is durable, so even though you'll be using this pillow day-in and day-out, you can rest easy knowing it's going to last until your babies outgrow it.
Keeping up energy, keeping up supply
Every baby's breastfeeding journey will be different, even with twins borne from the same pregnancy.
What doesn't differ is how much work the process is.
A mother who is breastfeeding a single baby burns approximately 500 calories per day. Those who are breastfeeding twins burn about 1,000 calories every day.
A mother who is breastfeeding a single baby burns approximately 500 calories per day. Those who are breastfeeding twins burn about 1,000 calories every day.
That's a lot of calories and calls for a lot of energy, so mamas of multiples especially need to ensure they're eating enough throughout the day to physically be able to keep up with that demand.
And while there's truth to the concept that it's "just a case of supply and demand," it's not always so cut and dry. A mother can feed her babies on-demand and still run into supply issues somewhere down the road.
In our case, we were chugging along just fine, and then we hit a major growth spurt with dual cluster feed after dual cluster feed and we ran into a scenario where I literally could not keep up with what our babies needed, no matter what I did or how hard I tried.
When I found my supply was starting to dwindle, I did some research and found a recipe by Medela for lactation cookies that actually helped boost my supply.
And while it didn't help me have enough milk to carry on with breastfeeding forever, the increased supply absolutely helped us carry on longer than we would have been able to otherwise.
How many breastfeeding pillows do you need?
This one's tricky and depends on each parent's preference.
If you're going to have only one nursing area set up in your home, then you're probably fine to have just one breastfeeding pillow. If you're going to have a permanent feeding area set up in the babies' nursery and another one in the main living area, you may not want to lug the pillow around from place to place and may prefer to just invest in two pillows to save you from juggling things unnecessarily.
I, personally, say double-up, and here's why. It was handy having a double nursing pillow for tandem feeding (the most popular twin feeding pillows are the Twin Z Nursing Pillow and the My Brest Friend Breastfeeding Pillow).
But if you're in a situation where you need to feed (breastfeed or bottle-feed) both babies' separately, it's so helpful to have two single Boppy-style pillows available for other caregivers to help support each baby while feeding.
Whether you opt for a double pillow or single pillows, it's a good idea to double-down on the covers, so that you always have one in use and a clean one waiting in the wings for when the other needs to be washed unexpectedly.
Twin Z Nursing Pillow Cover
This is a separate cover for the Twin Z Nursing Pillow. It's handy to have an extra on-hand for unexpected spit-ups.
For an exhaustive list of what you ACTUALLY need two of when you're having twins, check out our run-down, here.
And if you aren't sure which items should be purchased new and which can be bought used, check out this in-depth article for our two-cents on exactly this.
Designed with twins in mind
As a twin parent, it can be tough finding products that are actually created for navigating parenthood with two brand-new babies at the same time.
The Twin Z Nursing Pillow is one of those carefully crafted items. Its versatility makes it an excellent addition to any home with multiple babies.
It's thoughtfully-designed for life with double the little ones and is engineered to make it easier to navigate the early days with your newborn twins.
Did you tandem feed your twins? What was your go-to pillow and why? Let us know in the Comments section below.
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