Category: Babies and Toddlers

Author: Jodi Collins

My two, his two, our two.  Between us, my husband and I have six kids.  Thank God, only the twins are in car seats.  But still…  that’s A LOT of bums on seats!   

So, shopping for our plus-size family car was a sobering exercise in ‘if you find a shoe (or in my case, a car) that actually fits, just bloody take it!’

What I wanted was…  a car with enough room for the eight of us, four school bags, a double pram and a shopping bag or two.  USB ports and lots of cup holders. Oh, and, anything BUT a Kia Carnival. 

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Author:  Emilie Upson

Twins born at 28 weeks

Our journey with health issues for the twins started straight away. They were born at 28 weeks and weren’t breathing so were resuscitated, I didn’t get to see either twin until hours later.

NICU journey for twins born at 28 weeks

During their 12.5 week NICU stay we dealt with quite a number of things, blood transfusions, jaundice, feed intolerance, infections, CMV diagnosis for both twins, sepsis, a surgery for torsion of testes on twin 1 and laser eye surgery on both eyes to repair twin 2’s ROP.

However, the most prominent was the frequent, and never ending, apnoeas and bradycardic episodes which meant they stayed on oxygen.  They started with the ventilator, then CPAP for quite some time, then onto high-flo and finally we were onto lo-flo and I thought we were fine. But at 36 weeks they were both diagnosed as having Chronic Lung Disease and I was told they would probably come home on oxygen. 

Note from Twinfo: Please see HERE for a list of common NICU terms.

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Author:  Shannon Foster

My twin pregnancy and journey has been a Rollercoaster from the start. From the shock of finding out it was 2 babies instead of 1, to going to my 18 week ultrasound and finding out that Twin A had some sort of congenital heart defect (CHD).

32 weeks pregnant with twins

At the 32 week scan it was confirmed that she had a Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD) and pulmonary atresia which would require open heart surgery. We were informed that she would be staying in NICU on medication to keep her valve open long enough for her to grow big enough to have surgery.  

Note: For a full guide to NICU terms please see our guide HERE.

My twin birth story

So fast forward to the girls birth.  I went into labor 3 days before my elective c section was booked. So it became an emergency c section. 

Tatum Leora was born at 8.38am weighing 2.55kg and Arabella Eva was born at 8.39am weighing 2.21kg. I got a glimpse of both of them, before they were whisked away.

Arabella went straight to NICU and I didn’t get to see her again till the next day. Tatum was on oxygen for a few minutes then came through to me in recovery. 

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Author: Pam Hird Naturopath

Pam Hird is a qualified and accredited Naturopath, Nutritionist, Herbalist and Personal Trainer. Pam shares with us 7 tips for reducing anxiety.

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We live in a fast-paced 24/7 world. You are trying to juggle many areas in your life and you never seem to stop until you finally collapse into bed at night. Even then you aren’t guaranteed a solid sleep because the kids might wake up! It’s normal to feel stressed and anxious from time to time.

However, for someone with anxiety, these feelings can be ongoing. It can be a constant and exhausting daily battle that you don’t always feel like you are winning. We can make small changes in our life and day to day routine to help reduce anxiety and overwhelm.

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Christmas is a magical time for children of all ages, so naturally they will be drawn to the tree.   This is no doubt causing you some extra stress as you worry how on earth you will keep your multiples from destroying the tree.

Don’t worry, as always, Twinfo has you covered.    Here are our top 12 ways (in no particular order) to protect the Christmas tree from twins or triplets!

1.      Don’t put one up!

 Now before you start calling me the Christmas Grinch, this won’t appeal to everyone.  But for some families it makes perfect sense to not put one up.

We decided not to put one up for our twins first Christmas.  We were going away over Christmas, and we were too sleep deprived to even care about a tree.  Neither of us could summon up the extra energy required to out it up, nor could we fathom the thoughts of having to pack it away!   So, we just didn’t bother.  Our twins were 6mths old.

Alternatively, decorate your living area with lights and ornaments, to give the full festive atmosphere, but just don’t use an actual Christmas Tree.   There are several great alternatives you can use as a tree.

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Author:  Domna Lovatt

When I find out I was having twins I didn’t think much about how my body would cope with the pregnancy or the aftermath of my prebaby 50kg frame carrying 2 nearly 3kg babies to 37w+1. I just assumed that my body would cope and it would go back to the way it was pre-baby, just like after our first baby when fortunately for me everything went back to the way it was before. I certainly didn’t think I would be having abdominoplasty after twins due to hernias and abdominal separation.

Abdominal separation and hernias after multiples

Abdominal separation and hernias can occur with single pregnancies but the incidence tends to be higher for us mums of multiples. I ended up with 4 hernias and abdominal separation and let’s not forget the loose skin (which had varicose veins in it).

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NICU and SCN Acronyms can be very confusing. Especially when these terms relate to your tiny babies. This list may help you navigate those early days

Please note: This glossary is not a substitute for advice from a health professional.  Terms may vary from hospital to hospital.  Please consult your health care professional for full details.

You can find our Multiple Birth Glossary HERE.

A

• Adjusted age – Adjusted age (or corrected age), is your premature baby’s chronological age minus the number of weeks or months he was born early. For example, a one-year-old who was born three months early would have a corrected age of nine months.
• AGA – appropriate for gestational age.
• Apgar Score – The Apgar score is a system used by doctors and midwives to assess your newborn baby’s health at birth. It helps medical staff decide if your baby needs medical or emergency care.
• Apnea monitors –  Detects the cessation of breathing (apnoea) in infants
• Apnoea – A short period of time when the baby does not take a breath.
• Aspirate – To inhale fluids, such as milk, into the windpipe or lungs. Also refers to the removal of fluid by suction (e.g. checking how much milk remains in the stomach)

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