Blog Archives - Page 4 of 33

November 14, 2023

Twins with TAPS Birth Story

Author: Marni Cochrane

My husband and I had been trying for a baby for 7 years before we finally started our first round of IVF. I had never wanted to do IVF due to how invasive it is but it was our only chance to complete our family. I am so glad I did it- despite it being a really hard time, everything turned out better than we had ever hoped. We ended up with 3 embryos from 5 eggs and had one transferred.

10 days later we got the call to say we were pregnant and we were just over the moon. We couldn’t believe that we were pregnant on the first round! We had two scans in the obstetrician’s office which confirmed a baby and a heartbeat and all our blood tests came back normal. The both of us just couldn’t believe our luck after so long together and so long trying.

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October 31, 2023

Advantages of having twins or triplets

Deciding to have a baby is a beautiful and amazing decision. It is one that comes with lots of ups and downs and will be remembered as your biggest achievement in life. Sometimes the joy of finding out you are pregnant is doubled (or tripled).

Finding out you are expecting twins or triplets can bring with it lots of different emotions. It can take some time to process and to get excited about. It can be daunting at first, but there are many advantages of having twins or triplets.

Advantages of having twins or triplets

Lots of people (including strangers!) will only focus on the negatives of having multiples. For example, you will never sleep again, you wont be able to breast feed, you will have to have a c-section, better you than me etc. We have come up with some advantages of having twins and triplets.

Please note: Some of these are a light hearted look at multiple birth pregnancy and birth, and are no way intended to offend.

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October 16, 2023

Things to take to the NICU or SCN for twins and triplets

Are you possibly facing a stay in the NICU or SCN with your twins or triplets?

Twins and triplets have an increased chance of needing a stay in acute care. This can be due to early delivery, no birth weight or complications during delivery. The time that you will spend in special care depends on the needs of your little ones. It can be a difficult time for everyone involved, but your babies are in the best place they can be. If you are looking at an extended stay in the NICU or SCN you might want to be prepared.

Check out our list of things to take to the NICU or SCN for twins or triplets.

Things to take for twins or triplets in NICU

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October 10, 2023

C-section for twins or triplets: Things you may not expect.

Over half of multiple birth deliveries result in needing a c-section for twins and almost all triplet births. This can be for a number of different reasons including sizing, early delivery, personal choice and emergency c-sections when there are issues that arise.

Having a c-section can be daunting for mums to be and the thought of it can be worrisome. However, delivering your babies and looking out for both the health of mum and bubs is paramount. It may be the safest way to deliver your babies. When it comes to having a c-section for twins or triplets, you will receive a lot of advice and recommendations from the doctors. They will talk you through the procedure, the preparation, and the healing time. But what about the things you didn’t expect during your c-section? The things no one mentioned? We asked our community at Parents of Multiples Australia what they didn’t expect during their c-section and how they felt. These are their personal responses.

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September 1, 2023

Official things to do after having twins or triplets

Having a baby is an exciting time. Having two or more babies at the same time is truly spectacular!

Your life has now changed. There are different things that are now a priority. A new routine that you need to work out. And then work out again because it didn’t work the first time. There are things to learn, milestones to reach and lots of love to give. But there are also a few official things that you need to do after the birth of your babies. And I am not taking about the official Facebook post announcing their birth. While this official Facebook status seems to be OK for relationships, the various government departments won’t accept that! When you have a baby – or two or three- your word for it isn’t quite enough!

There is only one negative about having twins or triplets as far as I am concerned. And you are about to learn this rapidly when undertaking the the official things to do after having twins or higher order multiples. It is the duplicate paper work!! Filling out the same form time after time again, then (in your sleep deprived state!) having to go back and double check you have one filled out with each name etc.

To help you, here is a list of the official things to do after having twins or higher order multiples

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August 11, 2023

When one twin gets an award and the other doesn’t

Note: This article refers to twins, but applies to triplets as well. In fact, there is more of a chance with triplets that one will get an award and the other two won’t.

When your child comes home with an award, it is always a time for celebration. The excitement, achievement and confidence that comes with getting an award is something worth celebrating. However, it can be difficult at times when you have twins or triplets and only one of them gets an award. It can cause the others to become upset that they missed out. Missing out comes in many forms throughout childhood and it is important to talk to your children about opportunities and how they vary from person to person. Check out below some tips on what to do when one gets an award and the other doesn’t.

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June 6, 2023

Your relationship after having twins or triplets

After having your babies and bringing them home, your life will have changed a lot. There are a bunch of new routines to learn, different priorities and then there is the lack of sleep. So much lost sleep!

The first few months at home with your babies can be rocky as you are settling into the new routine and change of lifestyle. There may be times when your relationship feels like it is also changing.

Does it every feel like your relationship changed in the months after bringing your babies home? Did things get better or worse with your partner? A changing relationship after having twins or triplets can happen for a number of reasons.

Your relationship after having twins or triplets

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June 1, 2023

Starting solids with twins or triplets

Starting solids with twins or triplets is a exciting milestone. It is a time where you can start introducing your babies to different textures, flavours and help them to build different skills. Learning how to hold different foods, learn the skills around eating and give them some independence.

Deciding when to start solids can be a confusing time. There is a lot of different information and recommendations that you will see – some times it is hard to know what to follow.

Here are a few tips we have for starting solids with twins or triplets.

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May 22, 2023

Owed to a Mum

Author: Abbey Free

As I lay in bed,  I find my mind race 
I’m exhausted by life being so fast pace
But when it slows down, even for a day 
I find myself not even wanting it that way 

Being a mum, comes wherever you go…
Even at night when times running slow 
You want to switch off, you want to have a break 
But you’re minds always going, how much more can I take

But then when you wake up and your kids smile at you
You know there’s nothing in the world you’d rather do 
Times goes by so incredibly fast
& you start to realise this time doesn’t last 

In the blink of an eye your baby is gone 
And then the next stage, well it doesn’t last long 
You want to soak it all in, and enjoy every day 
But there’s lots said in society that get in your way

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April 20, 2023

Vaginal birth with twins at 36+5 weeks

Author: Kara Lambert

When I found out I was pregnant with twins at my dating scan, I was both excited and terrified. My previous two babies were born early (at 34-35 weeks) following premature rupture of membranes and both required some weeks in NICU/special care, so I knew there would be even a higher risk of preterm birth with twins. My second baby in particular was a fast labour, and both times my waters broke spontaneously out of the blue, so I’d pretty much been waiting for this to happen with the twins at any time. I spent a lot of my twin pregnancy anxious, googling outcomes of babies born very preterm!

My preference was for a vaginal birth with twins

My first two babies were both born vaginally, and my private OB and I had previously had discussions about trying for a vaginal birth with the twins (which I wanted), but I was advised I would need an epidural in case twin 2 needed help birthing or moved around in my uterus after twin 1 was born. I was ok with that, given I wanted to avoid a c-section if possible. Luckily both twins were head down from about 28 weeks which made attempting a vaginal birth with twins possible.

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