anyone else expecting twins?!?!?

[tabbycat76]

Hi everyone!

My husband and I recently found out on an early dating scan (like, very early, 5+ weeks) that we are expecting twins. We're being re scanned in 2 weeks time to confirm, but I'm wondering if anyone else is expecting twins. It's our first pregnancy so we're abit in awe of the thought, but wouldn't it be good to start a thread on twins so we could exchange advice, support etc. Looking forward to hearing from you! x

Congratulations tabbycat. My twins are 17 now, so I am not really the person you are looking for. However, it is a joy and different to raising singletons in lots of ways.

I do remember being completely stunned when I was told I was expecting twins. I was so sure I was in touch with my body and knew I was pregnant before I even missed a period, could not believe that there there could be two creatures alive inside me without me knowing, when I had so clearly pictured one. Initially it made me completely mistrust myself (as in "if this is true, what else do I not know about my body/ my baby. How can I feel so confident everything is OK..."

Everything was OK, but it took a little adjusting.

Best advice I can give you - beg borrow or steal a copy of Elizabeth Bryan's book Twins, Triplets and More which is fabulously helpful. Sadly I think it is out of print now, but it may be available second-hand.

Explains lots of stuff that is different with twins, for example, that they are each other's primary attachment object (you will be a secondary attachment object ie honorary dad). This means that at 6 months they get separation anxiety from each other, rather than you. In my case, that meant that if one of them cried and I picked him up to comfort him, his brother would cry, not to be picked up, but for his twin to be put down.

Good luck, and enjoy

Hey thanks jaybird37 for your reply and your advice. I think if the scan i have to confirm all well as a twin pregnancy in 2 weeks goes ok, I'll hunt down that book! I mean, one baby is hard enough and a lifestyle change but two!?! This is our first too so perhaps more daunting. I don't think the book will be the only thing we'll be begging/borrowing, furniture, clothes and other baby stuff will be much needed - double the cost and all! Ah, we have it all to come. But what an experience I can imagine, I mean, not many women have twins so it's quite something to be part of. I can't wait! Hard work tho it will be, but I'm sure it'll be great. Thanks alot again and if you have any other words of wisdom, please share!

Congratulations on your news!

I am also expecting twins. They are due in December- and I am about 14 weeks now.

This is my second pregnancy, I have a 16 month old DD. DP and I are very excited but I am also worried as I heard that twin pregancies are high risk.

I would love to share some hints and tips. For a start, I already feel a lot bigger than I was with DD!

Hey thanks for replying ilovecats! I'm not alone! So you're much further on than me so I think it'll be me asking YOU for advice!! ;) We're only 5+5 at the mo tho from my period I thought I was a week further. A bit demoralising to learn I have ANOTHER week to go from scan results but hey ho. I guess it'd make sense with re to my nausea tho, they say it starts early and is more intense than if you were carrying one. Did you find that?? I have another scan next Friday so will be waiting patiently to learn if it's still twins. She couldn't be sure on the first scan - she saw one gestational sac with a yolk sac in it and another gestational sac empty tho she thought it was too early to see. We'll wait and see!

I'm on annual leave this week and am really worried about going back to work next week as I work in a hospital. How did you cope with morning sickness and work??

My pod belly is also starting to feel bigger tho my husband says otherwise. Maybe its pyschological but I'll carry on with the Bio Oil anyway! Can't be having any stretch marks forming. My friend is due any day now of a singleton and has sworn by Bio Oil - has not gained one stretch mark!

Ooh, you're taking me back! My children are 8 now. I think it is such a special experience, as well as the hard work.

It's really early days for you and as you say, it may not be twins, but the sickness rings a huge bell! I ended up only being to eat mashed potato but was sick all the way through. Couldn't eat or drink anything tbh and it was horrible! Make sure you don't get de-hydrated - I wasn't used to drinking water at all which didn't help. But after mine were born I was super skinny as there was nothing of me by the end except for the big belly ;)

As for later - don't read anything! Twins are two babies, not some strange pair of linked beings. I always treated mine as two separate children and they have grown up as quite different individuals.

The first year is very very hard work, and as has been said above - get as much second hand as you can as stuff doesn't last long so is hardly worn/used. Also, don't think you can do/have to do it all yourself (as I stupidly did) and take up all offers of help.

Good luck

Aw thanks earwicga - any advice is greatly appreciated! It's a huge lifestyle change... going from no children to two babies! Hopefully I won't be sick all the way throughout tho, my boss would just love that!!! Especially as I've not long qualified in my job! Oops! I'll make sure I drink loads but like you, water isn't my thing. I guess I'll just have to get used to that!

My husbands and I have already discussed how to raise them, that being individually in different clothes! We'd like them to express themselves individually and as separate entities so no matching baby outfits for us! Ha!

As for help, I wonder if it's confirmed twins any offers of help will still stand! Ha, it's different with one but TWO to look after?!? That's hard work. We'll see how it goes.

Thanks a lot for yourinput tho, it means a lot.

You're welcome hon. I can't be very positive about pregnancy as I hated it, but mine were mono-mono which doesn't have good odds which stressed me and I was very ill. But, the majority have better pregnancies than me!!!

But it is wonderful to bring up twins and after the first year it is much easier than two singletons (from what I see from others).

As for help - I didn't like the thought of mine going to different people, but if I was to do it again I wouldn't hesitate.

I did do some matching baby outfits, and loved it - but for safety reasons, as soon as they were walking then I always put them in different colours so I would know which name to shout if they got away.

And the most essential piece of equipment is reins - but I am really shooting ahead now

congratulations twin mums to be

My twins are 21 weeks today, my pregnancy was tiring but alot of that was running around after a toddler and three yr old.

Twins are fab

I think mine would be dizygotic. If I remember correctly they carry less risk. Can I aks you how you delivered them? Were you offered a C section or did you try for a natural birth? I think given the choice I'd go for an elective section only because I've seen all too often women going for a vaginal birth and delivering the first one problem free and having problems with the second so ending up in theatre. Two war wounds!! Sore both ends!

Ha, reigns, love it! I was really looking forward to carrying my babe in a kangaroo harness type thing but bit difficult with two..... unless one on the back one on the front, haha!

I ended up having to have an emergency c-section because the second twin had gone into distress after many many hours of labour. I'm not sure that I would choose a c-section though as having major abdominal surgery isn't the best thing to recover from along with looking after two new-borns. It's totally dependent though on many different things so listen carefully to your doctors.

And yes, much less risk so don't worry about that at all.

Hi Tabby & hello again to ILoveCats I am 16 weeks pregnant with identical twins so will be happy to join the club!

I was exhausted from weeks 5-8, so much extra sleep and sick every day at least twice, nauseous all the time and that has only just started to fade. Double the hormones!

I am very excited though, have another scan tomorrow! am being scanned every 2 weeks due to the higher risk and have been told that I will definitely have a planned C section.

Did they tell you if yours are fraternal or identical?

Welcome lavitabella - 16 weeks eh so another wise one to call upon for advice! ;)

Mine are fraternal. We've been trying for 9 months so to fall pregnant with twins is just lovely. A massive shock to say the least and I nearly choked when she told us but such lovely news too. My husband says it suits him perfectly as it makes us a ready made family but then I guess he would say that when he's not carrying them, having to deliver them, or being around during the day to look after them! Bah!

So how did you find work with your sickness lavitabella? Did you take much time off work? I've certainly felt sleepy and find my nausea relieved by eating so my appetite certainly hasn't been affected! If it goes on up until 16 weeks I've had it. I work in a hospital so the lovely smells I'm subjected to will just make me heave! What to do!!!!

I had to take 2 weeks off 8 weeks - 10 weeks mainly because I had bad lower back pain, but was also exhausted and sick so it was a relief if I'm honest. Back pain was difficult as you can only take parecetemol which did nothing, but I'm now seeing a physio regularly and it's much better

I paid to have a private scan at 10 weeks which is when we found out it was twins. We paid so I could be sure everything was ok and could tell work. They have been great and have transferred me much closer to home, and into an easier branch than where I was previously.

Cleaning my teeth was the worst, and the retching rather than being sick. You'll get used to it, it's all worth it in the end!

Hi again Lavitabella- we will all be asking you for advice!

My twins will be unidentical and have their own placenta each.

Tabbycat76- I would love to tell you I felt fine but I have to admit I felt awful! But apparently that is quite common for twins because you have so many more hormones. This has been worse than my last pregnancy but luckily enough I work from home, so I could sneak off for naps etc - if it wasn't for my 16 month old daughter!
It seems to have died down a bit though, except for the morning retching- so there is hope!
Maybe you will be fine though when you go back to work- I sort of learnt to live with it. Let us know how you get on.

Lavitabella- are you starting to get really big already? The last last couple of weeks, I seem to have expanded at a rapid rate! How did your scan go?

Im 31 weeks pregnant and most of the time im not suffering too much, probably less than i did with dd. Its great knowing you have 2 in there and now i just cant wait to meet them

Another one here! Am 18+5 weeks today with non identicals.
I seem to have grown quite a lot in the last week or so. It looks like I'm about 25 weeks if there was only one.
Constantly tired (but that could be as I have 2 DCs already and one is only 14 months), and horrible back pain. Feels like sciatica, but I think its known as pelvic girdle pain.
lavita what has your physio suggested?
starshaker not long now!!!

Oh wow- flatpackassemblyDiva and starshaker, not long to go now- how exciting!

Can I ask if anyone had a nuchal test done with their twins and if their results were different, and if you know if that is common or not? Also, how much difference in size is there in your twins?

Didnt have any tests done. Think its the blood tests that you wont get as it will automatically throw up a high risk as there is double what they are looking for anyway (so they just dont give the test)
At my last growth scan at 28 weeks my boy was weighing 4lbs and my girl was 3lbs. Not sure how accurate these scans are but both seem to be great weights so far

I didn't have the nuchal or bloods done. I opted straight for the cvs. Not everyone's choice but we had a bad experience with DS2s nuchal (all ok in the end) and I couldn't do that again. The CVS was fine.

Wow so many new posts to read and welcome to the newbies to the thread! So many more people to ask advice of - it seems I'm the youngest of all of you in terms of pregnancy age so any advice you can give me is invaluable!

I'll be 6 weeks tomorrow - tho still miffed at having been put back a week at a scan I had last week to 5+. And the thought of having this constant nausea (no vomiting yet thank goodness) is driving me mad! I hope it doesn't last. My husband I'm sure thinks I'm loving all the attention that feeling nausea brings... hmm, if he'd ever experience it I'm sure he'd say otherwise!

As far as blood tests go, I believe they don't offer blood screening tests for twins as they couldn't possibly tell if it came back raised which twin it was affecting. I'm hoping they offer the Nuchal straight away at our unit but as I've not heard yet from the mw to book I'm unfamiliar with their practice. I'm 33 at the moment and do worry about my age affecting the health of our twins so I may consider going private for a NT scan if it isn't offered on the NHS.

flatpackassemblyDiva - you reassure me re your partners need for taking time out of work. I too work in a hospital on the wards and it's a lot of hard slog with heavy lifting. I doubt I'll get much compassion tho being pregnant. They've just lost two nurses to maternity leave and a health care assistant. One other nurse is leaving so they'll be quite short staffed. I think I'll see how I go on Monday of next week after my a/l and take it from there. The fact that I've a twin pregnancy ... I wonder if that'll carry any more emphasis on the need for lighter duties in THEIR eyes, I expect not! Oh well.

Hi Smokeybacon & flatpackassemblyDiva welcome and congratulations!

iLoveCats Had a 16 week scan today and all looking good so far, good to see them wriggling about. I feel that I have grown a lot in the last week alone, I normally a size 10ish and haven't put on any weight but I really seem to have popped this week. People are commenting if they don't see me for 2 days! I am going to be enormous, apparently with twins you look 9 months at 6!!!

I had the nuchal scan and the results were slightly different even though my twins are identical. 1 measured 1.5mm and the other 1.7mm and I was told I'd hear back if there was anything to worry about, they did bloods too but all was fine.

Smokey Physio did some adjustments, she thinks my back pain is due to a pre existing problem that has flared up due to the relaxin that the body produces when pregnant. Probably from riding horses, which i did for many years. I have some exercises to do and stretches.

Flatpackdiva So any day now then! I had a friend who did hypnobirthing and said it was a great experience. It's different for everyone and tell your lovely partner to take what she can get if the pain is too much for her. You sound very supportive so I'm sure she'll be in good hands. My partner is Italian and I think I would pass out from shock if he offered to put a cold compress on my feet! Sounds wonderful though. I'm sure you meet plenty of other new mums once you start getting our, have you looked to see if there are any local twins clubs?

I have to add i'm nervous too and have never changed a nappy in my life oh how life is going to change!

Congratulations to all the twin mums to be! I have just had twins (non ID boys) 5 weeks ago. It's still all a bit of a whirlwind and I still occasionally look at my hubby and say TWINS! - how the heck did we get twins!
There is a multiple birth topic under the being a parent topic which has loads of helpful threads. I don't post much but found out some interesting tips by reading old threads. TAMBA also has loads of helpful stuff and a message board.
Good luck to you all