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.
“Having twins is crazy hard and exhausting,” says Ballew, who would book a 45-minute therapy session every few weeks to help her through this trying time. The best advice I got from other twin parents was that it gets easier after the first six months. It does get better.
Your first year of raising twins will be tough. Expect less sleep, as your world will revolve around feeding your twins, burping them, changing them and putting them to sleep, all while constantly washing two sets of everything from clothes to feeding bottles. Financial costs are also higher with twins.
The hardest thing about having twins is...
“Managing the movement of two babies. Carrying them both up and down the stairs, getting them into the car, etc.” —Simeon R. “Often having to make one baby wait!” —Catharine D. “Being outnumbered—the logistics of two on one is definitely the hardest.
You Can Only Control the Things Within Your Control. “Having twins is not twice as hard—it's exponentially more difficult,” says Natalie Diaz, author of What To Do When You're Having Two and CEO of Twiniversity, a global support network for parents of twins.
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.
Monochorionic-monoamniotic twins are identical twins that share both a placenta and an amniotic sac. This is the rarest and highest risk form of twin pregnancies.
You're more likely to have a vaginal birth if the first twin is in a head-down position. But there may be medical reasons why a vaginal birth is not recommended. If you have had a caesarean section before, for example, it's not usually recommended that you have a vaginal birth with twins.
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.
This is called co-bedding and is perfectly safe. In fact, putting twins in the same cot can help them regulate their body temperatures and sleep cycles, and can soothe them and their twin.
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.
Older age– Women over 30 have a greater chance of multiple conception. Many women today are delaying childbearing until later in life, and may have twins as a result. High parity – Having one or more previous pregnancies, especially a multiple pregnancy, increases the chances of having multiples.
Identical twins reported similar levels of happiness, while fraternal twins exhibited greater variation in their reported sense of well-being. These results were found in families of twins raised together and extended with twins reared apart.
Smith adds: "The prevailing view is that the burden of childbearing on women is heavier when bearing twins. But we found the opposite: women who naturally bear twins in fact live longer and are actually more fertile."
The risks of induction are the same for twins as for single babies. If induced for twins, you are just as likely to have a c-section compared to induction for a single baby.
For example, a woman that has a sibling that is a fraternal twin is 2.5 times more likely to have twins than average! However, for a given pregnancy, only the mother's genetics matter. Fraternal twins happen when two eggs are simultaneously fertilized instead of just one.
Twins are usually born before the usual 40-week due date. For the mother, carrying twins can be more difficult than carrying a single baby. And her risks are higher for pregnancy problems. That's why keeping up with prenatal checks and tests is especially important.
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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.
Overall, it is considered that twin delivery should be around 37 weeks for dichorionic twins and 36 weeks for monochorionic twins. With singletons, the neurodevelopmental outcomes are best with delivery at 41 weeks, but the odds of death around the time of delivery are best at weeks 38-39.
Vaginal Birth of Twins
The good news is that even though you have two babies, you only have to labor once. Once the cervix is open, each baby will have its own pushing stage. This means you will have to push twice, but the majority of the time the second twin is born much more easily than the first.
Caring for twin babies is a lot of work. There are two mouths to feed, two diapers to change and two different cries to soothe. So don't be afraid to get help from friends, family or a nanny.
According to a study carried out in 2012, researchers found overall lower marriage and divorce rates in twins compared to non-twins. One reason cited is because twins “do not have the same need for marriage as singletons, but have more experience in maintaining a relationship if they do marry”.