Premature birth. Positive stories needed.

[Lipsticktraces]

I’ve just had my section scheduled for next week at bang on 34 weeks. This is due to persistent absent endestolic flow to twin two.

Naturally I’m really worried. Would love it if anyone with premature twins could share their positive stories please Just want my babies to be OK!

[Waterdropsdown]

I didn’t have premie twins but my friend had twins at 35 weeks a few weeks after my twins were born. They were only in hospital for 3/4 days after birth and other than one of the twins catching every cold going they have been perfectly fine (will be 2 later in the year).

[merlotmummy14]

Aunt had my cousin at 32 weeks. He's 35 and 6'4 now. Never had any health problems.

[WhatAmISupposedToBeDoing]

I'm going on holiday with a friend and her perfectly healthy, high achieving 6 year old twins tomorrow. You would never guess they were whipped out at 33 weeks, Twin 2 weighing 3lb4oz after growth restriction in the womb. Twin 1 was 4lb 1.

[Tronkmanton]

Not twins but my now 12 year old was born at 28 weeks. A rollercoaster start but no lasting health issues. 34 weeks should be fine. Good luck x

[soberexpat]

My daughter was born at 36 weeks by CS. Has stopped growing at 34 weeks due to IUGR. She was a teeny 4 pounds and went straight to NICU but only had to stay a couple of days.

No lasting health problems. She's a dainty little thing even now but gorgeous and happy.

Have you had the injections that help to bring their lungs on? My consultant credits these with my daughter's short NICU stay.

It's terrifying but if it's planned then they are ready to receive the best help.

My pregnancy was awful, I almost delivered at 24, 26 weeks. My consultant told me that after 30 weeks babies just hang around getting fat...yours will be fully formed just smaller than the average bear. Good luck!!! Do let us know how you get on.

[Rtmhwales]

Again, not twins but had my baby boy eight weeks ago at 31 weeks. He’s due on Saturday :) Anyway he’s already home and had absolutely no issues in the hospital. Off the breathing tube immediately, feeding tube for a week while he got enough strength to suck. Came home after three weeks (so at 34 weeks) and just slept a lot. He’s gorgeous.

[PurpleMac]

My DS was born at 34 weeks by c-section. Spent a week in NICU to help with his breathing but he is now a very happy and healthy 20mo child who runs around constantly and has bags of energy. He's also 91st percentile for height and weight. You would never know he was a preemie or had health difficulties at birth!

[PurpleMac]

Should add that he was discharged from NICU after a week and had no further issues after that at all. It was mainly for monitoring I think. So from a week old he was a perfectly healthy little boy!

[Runandbecome]

I have triplets born at 35+2 weeks - they were all out of SCBU within a day or two and stayed in hospital with me for 12 days to establish feeding by themselves (they needed nasal gastric tubes as they would tire quickly and couldn't finish feeding by themselves). I wasn't expecting to have to stay in for this reason so it was frustrating at the time but actually it really helped establish a routine and recover too. Almost 3 years to the day, they are healthy happy girls with no signs of prematurity. Good luck!

[neversleepagain]

My girls were born at 34 weeks and spent 14 days in scbu. They were good weights at 5lb4 and 5lb8 but both needed antibiotics for infection (lack of amniotic fluid), help feeding and regulating temperature.

I found it very hard and upsetting initially. Pumping milk for two babies, trying to get bf established with two sleepy premature babies on a uncomfortable chair behind a flimsy screen in a busy scbu unit was far from easy. Remember that you will be feel vulnerable and emotional but be firm that they're your babies and you will make decisions on how to feed them etc. Leaving them behind in hospital is hard but its for such a short part of their lives even though it may not seem it at the time.

Despite being a bit early, they thrived. Are are super tall (122cm) and athletic almost 6 year olds who haven't had one cold or illness in 2 years.

Enjoy your new babies

[BiologyMatters]

That's a great gestation for twins. Mine were whipped out at 31w by emergency cs, 6 weeks in nicu. nearly 2 years on and they're absolutely thriving, you'd never know they had such a rough start. The good thing is your birth is being planned - not an emergency as such so they'll have everything on hand your little ones might need and you can mentally prepare yourself. Get your family to rally round you and support you if your little ones might need to stay in. My family would drop home cooked meals and leave them in my house for me to come home to after a long day at the nicu. Any time on the unit will fly and you'll be home before you know it. If you want to breastfeed i would read up on it now and prepare. Premature birth and c section make breastfeeding more difficult. Tamba might have some resources. Bliss is another great charity for premature and sick babies. Good luck. Twins are hard work but so incredibly amazing

[Taytotots]

My twins were delivered at 34 weeks (emergency section as I had pre-eclampsia). 4lb 7 and 5lb. They had 10 days in scbu, mostly as my boy needed some help with breathing and to establish breastfeeding. Girl probably could have come out on day two but they kept them both together as logistically easier for us. Both really healthy five year olds now. Good luck! One benefit was scbu got them on a set routine for feeding (just because of the patterns they used for feeding preemies). They continued waking at those times for food when out of hospital. In hindsight it made the early days much easier for tandem feeding etc.

[ClareB83]

My twins were born in April this year at 34 weeks. They spent 8 days in SCBU mainly to get J back to birth weight and because he had a few breathing incidents. They both also got treated with antibiotics and for jaundice. It was horrible at the time but actually it let me recover from pre eclampsia in my own bed without having to get up for them and the staff taught us loads of useful things to help us care for the babies. It wasn't helpful for establishing breastfeeding though.

[ClareB83]

Oh and they're absolutely fine now.

[Lipsticktraces]

Thank you for all the replies everyone. It’s great to hear all the tales of your thriving twins

At my last growth scan last week twin 1 was 3.1 and twin 2 was 2.6. I’ve not gained a single pound in the last three weeks, so I’ll assume they haven’t grown much since then Mainly concerned about how long they will be in NICU. My midwife told me to expect them to be there until they are at term (37 weeks) but it sounds like a lot of babies come home before that? Awful as it sounds I don’t want them coming home too early as I feel utterly unprepared (I know zip about babies and haven’t even been to any antenatal classes etc) plus I don’t have half the stuff I need for them.

@soberexpat I’m getting the steroid injections over the weekend. Have to go into hospital on Saturday and Sunday for them.

Another question, but what were you expected to supply for babies while they were in NICU? Did you have to bring in nappies, clothes etc? All the clothes I have are in newborn, so obviously won’t fit. I’ve got a couple of tiny baby sleepsuits and vests, but I don’t think they are going to fit them either. I’ve been looking at some of the premature baby ranges, but they seem quite expensive.

Thank you again everyone

[BiologyMatters]

My smaller one was 3lb1. He's caught up with the other one now though. Mine didn't need clothes for a few weeks and then the nicu had preemie clothes we could use. Mothercare and asda do preemie ranges if you did want to buy them some special bits. You won't need much though as they grow do fast. My nicu provided nappies until they went into an open cot. Pampers tiny baby range is available in supermarkets but you won't need them initially.

The nicu will tell you to aim for their due date but it depends on your little ones progress. Rather than asking them how long they'll be in for, ask what markers indicate they're ready to go home - for ours it was minimum weight, feeding well, holding their temperature. They were only around 5-6lbs when they went home. The one bright spot of nicu is that you can learn how to look after them under watchful eyes. And remember, above all else - trust your instincts. If you want to cuddle them, then do it as much as possible. The nicu should help you to do Kangaroo care with them whenever separately or together when they're well enough - basically skin to skin. It's amazing what it can do for them and you. I didn't do any antenatal classes either and it hasn't made any difference. Kellymom website is another good resource for breastfeeding advice. Bf didn't work for us, and the pressure to do it from nicu staff almost broke me. If it's not working or you don't want to do it then don't be afraid to say no more. It's your body.

[ClareB83]

We had to supple nappies, cotton wool and when they were in cots we had to provide clothes too. We got our tiny baby stuff from Next in the sale and Tesco.

[OMGtwins]

Our twins were born at 29+6 because T2 had IUGR and were smaller than yours. They made it through 3 months in NICU and left around due date. T2 had a blood transfusion and some drugs to help her regulate her hunger but that was it. T1 just fed and grew. They started in heated incubators and don't wear clothes in those, so don't worry about that. We needed to provide nappies when they were big enough to have shop bought nappies, until then NICU provided super small ones.

Do not Google what could happen, the doctors and nurses will tell if any of it is a risk, and until that you don't need to know, you'll just worry yourself. The nurses will also tell you what you need to bring for your babies. I would advise having a battery pack for your phone, and a water bottle and some snacks, and perhaps a book to read whilst you're cuddling them (either one for you, or one to read to them) you'll spend a lot of time in there with them, and you won't be able to do very much in the beginning, but the nurses will tell you how to feed and change them.

You'll likely have a love hate relationship with the nurses, because they'll be looking after your babies but you won't be able to do anything like pick them up without asking for a while. That all changes when they move into open cots, and then they become much more like term babies and you'll be able to do more without asking first.

Good luck, I've been there and it's hard, but take one hour at a time, and you'll soon be taking them home xx

[OMGtwins]

Also, ours are now at school, and aside from T2 being a bit small, you'd never know they were born so early xxx

[chickenchip]

Our babies were born at 34 weeks and NICU advised they wouldn't be home till their due date, six weeks later. However as long as they were demand feeding well for 48 hours, registered with a GP and gaining weight they could come home. They didn't have any major issues health wise. They were home in 2.5 weeks. I think they advise due date so as not to give you any false hope but they don't keep them in unnecessarily- it's s tough time but the facilities are fantastic.

I hope all goes well

[GetTheGoodLookingGuy]

My brothers were born at 33 weeks. They were in hospital for 19 days - came home with feeding tubes, but not for long. Twin 2's lung collapsed when he was 2 days old, but apart from that, no major issues. They were 6lb 7oz and 6lb 11oz! They are currently waiting for their GCSE results!

[Lipsticktraces]

Can I ask how big your babies were at 34 weeks @chickenchip?

@Getthegood were those the weights of your brothers upon discharge?

Sorry to obsess about weights. I’m just so worried about how small these babies are. Especially worried for the little twin who I’ve been told is approximately 2lb 6oz. He/she is lively enough though. I have to go in for scans every other day and baby likes to flip from breech to head down at least two times a week. My poor right ribs are broken!

[Lipsticktraces]

Oh and here’s hoping for fab GCSE results @Getthegood

Already worried about schooling for my two. Premature and August born. Not a great combination.

[eurochick]

I had my singleton at 34+0 for the same reason. She was also IUGR. She was 3'6.

Luckily she just just small (no deeper issues) and too weak to suck so she was in nicu while she put on some weight and learned to suck. She was in for 3 weeks and 1 day. There were a few ups and downs during her stay - jaundice, two hospital acquired infections (grrr), antibiotics which gave her an upset stomach and hindered putting on weight, etc. Those three weeks seemed like an age but now she's a lively four year old the memories are finally fading.

The first hospital she was in supplied everything. At the second we had to provide micro nappies (big supermarkets sell these) and cotton wool. She only wore a nappy in the closed incubator so we didn't need clothes immediately. You can get specialist premmie clothes that allow for wires, etc, and tiny baby clothes in a few high street places. Mothercare do two sizes below newborn, so we found them best.

[InNeedOfALieInNow]

Not twins but I had a baby born exactly at 34 weeks. She was in NICU as needed blood transfusion (due to a condition I have) but was in NICU less than a week and Then transferred to SCBU for three days. Came home at 35 weeks and all fine. Due to the amount of lines in her and the degree of jaundice I couldn’t hold her for the first few days but after that we established breastfeeding and I did all of her care in NICU (excluding the bloods and top up feeds down her nasal tube). Once she was in sCBU my husband and I did all the care Day and night (this helped her come home earlier than expected too).
Can you ask for a tour of NICU/SCBU before our section? It’ll be helpful for you to be familiar with it beforehand as it’s a slightly frightening environment, and you may feel more comfortable once you’re aware of the rules around visiting, hand washing, which nappies/wipes they permit, whether you can take toys/clothes/blankets etc. Good luck