I told you, I'm on the edge of white trash hillbilly country! If I hopped in the car and headed about 35 miles south of my home, I could find you more of these guys than you could swing a dead cat at!
How far do you live from where you were born? Page 7
They are really scary. 
My mate Dan is the oldest of... get this.... 12 kids. Why? Why would you want to put your body through childbirth that many times?
Hmm, either it didn't hurt, or she hates herself, orrrrrrrrr she has self esteem issues and likes all the attention she gets while pregnant. 
They are even talking about fostering as the older children are moving out. They are lovely and the kids are lovely but I can't get my head around it. He doesn't ever want that many kids by the way!
Quote: AndreaLynne @ July 11 2009, 4:57 PM BSTI breast fed all 3 of my kids until they were a year old. The benefits are fantastic. It didn't prevent me from getting breast cancer, but I'm a statistical anomoly anyways. My husband worked with a woman who did it until her son was 6 and she's currently in jail because she admitted to her doctor (of all people) that it was a turn on. Eew!!!!!!!!
What the hell did they charge her with?
Child abuse I suppose.
The oldest, him, is 26 and the youngest is 4 months. Hopefully the last!
27 sorry!
Quote: Tim Walker @ July 11 2009, 5:02 PM BSTI'm certainly not briefing against it. Many of those points have some evidential credibility.
I don't like it being advice issued by dictat though. My ex-, having our twin girls, simply couldn't produce enough to feed them, that simple. This is not just the case with twins. Some women simply can't produce sufficient to sate their infant and have to supplement or convert to formula feeding. This is just a fact of life, which certain midwives and health workers should appreciate and not criticise or make the mother feel a failure for (and some do, in my experience).
Although there are some babies that feed better off the nipple, there are some that don't. Notably those with varying degrees of cleft lip or palate, as well as those with other dysmorphic syndromes (not so much Down's, but other chromosomal abnormalities, especially those affecting palatal and pharyngeal soft tissues).
And remember bad things as well as good can be passed on via concentration in the breast milk. Not just infections, but also medication the mother is taking. This is a more common problem in modern times are more feeding mothers are taking drugs than they used to. Some, especially long-term prescriptions are absolutely or relatively contraindicated in breast-feeding, but the the mother has to take them for a chronic condition.
There is a balance to be struck with breast-feeding versus bottle/cup on a mother-to-mother basis.
My twin girls are now 10, were bottle fed, are slim, fit, healthy, with no chronic conditions and rarely a day sick. This in itself doesn't prove the benefits of the bottle either. The evidence on both sides is still far from convincing in an objective statistical way.
Mostly I agree, but I think we might disagree on on some of this Tim!
Yes, it can be very difficult with twins, mostly through tiredness, etc. In the early weeks you'd be constantly feeding. I don't know If I would have breast fed very long if I'd had twins (which was a possibility). However women very rarely don't have enough milk. The more you feed the baby, the more you have. That is the breast feeding experts conclusion - experts both in experience and medicine! What can happen is medical experts, mother-in-laws, etc interfer, and the breast feeding starts to go wrong. If one or both babies isn't latching on or a mother starts supplimenting (usually because someone has scared her that they're starving) the milk supply will dwindle. It's such a shame more mothers don't get really good advice and help. I think you'd need a cook, cleaner, etc to be able to cope with twins though.
I heard one woman having her milk tested and told it wasn't good enough. The health experts had just looked at the fore milk which comes out first and is watery and concluded that it was insufficient for her baby. My friend was told her baby was underweight according to the charts (which are based on bottle-fed babies) and advised to switch to bottles. But it turned out the baby had reflux.
Trust me I've read a lot about breast feeding and have personal experience and invaluable advice from La Leche League. I also never found midwives, etc treat you differently for breast feeding. If anything they find you a pain in the arse because you want help. I was also told by my health Visitor that I could stop breast feeding now, when the baby was 8 months.
At 4 days old I was told my baby had lost too much weight and was forced to have her admitted to hospital and tube fed formula for days - I was worried about this because I have a strong family history of allergies. I then got double mastitis from suddenly stoping feeding and then was allowed to pump and fed it through the tube. her weight continued to increase at the same rate (she was a fat baby anyway).
When we went back for a follow-up the doctor admitted they probably got the birth weight wrong to begin with! 
It's up to each individual whether they breast feed or not. I might adopt in the future, so it won't be an option, but I find the medical worls generally unhelpful and not that informed about the whole process to be honest!
I worked with one woman who breast fed her twins simultaneously, the Dr told her to stop as the weaker one was getting starved.
Quote: sootyj @ July 11 2009, 5:18 PM BSTWhat the hell did they charge her with?
Child abuse, specifically sexual abuse, endangering the welfare of a child, and something else, but this was a while ago.
Quote: sootyj @ July 11 2009, 5:24 PM BSTI worked with one woman who breast fed her twins simultaneously, the Dr told her to stop as the weaker one was getting starved.
I wonder how? Maybe the doctor was wrong?
Sinisterly this was a while ago, one kid turned out really bright and healthy. The other came out kinda not right.
I think it was ok for her to feed them separately or something.
Quote: sootyj @ July 11 2009, 5:30 PM BSTSinisterly this was a while ago, one kid turned out really bright and healthy. The other came out kinda not right.
I think it was ok for her to feed them separately or something.
Didn't she have two boobs.
Quote: sootyj @ July 11 2009, 5:30 PM BSTSinisterly this was a while ago, one kid turned out really bright and healthy. The other came out kinda not right.
I think it was ok for her to feed them separately or something.
Maybe one wasn't latching on properly because it's really tricky to hold them both at the same time?