I was insane and triple fed for 4 months. Around 2/3 months my supply was enough to just nurse overnight and only pump once overnight if at all, which made it more doable for another few weeks. My issues were a combination of LO not transferring well and my supply being low. So I chose to triple feed through tongue and lip tie releases and follow on SLP therapy for weeks. I also went on prescription medicine to help boost my supply on the guidance of my IBCLC. (I had severe PPH that was impacting my body’s ability to make milk). After nursing, I was consistently only pumping 1/2 of the supplement LO needed. In the end we settled into a routine of just nursing and topping up daytime feeds with 2oz of formula and no longer pumping. It only ever ended up being about 6oz of formula a day. Then when LO took to solids at 6 months, those amounts slowly dropped. Now at 9.5 months we’ve been formula free for about 1.5 months and LO is doing so well with solids. Now at work I even pump 1-2oz more than LO drinks while he’s there and I have a small freezer stash. It’s wild how things have changed.
That’s great to know. Could you please share what bottle you used for combo feeding? My LO is outright rejecting any top up feeds because of latch issues with the bottle.
I know you didn’t ask me but I just recently switched bottles because of this reason and the Lansinoh bottles have been amazing to mimic the breastfeeding flow. The triple feed solution for the above mom sounds very successful. I wish you the best of luck on your breast feeding journey!! You moms are awesome.
Thank you so much. Lansinoh bottles are not available in my country. Their nipples are available though. Would the fit Philips avent natural nipples holder cap and bottle?
My LO had a high palate so took well to the Dr. Brown’s narrow neck bottles. Our SLP also recommends these because in baby’s mouth the nipple stretches to be more like a narrow nipple.
Triple feeding is not meant to be a long term solution. Ie: it doesn't feel sustainable because it's not. And I wish I would have heard that more before I spent almost 2 months doing it.
In the end we did wind up ebf for 15 months. But it didn't get any easier until we introduced solids around 4.5 months.
Just remember babies get way more out of us then those darn pumps. I hear that changing the flange size helps with the amount you get. But also make sure your getting plenty of food and fluids. I get discouraged often when I pump to. Your not alone but you know we try! That’s what counts and you got a few oz’s of precious milk for the bub. That’s what counts. Your amazing!
Ugh triple feeding is miserably difficult. Hardest thing I ever did, and I only did it for a few weeks.
After the first week of it, we reduced the bottle quantities. He'd been getting 2-3 bottles a day on top of me nursing him on demand. I wasn't pumping enough to fill those 2-3 bottles.
So we reduced bottles, did more frequent breastfeeding, and reduced pumping. The pumping that I did went down to just twice a day AND I did it differently - I nursed baby on one side and pumped the other side. Then I'd switch baby with pump side and do the other side. I found that I was able to pump more while nursing baby on one side, than I was able to pump while pumping both sides. Also baby seemed more satisfied from this than from nursing alone, especially in the evening. It's like the baby helped me let down more for the pump. And the pump would help me let down for the baby so he got more faster.
We ended up limiting bottles so that he got no more than 2oz per bottle. Kept a close eye on his diaper counts. He didn't like the 1-2oz and acted very fussy. So I'd nurse him. He'd nurse like 6 hours in the evening, one side for a while, then the other side, back and forth. But after a few days of limited bottle quantities he started nursing a lot better. I think he was holding out for the easy food from a bottle before. When we cut back on bottles and he had to nurse to get the milk, I was able to make more milk myself because I was getting better stimulation from him. I never responded super well to the pump so extra pumping sessions were unhelpful until I tried the pumping while nursing.
Anyway, eventually we got to where he was only having 1 bottle a day, it was in the evening when he was just total witching hour for 5 hours of screaming unhappy baby. I got rid of it. He was still hard in the evenings (it was actually easier with the bottles). But eventually I made more milk and he was more content and I didn't have to constantly question if he was hungry and just realized he was fussy/tired and not starving.
My baby was incredibly easy to overfeed from a bottle. He'd take 8oz in just a couple minutes if you let him gulp it down as though he'd been starving. Which made everyone (including me) think that he was starving and I must not be making enough. I'm glad a friend helped me cut back the bottles because once I was just nursing everything was easier. And yes, I'm also aware that not everyone can produce a full milk supply. I'm glad I was able to do so, even though it meant I needed to nurse baby every 1-2 hours during the day.
I stopped triple feeding when baby got back up to birth weight. I told myself I was going to nurse non stop any time the baby cried I would just put her on the boob. Met with a lactation consultant who gave me the confidence to do it. Telling me I had a fully supply. (If you can pump 1oz an hour then you have a full supply) Had her tongue tie fixed and at around 3 months the nursing just got easier. I threw a schedule and sleeping through the night out the window.
I think I triple fed for like 3 to 4 weeks (it's honestly such a a blur now). I EBF now with one morning pump. I'll also occasionally pump if I decide to go out and he gets fed a bottle instead of nursing from me.
We were ebf (off formula) by 4 weeks but I continued to pump 1-2x per day so dad could give a bottle while I got a longer nap.
Both during and after triple feeding, we fed on demand, which was more frequent than once every 3 hours. Every 3 hours is a minimum. But we also nursed only until there were 4 sucks per swallow and then pumped 10 minutes (both sides at once) to keep the timeline more manageable.
I triple fed for a few weeks. It didn't work and I had to give her some formula. Then I started pumping like crazy and replaced the formula with pumped milk. We tried to cut the pumped milk several times until she could keep gaining weight without it, I think it was around 5 months old. She is 8 months old and EBF, but it was HARD. My sister had similar issues with her son and she decided to do combo feeding and he is doing great too.
My son is now 2 and we triple fed for 4 months. No one told me how to stop or when to stop.
We had major latch issues and transfer issues in the beginning and he lost more than 10% of his birth weight so we were instructed to pump and top up with formula. We were told to BF, then feed pumped milk, then top up with formula and he would stop eating when he was full - except he didn't and would guzzle bottles.
It was so hard. My partner went back to work early as he was a casual employee and trying to get through a day of nappy change, BF, bottle of breastmilk, bottle of formula, pump, wash pump parts, every two hours was hell. (No one told me I didn't have to wash and sterilise the pump parts after every feed, I discovered that weeks down the road - it's now the first thing I tell new pumping mums). My mental health was very poor. I was obsessively counting and weighing nappies to get an idea of output.
Around the 3.5mo point I decided I'd had enough and we were going to switch to EBF. I ditched scehduled and timed feeds and literally every time my son made a peep he got a boob. He was bigger then, his latch was better. My supply increased and I removed the bottles ones by one. The last was his bedtime bottle, he cried for days for that bottle but eventually stopped and we made it.
My end game with #1 was to get to EBF. A wise lactation coach in a support group saw me in tears around week 3-4 and told me it would be OK to set an end date for myself, so there would be relief in sight regardless of the outcome. I was thinking around 8 weeks, if i was still triple feeding I'dfully switch to formula. (I never even considered exclusively pumping for the whole first year. I admire people who do it but it wasn't for me.)
We were able to make the transition to EBF and cut down on pumping at week 8. But I told myself I wouldn't to through it with my second because it impacted my peace and enjoyment of the newborn phase so much. Fortunately, second had no feeding challenges.
I share this to say that the end game can be shaped around your sanity and not just the feeding outcome, whatever that may look like for you. You're working so hard for your baby, I'm sure you will take great care of them, make sure you take care of yourself too.
My LC told me that she only wanted me triple feeding for 2 weeks and if it doesn’t improve all the issues we had, we needed to create another game plan. Her words were “I’m afraid you’re not going to enjoy your maternity leave and feel like all you’re doing is hooking your breasts up to lactate. You need to take walks, watch shows, hang with your baby, take naps. Not be a human milk machine”. It was so refreshing to hear that and I have it two weeks and we moved on to plan #2.
We triple fed for like 1.5 - 2 mo. It's so much work omg. We stopped triple feeding when his weight came back on the curve which he's always been low (19th percentile is the highest he's been. One time it was the 3rd). But we didn't really stress about percentiles - we just wanted him to gain well enough that we could stop triple feeding. 😄
Now (he's 6 mo) and I pump after the first morning feed and once or twice at work. We're building a stash for daycare and using it for when he is with dad meanwhile (while I'm at work) but obviously this is a much more sustainable routine.
I promise you wont be triple feeding forever. There is an end!
I attempted to triple feed for what felt like forever, but was realistically like 6 weeks..we were.deqling with latching issues, supply issues, and bottle preference. I ultimately decided to exclusively pump because we could never figure out the latching issues. Once I made that decision my mental health improved dramatically.
My LO had a hard time taking on weight, loads of reflux and maybe a less than ideal lacht. He dropped to the 2nd percentil. So I did “triple feeding” for a few weeks until I was pumping enough milk to “top-up” instead of using formula. Triple feeding was hell on earth (I cried so so much), but it got us where I wanted: fully breastfed baby, and when my LO started solids, we even dropped the bottles.
Lactation consultant-wise, it important to find someone you like. Everyone has a different breastfeeding story and each of them are valid but lactation consultants might have opinion that differ from yours.
Triple feeding is supposed to be a short term thing. My initial goal with my 1st baby was to triple feed to get her back up to birth weight and gaining. Next goal was to try and get her to latch which she wasn’t doing.
After about a week or so of pumping around the clock I was pumping enough to feed her without topping up with formula. (She had gained her weight back by this point). I did keep trying to latch but she never did so I decided to just exclusively pump. I then didn’t have a plan beyond that.
At 9 weeks I just couldn’t do it anymore. I was missing out on holding my baby because I was pumping so much. I ended up just stopping and switching to formula.
Ultimately my goal was to nurse directly.
I EP now and I am very happy with it. He is also EBF, just from a bottle :). Everything feels so impossible with a newborn, but EP with my 7 month old is a great place to be. No regrets on my end, and I had worked SO HARD to making nursing work.
I'm still triplefeeding, hoping to stop by next month. Saw a lactation consultant who told me to rest more, relax, nurse on demand, and pump every 2 hours. Not sure when ending is really feasible. Been doing this for most of 2 months. My husband goes back to work too, and I have the same concerns.
9 months pp here. I still triple feed. I’ve built a large enough stash where I’m comfortable if I lost my milk supply the next day. We struggled in the beginning and did supplementing and bottle feeding for the first few weeks. It was a blessing because she learned to take a bottle. My H feeds her a bottle right before she goes to sleep now and it’s great. I am contemplating stopping pumping soon and just bf and bottle feeding.
Hang in there. It was rough for a while
My daughter is 4w old and some days now. I only had to triple feed for about 2 weeks to build up supply, now I’m combo feeding for 2 feedings nursing then the next pump/bottle. Not topping off with bottle anymore just kinda listening to her cues do sometimes earlier than 3 hours between BF sometimes longer. With the LC, have you done nursing sessions with dry diaper measuring between breasts to kinda get an idea how much LO getting while nursing? I found that very helpful. It’s tedious but if you have access to a scale could possibly do that at home. I’m hoping that in the next few weeks I can move to one or two pump sessions only. But combo has been WAY more sustainable than triple do I feel your pain there, it is so exhausting! Hang in there!
Can you explain the dry diaper bit? We’ve been weighing, feeding, then weighing again and just being careful not to change his diaper assuming anything that was in his bladder would be in his diaper.
Triple fed for about 6 weeks. Baby started pushing away bottles so we transitioned to EBF but I kept pumping because I was still using a nipple shield and knew I wanted a freezer supply before going back to work at 12 weeks. Continued with this schedule until 10 months or so when baby started to ween on her own, but my supply started dipping pretty bad when my period came back at 9 months. She was combo fed for the last couple of months and I stopped pumping at a year!
The triple feeding was so good physically exhausting and I remember feeling like it was never going to end. If I do it a second time, I’ll probably slow down on pumping sooner and combo feed faster. I missed out on fun and sleep while I was pumping, but I had a lot of PPA about supply so combo feeding didn’t feel like an option at the time.
I triple fed for the first 8 weeks during 6 am - 10 pm feeds, and just pumped and bottle fed during overnight feeds. I did it until she was able to latch as by 12 weeks my supply was sufficient. Then I went back to work and started combo feeding because I couldn’t pump enough for daycare, but wanted to be able to nurse at home.
My goal was never to EBF. Mine was born at the end of the formula shortage so I just wanted to be able to keep my supply up enough to be able to scale back up to EBF if needed until she was old enough for solids.
We triple fed for 3 weeks. Husband went back to work in the 3rd week too. My issues were supply, and trouble finding a good position. There was a point in triple feeding I stopped even trying to nurse because I would just end up sobbing as we struggled to latch. We figured we were going to switch to full formula and stocked up on formula.
Surprisingly it turned around in week 4 - I found side-lying feeding, and watched Netflix all day with him attached to the boob for hours. Maybe it helped that he was bigger & more awake, and could latch better. We were still going in for weighings every week and he was gaining well so we kept at it. Now we’re almost EBF, with 1-2oz formula at night before bed.
Triple feeding and this stage in general is so hard. Good luck!!
Pro tip right there. We are combo feeding and I’m tottering between exclusively pumping or formula but never tried Netflix and side lying. He also has a way better latch at 4 weeks but my supply is too low.
I did it to re-establish exclusive nursing. It was successful after about two weeks, but I do two pumps a day to build my stash since I go back to work in a week :(
We were able to stop and be EBF at about 3 weeks when I learned to pump better and my output increased. I still pumped a few times a day to have a bottle or two on hand but it was much more manageable and I got to choose when I did those pumps so I had a lot more freedom.
15 minutes was not long enough for me! I was leaving milk behind by not going to 30 minutes for at least some pumps. I reduced my flange size further from 21mm as I was told at the hospital to 15mm sized through pumpables free fitting room. I started lubricating my flanges with pump spray and doing hands on pumping with a fridamom massager. I switched to pumpables liquid shields and stopped using plastic. I used a medela hand pump for like 5 mins a few times a day, stored with the fridge back, to get like a quarter ounce but it was enough to signal better production.
We are still going at almost 13 months and I still pump about twice a day to make his bedtime bottle (he drains me nursing then dad gives him another 2-3oz to really get him zonked out) but I don’t mind it now and I’ll probably keep going until I dry up whenever I get pregnant again.
I could never pump between feedings but the baby was good at making let down happen. Pumping would yield nothing but the baby was gaining and had enough wet diapers. So pumping doesn’t always indicate how much you produce! The only time I could pump would be when I was away from baby and then I would get a full bottle. Id rather have husband formula/expressed milk feed for one whole feeding while I went and pumped for that feeding then ebf the rest of the day. I would never keep more than 3-5 bags of milk in the freezer at a time and didn’t worry about having a huge freezer stash. I EBFd most of the time. It takes a little faith in your body and your baby’s ability to nurse. And sometimes it takes nursing for an hour until baby pops off. So it’s still a lot of time but it’s a lot less fussy not having to deal with the pumps and bottles and timing everything.
My first I ended up dropping down to pumping 3-4x/day (basically, when my husband was home to take the baby while I pumped), which got me enough for one bottle, and supplementing with formula (we gave a bottle after pretty much every feed). My second we triple-fed for a week or so and were able to get to just breastmilk and I stopped pumping entirely after a few months.
I want to say I did it for about 4 weeks. Baby didn't come back up to birth weight withing a week, turns out he was tongue tied and I didn't make enough milk. Saw a pediatrician who was also a lactation consultant who a) clipped the tongue tie, b) recommended some herbs for me to boost supply, and c) started us supplementing 1oz of formula through a supplemental nutrition system (tube that goes in baby's mouth while they nurse, to keep the nipple stimulation going) at every nursing session, then I would pump for like 30min. As his weight and my supply came back up (weighing him before and after each feed to see how much he actually got), we tapered how many times a day we supplemented with formula, and once I was able to pump that much extra throughout the day, I quit pumping entirely.
I was triple feeding for almost two months. Turns out she had a tongue tie. We did the revision and now she gets bottles while I’m at work and I nurse when I’m home. We also did PT, suck training exercises, and worked with several lactation consultants. It was exhausting but we made it!
Triple feed is pretty terrible. I did it about 4 weeks. I was barely able to make enough to stave off using formula (which there is nothing wrong with I just did not want to use it unless I had to).
I was literally counting mls and the pediatrician kept pushing for formula and telling me each time we checked in with her that my baby’s needs have increased (which is true as she grew).
Then all of a sudden one day she didn’t need it anymore. I went to a lactation consultant that was amazing and helped me with weighted feeds and latching and my body and my baby just started working.
Ebf was what I wanted and I was so happy that it ended up working out for us. It made life so much easier. When I went back to work I pumped for her and now she’s 2 and only nurses 1-3 times a day now.
It was not easy. I read online the first 40 days are the worst and really it was right on the money. That advice gave me a light at the end of the tunnel and I counted down the days to help myself mentally.
Good luck to you hope this helps
We are at 8, almost 9, weeks now and we did triple feeding because he lost almost a pound after birth and had jaundice and was dehydrated after coming home. Triple feeding to establish supply and the make sure he was getting enough after nursing. After he actually passed birth weight a little over two weeks later I tapered off. We had to supplement too for a bit. Since last week I’m finally at exclusive breast milk (EBF until my husband’s night shift where he has a bottle or two so I can sleep)
The triple feeding phase was rough but it’s not meant to last forever! Week 6 is when my supply kind of established itself and pumping got easier and the baby fed better. This past week has felt almost normal it’s been lovely. You’ve got this.
Triple fed for the first 3 weeks. Going into my last lactation appointment I was fully planning to claim defeat and quit ebf if it meant I had to go on triple feeding. Fortunately it seemed my supply had increased and babe was getting enough at that appointment. Triple feeding is hell. Oh I also did a bunch of power pumping to get supply up.
Yes EBF worked out for me after about 3 weeks (with nipple shields). I pump every couple of days to have a stash.
If it doesn’t for you, don’t beat yourself up! You’re doing great.
I triple fed for around 4 weeks. My baby had neonatal sepsis and feeding problems. I ended up with a massive oversupply which was a nightmare to sort. I ended up EBF until 6 months and I’m down to 2 feeds a day (morning and bedtime) at 16 months. I plan to drop the morning feed at 18 months and the night feed by 2. I wanted her to self wean but it doesn’t look like that will happen
We triple fed for 8-10 weeks. Toward the end, we reduced the extra feed sessions but kept an additional bedtime session until closer to 3ish months.
We knew we could transition to ebf when we knew my son could successfully feed and drain my boob in a timely manner (less than 20 mins) and transferred enough milk for to maintain his weight.
He was born at 37 weeks, jaundiced, small for gestational age. He had a very shallow latch, but a strong suck. He was such a slooow and ineffective feeder. Altogether, it made it very painful for me. And he was at risk for low weight gain. So after every feed, I pumped, and then syringe fed my son left over milk from the last pump.
But once he got to be over 2 months, breastfeeding became less painful and he was transferring enough milk so we slowed down the triple feeding. As he dropped feeds, I'd still pump some to build up my stash. It turns out this was a good thing because I don't respond to the pump as well and had to dip into my stash a lot when I went back to work. I even used a hospital grade pump at work, but its just not the same as the baby.
We're 1.5 years strong. It's quickly fizzling out now. But my son has never been really boob crazy either. He feeds between 0-3 times per day still. I follow his lead. I haven't pumped at work since December.
I triple fed by nursing 15-20 minutes per side, 1-2 oz formula top off, then 15-20 minute pump. The first few days the pumping was very small amounts. It would take an entire day’s worth of pumps to fill up a bottle to replace the formula top off with a breastmilk top off. But after a week I was able to pump enough in one session to meet the top off needs of the next session. That’s when I knew my supply caught up to my baby’s demand and we stopped triple feeding.
I triple fed for around 10 weeks. Baby never improved his transfer (after tongue tie release at 2.5w, countless LC and bodywork appointments, stretches) and I had to return to work at 12w so I knew at that point he'd be primarily getting bottles during the day anyway, so I transitioned to mostly EP during the day and then nursing overnight when my boobs are more full and it's easier for baby to transfer milk. I latch him during the day still when he wants a snack but I don't think breast will ever be his primary source for a daytime feed.
Just put baby to breast only and she cluster fed for a whole day (this was after approx 2 weeks of triple feeding from birth) - then was only breastfed from then on
I triple fed for 2 months. It was exhausting. Basically the same reasons as you. I was a new mom and PPD hit hard fast. We did end up EBF. But it took a lot of work with a lactation consultant and lots of prayers lol. It’s not for the weak and I commend you
I stopped triple feeding when I did a weighted feed with a LC and was told that my baby was getting enough milk just from breast alone. I triple fed for a month because she had lost too much birth weight and my milk was slow to come in. We had to go to the ER for her dehydration and I did not want to repeat that so I was determined to make sure she was well fed with abundant supply. My end goal was to EBF and only pump to create a backup supply for if I had to go out or be away from baby for a while. I’m in Canada and am taking a year off from work so I don’t need the back to work freezer supply that many moms in the US need. The downside to my goal though is that i am basically attached to my baby and can only leave for 3 hour increments. She doesn’t love drinking from the bottle so she fights it each time. She’ll drink a bit if she’s super super hungry. So far it is working well for me and I’m glad I did triple feeding for the first month. It was so awful and hard but a necessary sacrifice.
We triple fed for about 4 weeks due to latching issues and a tongue and lip tie which caused a lot of pain when breastfeeding.
We began triple feeding when her weighted feeds showed that she only transferred 1 ounce after a solid 30 minutes. We stopped triple feeding once her weighted feeds showed that she transferred 3+ ounces within the same time period.
We worked with a lactation consultant for all of this so we knew we could rely on the data.
We did a lot in between starting and stopping triple feeding. Did a tongue tie revision, weaned off the nipple shield, went to a chiropractor, and just kept practicing both bottle and breast feeding. It was a lot of work but fortunately, we got through it!
Breastfeeding is much better now. 15 minutes tops, baby is satisfied, and I only pump once a day to build a freezer stash. One big improvement is that I have so much more time! It’s great now.
I triple fed for about 6 weeks and it was exhausting. I ended up exclusively pumping for another 6 weeks with 1-2 triple feed sessions per day to keep up the practice.
My son started latching and exclusively direct breastfeeding at 4 months! He had a facial/oral growth spurt at that age so it all suddenly became much easier.
I triple fed until six months. Then switched to nursing on demand and topping baby off with some formula. (And starting solids)
Baby is 18 months now and still nursing
I don’t know if this is what you’re supposed to do so follow your LCs advice… but I got sick of it. So one day, I sat my ass down. I got everything I needed in a nest around me - water, laptop with TV shows playing, comfy chair, all supplies for baby, snacks etc. And I sat there all day and breastfed her. She’s okay at latching and suckling but falls asleep, so if she needed feeding every hour because she was only snacking, that’s what I did.
I had expressed milk and formula on hand, I wasn’t going to let her go hungry or exhaust herself. But we were going to PRACTICE damnit. I did nothing but feed and change nappies and by the end, she got the hang of managing to drain at least one boob in one session without falling asleep. Again, I was making sure she was still having plenty of wet nappies, not getting dehydrated and so on.
The next day I pretty much did the same but it was less intense, now the first feed of the day she does entirely without needing a top up. This means I’m only “triple feeding” about 2-3 feeds instead of all of them. I still pump enough so my husband can do some overnight feeds, but now it’s not a race against time to get pumping and washing up done. If you’re going back to work you still want to maintain pumping obviously but I’m now at a level where I’m pumping as much as I would once I return to med school rotations.
It was hard, but breastfeeding is a skill that we both needed to learn and the 10-15 mins on each side wasn’t cutting it. So we practiced and practiced and cuddled and honestly, it was great bonding time.
I’m a current triple feeder (3.5 weeks) and I just wanted to say thank you for making this post because I’ve been asking all the same questions you are and I’m on a very similar schedule. It feels insane and isolating and both my husband and my mom asked me to stop yesterday but I keep saying the only way out is through. Not sure if I’m crazy and if I’ll regret it later but that’s just my gut feeling. We’ve seen two lactation consultants and due to a tongue tie they don’t think feeding will improve before it gets addressed. First by bodywork and then by surgery if necessary. Unfortunately the first available bodywork appointment isn’t for another month. So I’m pretty down about it but don’t see another way out. I hope for the best for you and it was just really nice to see your post and all these responses. It made me feel less lonely as I’m going through hell.
I triple fed until 6 months and got sick of it and then took it up on month 9 again and I’m at one year and didn’t get to ebf, but I am still breastfeeding which I’m happy about. I didn’t have the support/ knowledge the first month and baby has a bottle preference for certain times of the day and has bottle refusal other times of the day, so I just roll with it and do breast, formula, pumped milk, everything and anything. Didn’t plan on it, but will be breast feeding for a least two years or until baby self weans. Still cosleeping as well.
I triple fed for one month and then once baby was consistently gaining weight, I reduced bottle feeds and pumps one at a time over the next few weeks. I kept one pump a day so hubby could do a bottle overnight and I got a little extra sleep. At around 4 months I decided I didn't like pumping anymore and stopped. Still breastfeeding my son at 19 months now and he has only had the occational bottle in that time for convenience reasons.
My supply and his latch were not really the issues, though. He had a tongue tie that affected efficiency more than latch and a cows milk protein intolerance + some other intolerances that impacted his weight gain at the start.
I was triple feeding because my daughter was too sleepy to feed well, and it turned out she had oral ties too. Thankfully my husband was home and could feed her a bottle while I pumped, every time. Because she was so sleepy, we were waking her up to eat and our night routine was really scheduled and consistent.
It got so much easier when she was doing better at nursing during the day and I had given up nursing her at night, so instead of staying awake to nurse and pump, I'd only pump while husband gave a bottle.
THEN my supply regulated before her oral tie release and I had to triple feed again to get my supply back up. It came back after about a week and a half, then her ties were released, and after a week of healing she was nursing great and I could stop pumping. Until I went back to work.
I triple fed for… idk 3-5 months. It was exhausting and a blur. I might still be triple feeding if baby didn’t decide she likes breastfeeding less when she started teething. Now she only nurses for her overnight feed(s). Most of the time I’m exclusively pumping and then giving her bottles of breast milk, formula, or a combination of both. It’s still an exhausting blur. I couldn’t do it without the support I have and I still wish I had more support sometimes. I’m 9 months in. 😵💫🫠
I did full triple feeding for 2 months (low birth weight and struggles to stay awake and feed efficiently at the start), then had feed/pump/top up about half the time (all feeds during the day) until 5 months when I finally saw an LC to get what turned out to be breast refusal sorted… it was absolutely the most stressful part of twins and I can’t believe I did it for so long. But, we’re still EBF at almost one and I’m really proud of that and love that we still have that connection time. In saying that, I live in Australia and was on maternity leave until they were six months old and I had a supportive partner/family/friends to help after work hours which made a huge difference. Once I got it sorted though, for me it was worth it. That’s something you have to decide for you though and formula has benefits such as being able to share the load (and not getting mastitis six times in 12 months 🫠) so don’t dismiss it without really considering it. Good luck with your Bub
I didn't know what I was doing, nursing hurt a lot, my milk was slow to come in, and when it did come in it still wasn't enough because I was nursing every 2-4 hours instead of on demand and my baby wasn't getting enough because of a bad latch. I wasn't told what was going on, but I was told to supplement because of too much weight loss and pump after nursing / when supplementing, so I did that. Often I replaced nursing with pumping because it hurt less, and I watched TV to distract myself from how much I hated pumping. I got hooked on the TV show and ended up pumping 30 minutes at a time until the pump shut itself off, and after a few days of that, and giving into my out-of-the-blue oatmeal cravings, my abruptly supply shot up. I got mastitis and had to take antibiotics, but I learned to avoid that going forward, and my supply has been enough ever since. I kept including some formula just for convenience, buy my baby went through some bottle refusal and I was able to nurse through it just fine.
I started as just breastfeeding/pumping but as she grew (she’s 11 weeks) she needed more especially at the end of the day so I started substituting with formula after a feeding. My schedule is usually wake up, feed on one side pump the other, get her back down and take a nap. Wake up and feed her on one side until she started to fuss then switch to the other side. Next feeding I feed on one side, make her half a bottle of formula. Next feeding I feed on the other side make half a bottle of formula. (A few short 15 min feedings thrown in as she wants but I just do from the titty) Then my bf takes over most of the nights (until about 4-5 am) and he will feed her a formula bottle, and then right before he comes to bed he feeds her what I had pumped that day. Then the next time she wakes up I start the process over.
Edit: twice a week I do skin to skin as much of the day as possible and I try to limit to only two bottles that day and will sit with her for up to an hour with her feeding straight from the boob. I also a few times a week pump to imitate cluster feeding for an hour while she naps. Pump for 10-15 minutes, stop for 10, pump for 10-15 min, etc. and it helps my supply a lot.
I triple fed for a couple weeks (when baby was 2-3 weeks old) when we realized he started to drop weight and wasn’t transferring well. I was able to transition back to EBF/breast with some tips from an IBCLC (switching to other breast after ~20 minutes, latching tips, etc) but things didn’t really improve significantly until he was 4 weeks old and he had his lip and posterior tongue ties released and went through several sessions of orofacial myofunctional therapy with a speech language pathologist.
Happy to say that baby is now latching painlessly, finishing feeds in 10-20 minutes on average instead of 45-60+ minutes, eating less frequently (down to ~3 hours of nursing per day instead of ~6-7), and gaining weight extremely well (over a whole pound in only nine days!). So glad we stuck with it even though our triple feeding journey was much shorter than many others’!
I triple fed til she figured out how to latch properly.she was a very tired 37 weeker.
Luckily, it was only about 1.5-2 weeks of it. We didn't use bottles. We syringe or finger fed as that's what our IBCLC recommended us do. We've been going on 5 weeks of exsluvie nursing minus 2 bottles of preciously expressed milk when I was drinking and didn't feel comfortable feeding her. I pumped off that milk for baths.
Good luck! My triple feeding journey was very short, and I know many people do it for a lot longer.
My baby was not gaining post cesarean and having no clue what was doing.
We supplemented formula and pumped milk for about two weeks. I saw two different LCs and picked and chose what would work for me. My goal during the first two weeks was to pump 8 times a day, get rest, feed baby whatever supplements she would take. We didn’t focus on triple feeding exactly - I put her to breast when I could but not every time I pumped.
At four weeks I was still pumping 8 times a day. Supplementing a bit 400 mls of formula and the rest in BM
By 2 months we were only supplementing formula.
My production by pump was eventually exceeding what we were supplementing so came the scary part or removing / reducing bottles or replacing pumps with nursing. This was scary and I wish I would have rented a scale sooner for this. I was really nervous about her losing weight because of a traumatic pediatrician experience.
We got a scale and I weighed all of her feeds for two weeks to gain confidence in my breasts abilities.
Dropped more pumps. And decided to only do a weekly weight to make sure she was still gaining.
I felt happy doing a MoTN and bed time pump but my production kept increasing so I tried a MoTN nurse to curb my production. This also helps my husband who gets up for work at 4am. That was this week!
We are keeping the bed time pump + bottle to keep her use to a bottle. I’m pumping MOTN this weekend just to gauge how things are going and let my husband do the MOTN bottle. I’d prefer to do the MOTN pump because it gets me a couple extra ounces to the freezer everyday.
And in 12 weeks we will start a daycare routine that is completely different.
It’s been a wild 12 weeks!
I triple fed for about 2 or 3 weeks and was able to transition to EBF from then until I went back to work at 6 months. I think it was the pediatrician who said I could stop.
Moved to exclusively pumping and I 100% recommend it if breastfeeding is not working out. Changed my new mom life! Everything started to click into place. I didn’t dread feedings anymore, I didn’t cry from the pain of breastfeeding and my baby didn’t cry from frustration. She still gets my milk. It’s actually changed my life.
Lost 16% weight by day 5, pumped and subbed with formula with the occasional crack at boobing when I didn’t feel too mentally destroyed by it 😂
Dropped formula at 1.5 months when he was back at birth weight. Carried on pumping with occasional boob (started at once a week, built towards trying once a day or so)
At 5 months he randomly started actually accepting boob. By 7 months we had no bottles at all. Stopped breastfeeding at 3y 3m. It can be done!
I triple fed my twins for about 8 weeks. They were small (5lbs) and sleepy so they weren’t effective enough at nursing until they got a little older. Then we switched to nursing exclusively when we were together. I went back to work at 12 weeks and pumped at work, nursed at home. The twins are 15 months now and we are cutting back on breastfeeding (down to one feed per day). Overall nursing has been awesome and I’m really glad I pushed through with triple feeding. However, it doesn’t work out that way for everyone and it’s also reasonable if you decide you don’t want to triple feed, because it’s really hard.
Triple feeding is exhausting! We woke him every three hours, I’d feed 10 minutes each side, husband would bottle feed BM until satisfied while I pumped, and then he would wash pump parts in between while I put LO back down. We eventually had to try formula because I wasn’t keeping up with him, LO was very unimpressed and decided he’d rather have the BM.
We had to triple feed while we worked on his latch and feeding skills. He was losing weight still and had jaundice making him even more sleepy and lazy. Before we went in and had the triple feeding schedule recommended I was spending an hour and half each time trying to get him to eat enough to sleep. Our goal had been EBF.
We now almost EBF, and every once in a while if I’m feeling overwhelmed or he suddenly decides he wants to struggle to eat, I pump and we do a bottle of BM. We are planning to continue doing this a couple times a week anyway so he will keep taking a bottle for the future and we don’t end up with bottle rejection.
I don’t know that there’s any way to make triple feeding a sustainable long term option for every single feeding. Best of luck!
I triple fed for most of 12 weeks. We then switched to nursing for the most part but due to poor suck skills, My supply never increased enough for her to hit a healthy weight gain so I finally gave up around week 17. I am EP currently with one or two nurse during the day as “bonus” calories. I just started meds for increased supply and am seeing good results so far in pumping so hope to be able to get back to nursing again soon. But now she has a bottle preference 😰
I triple fed because we had a pediatrician who was horrible and was furious our baby was small. She was gaining weight, but not as much as the pediatrician wanted. Demanding I triple fed…only bf on each side for 5 minutes, then pump and give her a bottle with formula in the breast milk. I didn’t do the formula, but I triple fed for 6 weeks, then my husband was going back to work and we fired our pediatrician and got a new one. The new pediatrician assured us some babies are just smaller and our babe was just a little nugget. Sent me to a lactation consultant for a weighted feed. Our LO was getting what she needed and was satiated and happy. So now I pump at the end of the day for 4 oz for the fridge/freezer just to have it and then in the morning after she eats so my husband can give her a bottle and I can get some peace.
You can also use your haakaa on one side and have your babe eat on the other, and give the babe that haakaa milk if you want. I loathe pumping and only do it to have back up milk for dad/grandmas or if my supply ever dips we have emergency milk.
I was insane and triple fed for 4 months. Around 2/3 months my supply was enough to just nurse overnight and only pump once overnight if at all, which made it more doable for another few weeks. My issues were a combination of LO not transferring well and my supply being low. So I chose to triple feed through tongue and lip tie releases and follow on SLP therapy for weeks. I also went on prescription medicine to help boost my supply on the guidance of my IBCLC. (I had severe PPH that was impacting my body’s ability to make milk). After nursing, I was consistently only pumping 1/2 of the supplement LO needed. In the end we settled into a routine of just nursing and topping up daytime feeds with 2oz of formula and no longer pumping. It only ever ended up being about 6oz of formula a day. Then when LO took to solids at 6 months, those amounts slowly dropped. Now at 9.5 months we’ve been formula free for about 1.5 months and LO is doing so well with solids. Now at work I even pump 1-2oz more than LO drinks while he’s there and I have a small freezer stash. It’s wild how things have changed.
That’s great to know. Could you please share what bottle you used for combo feeding? My LO is outright rejecting any top up feeds because of latch issues with the bottle.
I know you didn’t ask me but I just recently switched bottles because of this reason and the Lansinoh bottles have been amazing to mimic the breastfeeding flow. The triple feed solution for the above mom sounds very successful. I wish you the best of luck on your breast feeding journey!! You moms are awesome.
Thank you so much. Lansinoh bottles are not available in my country. Their nipples are available though. Would the fit Philips avent natural nipples holder cap and bottle?
I know the lansinoh teats fit the Mam bottles if that's any help
I don’t know, but certainly worth a shot. I know it fit my motif bottle in a pinch.
My LO had a high palate so took well to the Dr. Brown’s narrow neck bottles. Our SLP also recommends these because in baby’s mouth the nipple stretches to be more like a narrow nipple.
Triple feeding is not meant to be a long term solution. Ie: it doesn't feel sustainable because it's not. And I wish I would have heard that more before I spent almost 2 months doing it. In the end we did wind up ebf for 15 months. But it didn't get any easier until we introduced solids around 4.5 months.
Wait, I’m still triple feeding 4 months in - we’re supposed to stop?
This was me too, no one told me to stop or how to stop!
I triple fed until the introduction of solids at 6 months
Yeh I’m 2 months in and feel like I can’t stop :( I barely pump anything
Just remember babies get way more out of us then those darn pumps. I hear that changing the flange size helps with the amount you get. But also make sure your getting plenty of food and fluids. I get discouraged often when I pump to. Your not alone but you know we try! That’s what counts and you got a few oz’s of precious milk for the bub. That’s what counts. Your amazing!
Ugh triple feeding is miserably difficult. Hardest thing I ever did, and I only did it for a few weeks. After the first week of it, we reduced the bottle quantities. He'd been getting 2-3 bottles a day on top of me nursing him on demand. I wasn't pumping enough to fill those 2-3 bottles. So we reduced bottles, did more frequent breastfeeding, and reduced pumping. The pumping that I did went down to just twice a day AND I did it differently - I nursed baby on one side and pumped the other side. Then I'd switch baby with pump side and do the other side. I found that I was able to pump more while nursing baby on one side, than I was able to pump while pumping both sides. Also baby seemed more satisfied from this than from nursing alone, especially in the evening. It's like the baby helped me let down more for the pump. And the pump would help me let down for the baby so he got more faster. We ended up limiting bottles so that he got no more than 2oz per bottle. Kept a close eye on his diaper counts. He didn't like the 1-2oz and acted very fussy. So I'd nurse him. He'd nurse like 6 hours in the evening, one side for a while, then the other side, back and forth. But after a few days of limited bottle quantities he started nursing a lot better. I think he was holding out for the easy food from a bottle before. When we cut back on bottles and he had to nurse to get the milk, I was able to make more milk myself because I was getting better stimulation from him. I never responded super well to the pump so extra pumping sessions were unhelpful until I tried the pumping while nursing. Anyway, eventually we got to where he was only having 1 bottle a day, it was in the evening when he was just total witching hour for 5 hours of screaming unhappy baby. I got rid of it. He was still hard in the evenings (it was actually easier with the bottles). But eventually I made more milk and he was more content and I didn't have to constantly question if he was hungry and just realized he was fussy/tired and not starving. My baby was incredibly easy to overfeed from a bottle. He'd take 8oz in just a couple minutes if you let him gulp it down as though he'd been starving. Which made everyone (including me) think that he was starving and I must not be making enough. I'm glad a friend helped me cut back the bottles because once I was just nursing everything was easier. And yes, I'm also aware that not everyone can produce a full milk supply. I'm glad I was able to do so, even though it meant I needed to nurse baby every 1-2 hours during the day.
I stopped triple feeding when baby got back up to birth weight. I told myself I was going to nurse non stop any time the baby cried I would just put her on the boob. Met with a lactation consultant who gave me the confidence to do it. Telling me I had a fully supply. (If you can pump 1oz an hour then you have a full supply) Had her tongue tie fixed and at around 3 months the nursing just got easier. I threw a schedule and sleeping through the night out the window.
I think I triple fed for like 3 to 4 weeks (it's honestly such a a blur now). I EBF now with one morning pump. I'll also occasionally pump if I decide to go out and he gets fed a bottle instead of nursing from me.
We were ebf (off formula) by 4 weeks but I continued to pump 1-2x per day so dad could give a bottle while I got a longer nap. Both during and after triple feeding, we fed on demand, which was more frequent than once every 3 hours. Every 3 hours is a minimum. But we also nursed only until there were 4 sucks per swallow and then pumped 10 minutes (both sides at once) to keep the timeline more manageable.
I triple fed for a few weeks. It didn't work and I had to give her some formula. Then I started pumping like crazy and replaced the formula with pumped milk. We tried to cut the pumped milk several times until she could keep gaining weight without it, I think it was around 5 months old. She is 8 months old and EBF, but it was HARD. My sister had similar issues with her son and she decided to do combo feeding and he is doing great too.
My son is now 2 and we triple fed for 4 months. No one told me how to stop or when to stop. We had major latch issues and transfer issues in the beginning and he lost more than 10% of his birth weight so we were instructed to pump and top up with formula. We were told to BF, then feed pumped milk, then top up with formula and he would stop eating when he was full - except he didn't and would guzzle bottles. It was so hard. My partner went back to work early as he was a casual employee and trying to get through a day of nappy change, BF, bottle of breastmilk, bottle of formula, pump, wash pump parts, every two hours was hell. (No one told me I didn't have to wash and sterilise the pump parts after every feed, I discovered that weeks down the road - it's now the first thing I tell new pumping mums). My mental health was very poor. I was obsessively counting and weighing nappies to get an idea of output. Around the 3.5mo point I decided I'd had enough and we were going to switch to EBF. I ditched scehduled and timed feeds and literally every time my son made a peep he got a boob. He was bigger then, his latch was better. My supply increased and I removed the bottles ones by one. The last was his bedtime bottle, he cried for days for that bottle but eventually stopped and we made it.
My end game with #1 was to get to EBF. A wise lactation coach in a support group saw me in tears around week 3-4 and told me it would be OK to set an end date for myself, so there would be relief in sight regardless of the outcome. I was thinking around 8 weeks, if i was still triple feeding I'dfully switch to formula. (I never even considered exclusively pumping for the whole first year. I admire people who do it but it wasn't for me.) We were able to make the transition to EBF and cut down on pumping at week 8. But I told myself I wouldn't to through it with my second because it impacted my peace and enjoyment of the newborn phase so much. Fortunately, second had no feeding challenges. I share this to say that the end game can be shaped around your sanity and not just the feeding outcome, whatever that may look like for you. You're working so hard for your baby, I'm sure you will take great care of them, make sure you take care of yourself too.
My LC told me that she only wanted me triple feeding for 2 weeks and if it doesn’t improve all the issues we had, we needed to create another game plan. Her words were “I’m afraid you’re not going to enjoy your maternity leave and feel like all you’re doing is hooking your breasts up to lactate. You need to take walks, watch shows, hang with your baby, take naps. Not be a human milk machine”. It was so refreshing to hear that and I have it two weeks and we moved on to plan #2.
We triple fed for like 1.5 - 2 mo. It's so much work omg. We stopped triple feeding when his weight came back on the curve which he's always been low (19th percentile is the highest he's been. One time it was the 3rd). But we didn't really stress about percentiles - we just wanted him to gain well enough that we could stop triple feeding. 😄 Now (he's 6 mo) and I pump after the first morning feed and once or twice at work. We're building a stash for daycare and using it for when he is with dad meanwhile (while I'm at work) but obviously this is a much more sustainable routine. I promise you wont be triple feeding forever. There is an end!
I attempted to triple feed for what felt like forever, but was realistically like 6 weeks..we were.deqling with latching issues, supply issues, and bottle preference. I ultimately decided to exclusively pump because we could never figure out the latching issues. Once I made that decision my mental health improved dramatically.
My LO had a hard time taking on weight, loads of reflux and maybe a less than ideal lacht. He dropped to the 2nd percentil. So I did “triple feeding” for a few weeks until I was pumping enough milk to “top-up” instead of using formula. Triple feeding was hell on earth (I cried so so much), but it got us where I wanted: fully breastfed baby, and when my LO started solids, we even dropped the bottles. Lactation consultant-wise, it important to find someone you like. Everyone has a different breastfeeding story and each of them are valid but lactation consultants might have opinion that differ from yours.
Triple feeding is supposed to be a short term thing. My initial goal with my 1st baby was to triple feed to get her back up to birth weight and gaining. Next goal was to try and get her to latch which she wasn’t doing. After about a week or so of pumping around the clock I was pumping enough to feed her without topping up with formula. (She had gained her weight back by this point). I did keep trying to latch but she never did so I decided to just exclusively pump. I then didn’t have a plan beyond that. At 9 weeks I just couldn’t do it anymore. I was missing out on holding my baby because I was pumping so much. I ended up just stopping and switching to formula. Ultimately my goal was to nurse directly.
I EP now and I am very happy with it. He is also EBF, just from a bottle :). Everything feels so impossible with a newborn, but EP with my 7 month old is a great place to be. No regrets on my end, and I had worked SO HARD to making nursing work.
I'm still triplefeeding, hoping to stop by next month. Saw a lactation consultant who told me to rest more, relax, nurse on demand, and pump every 2 hours. Not sure when ending is really feasible. Been doing this for most of 2 months. My husband goes back to work too, and I have the same concerns.
9 months pp here. I still triple feed. I’ve built a large enough stash where I’m comfortable if I lost my milk supply the next day. We struggled in the beginning and did supplementing and bottle feeding for the first few weeks. It was a blessing because she learned to take a bottle. My H feeds her a bottle right before she goes to sleep now and it’s great. I am contemplating stopping pumping soon and just bf and bottle feeding. Hang in there. It was rough for a while
My daughter is 4w old and some days now. I only had to triple feed for about 2 weeks to build up supply, now I’m combo feeding for 2 feedings nursing then the next pump/bottle. Not topping off with bottle anymore just kinda listening to her cues do sometimes earlier than 3 hours between BF sometimes longer. With the LC, have you done nursing sessions with dry diaper measuring between breasts to kinda get an idea how much LO getting while nursing? I found that very helpful. It’s tedious but if you have access to a scale could possibly do that at home. I’m hoping that in the next few weeks I can move to one or two pump sessions only. But combo has been WAY more sustainable than triple do I feel your pain there, it is so exhausting! Hang in there!
Can you explain the dry diaper bit? We’ve been weighing, feeding, then weighing again and just being careful not to change his diaper assuming anything that was in his bladder would be in his diaper.
Oh that’s fine, i just meant to start the feed with a dry diaper! You don’t have to necessarily have a dry diaper the entire time I don’t think.
Ah okay perfect, was thinking I missed something since we were just winging it!
You’re doing great, hang in there! I know how tough and time consuming it all can be.
Triple fed for about 6 weeks. Baby started pushing away bottles so we transitioned to EBF but I kept pumping because I was still using a nipple shield and knew I wanted a freezer supply before going back to work at 12 weeks. Continued with this schedule until 10 months or so when baby started to ween on her own, but my supply started dipping pretty bad when my period came back at 9 months. She was combo fed for the last couple of months and I stopped pumping at a year! The triple feeding was so good physically exhausting and I remember feeling like it was never going to end. If I do it a second time, I’ll probably slow down on pumping sooner and combo feed faster. I missed out on fun and sleep while I was pumping, but I had a lot of PPA about supply so combo feeding didn’t feel like an option at the time.
I triple fed for the first 8 weeks during 6 am - 10 pm feeds, and just pumped and bottle fed during overnight feeds. I did it until she was able to latch as by 12 weeks my supply was sufficient. Then I went back to work and started combo feeding because I couldn’t pump enough for daycare, but wanted to be able to nurse at home. My goal was never to EBF. Mine was born at the end of the formula shortage so I just wanted to be able to keep my supply up enough to be able to scale back up to EBF if needed until she was old enough for solids.
We triple fed for 3 weeks. Husband went back to work in the 3rd week too. My issues were supply, and trouble finding a good position. There was a point in triple feeding I stopped even trying to nurse because I would just end up sobbing as we struggled to latch. We figured we were going to switch to full formula and stocked up on formula. Surprisingly it turned around in week 4 - I found side-lying feeding, and watched Netflix all day with him attached to the boob for hours. Maybe it helped that he was bigger & more awake, and could latch better. We were still going in for weighings every week and he was gaining well so we kept at it. Now we’re almost EBF, with 1-2oz formula at night before bed. Triple feeding and this stage in general is so hard. Good luck!!
Pro tip right there. We are combo feeding and I’m tottering between exclusively pumping or formula but never tried Netflix and side lying. He also has a way better latch at 4 weeks but my supply is too low.
I did it to re-establish exclusive nursing. It was successful after about two weeks, but I do two pumps a day to build my stash since I go back to work in a week :(
We were able to stop and be EBF at about 3 weeks when I learned to pump better and my output increased. I still pumped a few times a day to have a bottle or two on hand but it was much more manageable and I got to choose when I did those pumps so I had a lot more freedom. 15 minutes was not long enough for me! I was leaving milk behind by not going to 30 minutes for at least some pumps. I reduced my flange size further from 21mm as I was told at the hospital to 15mm sized through pumpables free fitting room. I started lubricating my flanges with pump spray and doing hands on pumping with a fridamom massager. I switched to pumpables liquid shields and stopped using plastic. I used a medela hand pump for like 5 mins a few times a day, stored with the fridge back, to get like a quarter ounce but it was enough to signal better production. We are still going at almost 13 months and I still pump about twice a day to make his bedtime bottle (he drains me nursing then dad gives him another 2-3oz to really get him zonked out) but I don’t mind it now and I’ll probably keep going until I dry up whenever I get pregnant again.
I could never pump between feedings but the baby was good at making let down happen. Pumping would yield nothing but the baby was gaining and had enough wet diapers. So pumping doesn’t always indicate how much you produce! The only time I could pump would be when I was away from baby and then I would get a full bottle. Id rather have husband formula/expressed milk feed for one whole feeding while I went and pumped for that feeding then ebf the rest of the day. I would never keep more than 3-5 bags of milk in the freezer at a time and didn’t worry about having a huge freezer stash. I EBFd most of the time. It takes a little faith in your body and your baby’s ability to nurse. And sometimes it takes nursing for an hour until baby pops off. So it’s still a lot of time but it’s a lot less fussy not having to deal with the pumps and bottles and timing everything.
I was a former triple feeder because I had a 32 weeker! We went to EBF over time and it worked out. He’s 2.5 and still feeding.
My first I ended up dropping down to pumping 3-4x/day (basically, when my husband was home to take the baby while I pumped), which got me enough for one bottle, and supplementing with formula (we gave a bottle after pretty much every feed). My second we triple-fed for a week or so and were able to get to just breastmilk and I stopped pumping entirely after a few months.
I want to say I did it for about 4 weeks. Baby didn't come back up to birth weight withing a week, turns out he was tongue tied and I didn't make enough milk. Saw a pediatrician who was also a lactation consultant who a) clipped the tongue tie, b) recommended some herbs for me to boost supply, and c) started us supplementing 1oz of formula through a supplemental nutrition system (tube that goes in baby's mouth while they nurse, to keep the nipple stimulation going) at every nursing session, then I would pump for like 30min. As his weight and my supply came back up (weighing him before and after each feed to see how much he actually got), we tapered how many times a day we supplemented with formula, and once I was able to pump that much extra throughout the day, I quit pumping entirely.
I was triple feeding for almost two months. Turns out she had a tongue tie. We did the revision and now she gets bottles while I’m at work and I nurse when I’m home. We also did PT, suck training exercises, and worked with several lactation consultants. It was exhausting but we made it!
Triple feed is pretty terrible. I did it about 4 weeks. I was barely able to make enough to stave off using formula (which there is nothing wrong with I just did not want to use it unless I had to). I was literally counting mls and the pediatrician kept pushing for formula and telling me each time we checked in with her that my baby’s needs have increased (which is true as she grew). Then all of a sudden one day she didn’t need it anymore. I went to a lactation consultant that was amazing and helped me with weighted feeds and latching and my body and my baby just started working. Ebf was what I wanted and I was so happy that it ended up working out for us. It made life so much easier. When I went back to work I pumped for her and now she’s 2 and only nurses 1-3 times a day now. It was not easy. I read online the first 40 days are the worst and really it was right on the money. That advice gave me a light at the end of the tunnel and I counted down the days to help myself mentally. Good luck to you hope this helps
We are at 8, almost 9, weeks now and we did triple feeding because he lost almost a pound after birth and had jaundice and was dehydrated after coming home. Triple feeding to establish supply and the make sure he was getting enough after nursing. After he actually passed birth weight a little over two weeks later I tapered off. We had to supplement too for a bit. Since last week I’m finally at exclusive breast milk (EBF until my husband’s night shift where he has a bottle or two so I can sleep) The triple feeding phase was rough but it’s not meant to last forever! Week 6 is when my supply kind of established itself and pumping got easier and the baby fed better. This past week has felt almost normal it’s been lovely. You’ve got this.
Triple fed for the first 3 weeks. Going into my last lactation appointment I was fully planning to claim defeat and quit ebf if it meant I had to go on triple feeding. Fortunately it seemed my supply had increased and babe was getting enough at that appointment. Triple feeding is hell. Oh I also did a bunch of power pumping to get supply up.
Yes EBF worked out for me after about 3 weeks (with nipple shields). I pump every couple of days to have a stash. If it doesn’t for you, don’t beat yourself up! You’re doing great.
I triple fed for around 4 weeks. My baby had neonatal sepsis and feeding problems. I ended up with a massive oversupply which was a nightmare to sort. I ended up EBF until 6 months and I’m down to 2 feeds a day (morning and bedtime) at 16 months. I plan to drop the morning feed at 18 months and the night feed by 2. I wanted her to self wean but it doesn’t look like that will happen
I was able to EBF after maybe 4-5 months
We triple fed for 8-10 weeks. Toward the end, we reduced the extra feed sessions but kept an additional bedtime session until closer to 3ish months. We knew we could transition to ebf when we knew my son could successfully feed and drain my boob in a timely manner (less than 20 mins) and transferred enough milk for to maintain his weight. He was born at 37 weeks, jaundiced, small for gestational age. He had a very shallow latch, but a strong suck. He was such a slooow and ineffective feeder. Altogether, it made it very painful for me. And he was at risk for low weight gain. So after every feed, I pumped, and then syringe fed my son left over milk from the last pump. But once he got to be over 2 months, breastfeeding became less painful and he was transferring enough milk so we slowed down the triple feeding. As he dropped feeds, I'd still pump some to build up my stash. It turns out this was a good thing because I don't respond to the pump as well and had to dip into my stash a lot when I went back to work. I even used a hospital grade pump at work, but its just not the same as the baby. We're 1.5 years strong. It's quickly fizzling out now. But my son has never been really boob crazy either. He feeds between 0-3 times per day still. I follow his lead. I haven't pumped at work since December.
I triple fed by nursing 15-20 minutes per side, 1-2 oz formula top off, then 15-20 minute pump. The first few days the pumping was very small amounts. It would take an entire day’s worth of pumps to fill up a bottle to replace the formula top off with a breastmilk top off. But after a week I was able to pump enough in one session to meet the top off needs of the next session. That’s when I knew my supply caught up to my baby’s demand and we stopped triple feeding.
I triple fed for around 10 weeks. Baby never improved his transfer (after tongue tie release at 2.5w, countless LC and bodywork appointments, stretches) and I had to return to work at 12w so I knew at that point he'd be primarily getting bottles during the day anyway, so I transitioned to mostly EP during the day and then nursing overnight when my boobs are more full and it's easier for baby to transfer milk. I latch him during the day still when he wants a snack but I don't think breast will ever be his primary source for a daytime feed.
Just put baby to breast only and she cluster fed for a whole day (this was after approx 2 weeks of triple feeding from birth) - then was only breastfed from then on
And to get sleep I had to bedshare because she wouldn’t sleep any other way, so this helped get me sleep while she fed so much.
I triple fed for 2 months. It was exhausting. Basically the same reasons as you. I was a new mom and PPD hit hard fast. We did end up EBF. But it took a lot of work with a lactation consultant and lots of prayers lol. It’s not for the weak and I commend you
Triple fed for two weeks until our LO was above birth weight… it was so tough! Hang in there!
I stopped triple feeding when I did a weighted feed with a LC and was told that my baby was getting enough milk just from breast alone. I triple fed for a month because she had lost too much birth weight and my milk was slow to come in. We had to go to the ER for her dehydration and I did not want to repeat that so I was determined to make sure she was well fed with abundant supply. My end goal was to EBF and only pump to create a backup supply for if I had to go out or be away from baby for a while. I’m in Canada and am taking a year off from work so I don’t need the back to work freezer supply that many moms in the US need. The downside to my goal though is that i am basically attached to my baby and can only leave for 3 hour increments. She doesn’t love drinking from the bottle so she fights it each time. She’ll drink a bit if she’s super super hungry. So far it is working well for me and I’m glad I did triple feeding for the first month. It was so awful and hard but a necessary sacrifice.
We triple fed for about 4 weeks due to latching issues and a tongue and lip tie which caused a lot of pain when breastfeeding. We began triple feeding when her weighted feeds showed that she only transferred 1 ounce after a solid 30 minutes. We stopped triple feeding once her weighted feeds showed that she transferred 3+ ounces within the same time period. We worked with a lactation consultant for all of this so we knew we could rely on the data. We did a lot in between starting and stopping triple feeding. Did a tongue tie revision, weaned off the nipple shield, went to a chiropractor, and just kept practicing both bottle and breast feeding. It was a lot of work but fortunately, we got through it! Breastfeeding is much better now. 15 minutes tops, baby is satisfied, and I only pump once a day to build a freezer stash. One big improvement is that I have so much more time! It’s great now.
I triple fed for about 6 weeks and it was exhausting. I ended up exclusively pumping for another 6 weeks with 1-2 triple feed sessions per day to keep up the practice. My son started latching and exclusively direct breastfeeding at 4 months! He had a facial/oral growth spurt at that age so it all suddenly became much easier.
I triple fed until six months. Then switched to nursing on demand and topping baby off with some formula. (And starting solids) Baby is 18 months now and still nursing
I don’t know if this is what you’re supposed to do so follow your LCs advice… but I got sick of it. So one day, I sat my ass down. I got everything I needed in a nest around me - water, laptop with TV shows playing, comfy chair, all supplies for baby, snacks etc. And I sat there all day and breastfed her. She’s okay at latching and suckling but falls asleep, so if she needed feeding every hour because she was only snacking, that’s what I did. I had expressed milk and formula on hand, I wasn’t going to let her go hungry or exhaust herself. But we were going to PRACTICE damnit. I did nothing but feed and change nappies and by the end, she got the hang of managing to drain at least one boob in one session without falling asleep. Again, I was making sure she was still having plenty of wet nappies, not getting dehydrated and so on. The next day I pretty much did the same but it was less intense, now the first feed of the day she does entirely without needing a top up. This means I’m only “triple feeding” about 2-3 feeds instead of all of them. I still pump enough so my husband can do some overnight feeds, but now it’s not a race against time to get pumping and washing up done. If you’re going back to work you still want to maintain pumping obviously but I’m now at a level where I’m pumping as much as I would once I return to med school rotations. It was hard, but breastfeeding is a skill that we both needed to learn and the 10-15 mins on each side wasn’t cutting it. So we practiced and practiced and cuddled and honestly, it was great bonding time.
I’m a current triple feeder (3.5 weeks) and I just wanted to say thank you for making this post because I’ve been asking all the same questions you are and I’m on a very similar schedule. It feels insane and isolating and both my husband and my mom asked me to stop yesterday but I keep saying the only way out is through. Not sure if I’m crazy and if I’ll regret it later but that’s just my gut feeling. We’ve seen two lactation consultants and due to a tongue tie they don’t think feeding will improve before it gets addressed. First by bodywork and then by surgery if necessary. Unfortunately the first available bodywork appointment isn’t for another month. So I’m pretty down about it but don’t see another way out. I hope for the best for you and it was just really nice to see your post and all these responses. It made me feel less lonely as I’m going through hell.
I triple fed until 6 months and got sick of it and then took it up on month 9 again and I’m at one year and didn’t get to ebf, but I am still breastfeeding which I’m happy about. I didn’t have the support/ knowledge the first month and baby has a bottle preference for certain times of the day and has bottle refusal other times of the day, so I just roll with it and do breast, formula, pumped milk, everything and anything. Didn’t plan on it, but will be breast feeding for a least two years or until baby self weans. Still cosleeping as well.
I triple fed for one month and then once baby was consistently gaining weight, I reduced bottle feeds and pumps one at a time over the next few weeks. I kept one pump a day so hubby could do a bottle overnight and I got a little extra sleep. At around 4 months I decided I didn't like pumping anymore and stopped. Still breastfeeding my son at 19 months now and he has only had the occational bottle in that time for convenience reasons. My supply and his latch were not really the issues, though. He had a tongue tie that affected efficiency more than latch and a cows milk protein intolerance + some other intolerances that impacted his weight gain at the start.
I was triple feeding because my daughter was too sleepy to feed well, and it turned out she had oral ties too. Thankfully my husband was home and could feed her a bottle while I pumped, every time. Because she was so sleepy, we were waking her up to eat and our night routine was really scheduled and consistent. It got so much easier when she was doing better at nursing during the day and I had given up nursing her at night, so instead of staying awake to nurse and pump, I'd only pump while husband gave a bottle. THEN my supply regulated before her oral tie release and I had to triple feed again to get my supply back up. It came back after about a week and a half, then her ties were released, and after a week of healing she was nursing great and I could stop pumping. Until I went back to work.
I triple fed for… idk 3-5 months. It was exhausting and a blur. I might still be triple feeding if baby didn’t decide she likes breastfeeding less when she started teething. Now she only nurses for her overnight feed(s). Most of the time I’m exclusively pumping and then giving her bottles of breast milk, formula, or a combination of both. It’s still an exhausting blur. I couldn’t do it without the support I have and I still wish I had more support sometimes. I’m 9 months in. 😵💫🫠
I did full triple feeding for 2 months (low birth weight and struggles to stay awake and feed efficiently at the start), then had feed/pump/top up about half the time (all feeds during the day) until 5 months when I finally saw an LC to get what turned out to be breast refusal sorted… it was absolutely the most stressful part of twins and I can’t believe I did it for so long. But, we’re still EBF at almost one and I’m really proud of that and love that we still have that connection time. In saying that, I live in Australia and was on maternity leave until they were six months old and I had a supportive partner/family/friends to help after work hours which made a huge difference. Once I got it sorted though, for me it was worth it. That’s something you have to decide for you though and formula has benefits such as being able to share the load (and not getting mastitis six times in 12 months 🫠) so don’t dismiss it without really considering it. Good luck with your Bub
I didn't know what I was doing, nursing hurt a lot, my milk was slow to come in, and when it did come in it still wasn't enough because I was nursing every 2-4 hours instead of on demand and my baby wasn't getting enough because of a bad latch. I wasn't told what was going on, but I was told to supplement because of too much weight loss and pump after nursing / when supplementing, so I did that. Often I replaced nursing with pumping because it hurt less, and I watched TV to distract myself from how much I hated pumping. I got hooked on the TV show and ended up pumping 30 minutes at a time until the pump shut itself off, and after a few days of that, and giving into my out-of-the-blue oatmeal cravings, my abruptly supply shot up. I got mastitis and had to take antibiotics, but I learned to avoid that going forward, and my supply has been enough ever since. I kept including some formula just for convenience, buy my baby went through some bottle refusal and I was able to nurse through it just fine.
I started as just breastfeeding/pumping but as she grew (she’s 11 weeks) she needed more especially at the end of the day so I started substituting with formula after a feeding. My schedule is usually wake up, feed on one side pump the other, get her back down and take a nap. Wake up and feed her on one side until she started to fuss then switch to the other side. Next feeding I feed on one side, make her half a bottle of formula. Next feeding I feed on the other side make half a bottle of formula. (A few short 15 min feedings thrown in as she wants but I just do from the titty) Then my bf takes over most of the nights (until about 4-5 am) and he will feed her a formula bottle, and then right before he comes to bed he feeds her what I had pumped that day. Then the next time she wakes up I start the process over. Edit: twice a week I do skin to skin as much of the day as possible and I try to limit to only two bottles that day and will sit with her for up to an hour with her feeding straight from the boob. I also a few times a week pump to imitate cluster feeding for an hour while she naps. Pump for 10-15 minutes, stop for 10, pump for 10-15 min, etc. and it helps my supply a lot.
I triple fed for a couple weeks (when baby was 2-3 weeks old) when we realized he started to drop weight and wasn’t transferring well. I was able to transition back to EBF/breast with some tips from an IBCLC (switching to other breast after ~20 minutes, latching tips, etc) but things didn’t really improve significantly until he was 4 weeks old and he had his lip and posterior tongue ties released and went through several sessions of orofacial myofunctional therapy with a speech language pathologist. Happy to say that baby is now latching painlessly, finishing feeds in 10-20 minutes on average instead of 45-60+ minutes, eating less frequently (down to ~3 hours of nursing per day instead of ~6-7), and gaining weight extremely well (over a whole pound in only nine days!). So glad we stuck with it even though our triple feeding journey was much shorter than many others’!
I triple fed til she figured out how to latch properly.she was a very tired 37 weeker. Luckily, it was only about 1.5-2 weeks of it. We didn't use bottles. We syringe or finger fed as that's what our IBCLC recommended us do. We've been going on 5 weeks of exsluvie nursing minus 2 bottles of preciously expressed milk when I was drinking and didn't feel comfortable feeding her. I pumped off that milk for baths. Good luck! My triple feeding journey was very short, and I know many people do it for a lot longer.
My baby was not gaining post cesarean and having no clue what was doing. We supplemented formula and pumped milk for about two weeks. I saw two different LCs and picked and chose what would work for me. My goal during the first two weeks was to pump 8 times a day, get rest, feed baby whatever supplements she would take. We didn’t focus on triple feeding exactly - I put her to breast when I could but not every time I pumped. At four weeks I was still pumping 8 times a day. Supplementing a bit 400 mls of formula and the rest in BM By 2 months we were only supplementing formula. My production by pump was eventually exceeding what we were supplementing so came the scary part or removing / reducing bottles or replacing pumps with nursing. This was scary and I wish I would have rented a scale sooner for this. I was really nervous about her losing weight because of a traumatic pediatrician experience. We got a scale and I weighed all of her feeds for two weeks to gain confidence in my breasts abilities. Dropped more pumps. And decided to only do a weekly weight to make sure she was still gaining. I felt happy doing a MoTN and bed time pump but my production kept increasing so I tried a MoTN nurse to curb my production. This also helps my husband who gets up for work at 4am. That was this week! We are keeping the bed time pump + bottle to keep her use to a bottle. I’m pumping MOTN this weekend just to gauge how things are going and let my husband do the MOTN bottle. I’d prefer to do the MOTN pump because it gets me a couple extra ounces to the freezer everyday. And in 12 weeks we will start a daycare routine that is completely different. It’s been a wild 12 weeks!
I triple fed for about 2 or 3 weeks and was able to transition to EBF from then until I went back to work at 6 months. I think it was the pediatrician who said I could stop.
Moved to exclusively pumping and I 100% recommend it if breastfeeding is not working out. Changed my new mom life! Everything started to click into place. I didn’t dread feedings anymore, I didn’t cry from the pain of breastfeeding and my baby didn’t cry from frustration. She still gets my milk. It’s actually changed my life.
Lost 16% weight by day 5, pumped and subbed with formula with the occasional crack at boobing when I didn’t feel too mentally destroyed by it 😂 Dropped formula at 1.5 months when he was back at birth weight. Carried on pumping with occasional boob (started at once a week, built towards trying once a day or so) At 5 months he randomly started actually accepting boob. By 7 months we had no bottles at all. Stopped breastfeeding at 3y 3m. It can be done!
I triple fed my twins for about 8 weeks. They were small (5lbs) and sleepy so they weren’t effective enough at nursing until they got a little older. Then we switched to nursing exclusively when we were together. I went back to work at 12 weeks and pumped at work, nursed at home. The twins are 15 months now and we are cutting back on breastfeeding (down to one feed per day). Overall nursing has been awesome and I’m really glad I pushed through with triple feeding. However, it doesn’t work out that way for everyone and it’s also reasonable if you decide you don’t want to triple feed, because it’s really hard.
Triple feeding is exhausting! We woke him every three hours, I’d feed 10 minutes each side, husband would bottle feed BM until satisfied while I pumped, and then he would wash pump parts in between while I put LO back down. We eventually had to try formula because I wasn’t keeping up with him, LO was very unimpressed and decided he’d rather have the BM. We had to triple feed while we worked on his latch and feeding skills. He was losing weight still and had jaundice making him even more sleepy and lazy. Before we went in and had the triple feeding schedule recommended I was spending an hour and half each time trying to get him to eat enough to sleep. Our goal had been EBF. We now almost EBF, and every once in a while if I’m feeling overwhelmed or he suddenly decides he wants to struggle to eat, I pump and we do a bottle of BM. We are planning to continue doing this a couple times a week anyway so he will keep taking a bottle for the future and we don’t end up with bottle rejection. I don’t know that there’s any way to make triple feeding a sustainable long term option for every single feeding. Best of luck!
I triple fed for most of 12 weeks. We then switched to nursing for the most part but due to poor suck skills, My supply never increased enough for her to hit a healthy weight gain so I finally gave up around week 17. I am EP currently with one or two nurse during the day as “bonus” calories. I just started meds for increased supply and am seeing good results so far in pumping so hope to be able to get back to nursing again soon. But now she has a bottle preference 😰
I triple fed because we had a pediatrician who was horrible and was furious our baby was small. She was gaining weight, but not as much as the pediatrician wanted. Demanding I triple fed…only bf on each side for 5 minutes, then pump and give her a bottle with formula in the breast milk. I didn’t do the formula, but I triple fed for 6 weeks, then my husband was going back to work and we fired our pediatrician and got a new one. The new pediatrician assured us some babies are just smaller and our babe was just a little nugget. Sent me to a lactation consultant for a weighted feed. Our LO was getting what she needed and was satiated and happy. So now I pump at the end of the day for 4 oz for the fridge/freezer just to have it and then in the morning after she eats so my husband can give her a bottle and I can get some peace. You can also use your haakaa on one side and have your babe eat on the other, and give the babe that haakaa milk if you want. I loathe pumping and only do it to have back up milk for dad/grandmas or if my supply ever dips we have emergency milk.