Recognizing a parent's face is one of the most important early skills babies learn. So when one of the parents has an identical twin, it's a recipe for confusion.
Fortunately telling twins apart is one fear that can be taken off the list. Most parents find that mixing up their babies is the least of their concerns. After only a few hours or days at most, they are distinguishable as individuals. Even if they look alike, parents just know the difference.
Yes, the baby knows which of the twins is their mom and which is their aunt. The baby is naturally going to spend more time around mom than mom's twin. So the baby is naturally going to notice the differences between mom and her twin.
It is likely that twins' awareness of one another starts sooner than seven or eight months of age. An article by the late doctor, T. Berry Brazelton, observed that at age three to four months, an infant identical female twin seemed disoriented when her sister was removed from the room.
To minimize confusion, take a close look at both babies, because even identicals can have unique features, such as birthmarks or moles. Some parents will paint a toenail for each twin, either using different colors or painting just one. You can also try putting an anklet or different bracelets on one or both babies.
Some say that twins are always hard (yet amazing), while others say they truly didn't find them to be difficult. A few said that the first two months with twins are easy (being in the rose-colored glasses phase), then reality hits from months 3-6 (when the sleep deprivation catches up), then it can get easier again.
Age. People over 30, and particularly those over age 35, are more likely to conceive twins. 4 This is because the level of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) rises as birthing parents get older. FSH is responsible for the development of eggs in the ovaries before they are released.
The longest interval between the birth of twins is 90 days, in the case of Molly and Benjamin West, dizygotic (fraternal) twins born in Baltimore, Maryland, USA to parents Lesa and David West (all USA) on 1 January and 30 March 1996.
Time spent with each twin may lead to favoritism of one twin over the other. This may be because you spend disproportionate time with one or that you prefer the “easier” child over her sibling. It is natural to favor one over the other. Acknowledge this and look for it and see it for what it is.
However, since only women ovulate, the connection is only valid on the mother's side of the family. While men can carry the gene and pass it on to their daughters, a family history of twins doesn't make them any more likely to have twins themselves.
Classically, the bigger twin is the more physically dominant. It's basic human nature, and particularly applicable to boys as they hit puberty. It happens often with singleton siblings too… the older is bigger and enforces him/herself through physical dominance.
Identical twins are completely random. It's not based on family history or genetics. Identical twins form when a single fertilized egg splits and forms two embryos.
But you may be left wondering: Can twins have different fathers? The answer is yes, but only in cases in which they're fraternal, as identical twins form from a single egg/sperm combination and thus cannot have different fathers.
As noted in Parenting, your baby can tell the difference between your breast milk and another mom's by scent alone. Oh, and this distinction can happen when your baby is only 2 weeks old, as further noted by Parenting. In fact, your baby can likely distinguish you from other moms even while still in utero.
A little more than half of twin pregnancies end in preterm delivery (before 37 weeks). While 40 weeks is the full gestation period of the average pregnancy, most twin pregnancies are delivered at approximately 36 weeks (range 32-38 weeks depending on the type of twin pregnancy).
No.
That's not all, Monga says. Women pregnant with twins complain of more back pain, sleeping difficulties, and heartburn than those who are carrying one child. Being pregnant with twins also carries a higher rate of maternal anemia and a higher rate of postpartum hemorrhage (bleeding) after delivery.
Multiples are about twice as likely as singleton babies to have birth defects, including neural tube defects (such as spina bifida), cerebral palsy, congenital heart defects and birth defects that affect the digestive system. Growth problems. Multiples are usually smaller than singleton babies.
Babies who are multiples have about twice the risk of birth defects than singleton babies, including neural tube defects such as spina bifida and heart and gastrointestinal abnormalities. Cerebral palsy. Twin babies are more than four times as likely than single babies to have cerebral palsy.
You shouldn't share the same bed with your twins because it increases the risk of SIDS. But the AAP does recommend that you room-share — having your twins sleep in your room, each in their own bassinet or crib — ideally for the first six months.
Separation anxiety deeply affects all twins. The parental role is to help twins manage emotional issues when they separate from one another. When separation anxiety between twin and twin, or between parent and twin, is not handled adequately there are serious side effects, including fear of being on their own.
Yes, it's both normal and common for this to happen. It can take time to get to know your babies, and to bond with both of them. It's natural if bonding happens more quickly with one baby than the other. It doesn't necessarily mean you love one twin any more or any less than his sibling.
Identical twins share a particularly intense bond. They are the result of one fertilized egg splitting into two, giving them identical DNA. (Fraternal twins are the result of two separate, genetically different fertilized eggs.) As a result, identical twins are as close as two people can be.