Expecting Twins? Already have twins?
The most important thing you can do, is find and JOIN a local Mom of Multiples Club!
Check out the National Organization of Mother's of Twins Club, and you can search your area for local chapters.
I cannot tell you enough, how important and helpful these clubs are. Many have monthly meetings where you can meet and discuss issues with moms who are going through the same things you are. If you are pregnant with multiples, you can link up with other women in your situation and get great support. Not to mention you can get some great second-hand stuff. I've lucked out with video baby monitors, crib mobiles, clothes, even formula coupons! Of course, these clubs are great for coordinating play dates as well :)
The information and bonds I have gained from my local chapter, RAMOM (Richmond Area Mom's of Multiples) has been so valuable. I joined once my twins were born, and I wish I had joined while I was pregnant, just going to the meetings and hearing women talk about things that I am going through, seems to make it all easier.
Babies are hard.
Twins, are even harder.
But their also twice the fun :)
I know, at least with my own situation, finding out I was pregnant with twins was not only the most exciting, but also the scariest thing I have ever gone through.
Immediately, I began worrying about how long I'd be able to carry them. All twins are born early (so I thought). For us, one of our twin girls, had some issues in-utero, so not only did I have the stress of worrying about delivering early, I also had the stress of "would I deliver two babies, or one".
Oh yea, and I have a toddler at home.
As if, twins weren't enough on my plate!
The second most important thing you can do is get some reading material....the more the better!
Books I found helpful....
- This book is an easy read, but really informative, it also has a great section (and easy to understand) about zygosity and types of twinning.
- While I'm not really "in" to all of this Author/Doctor's views, it has some great information on the genetics/science behind it all.
- This book is great! Written by a mom of twins, it's a funny, but informative account of her journey through pregnancy and early childhood. A total must have!
-Twins or not, if you have a baby, you need this book! She lays out everything from how to teach your child good sleeping habits, to sample schedules to get you through your day. It's also easy to use this book as a manual, if you don't feel like reading the whole thing all the way through...have a problem? look it up in the index and find the chapter on it.
The internet is obviously a great source of information, but BEWARE. My Doctor frankly told me he hated google! Ha, no offense to google, but with ALL the information out there, it can be too much of good thing.
It works both ways though. For me, I was stressing out when my girls were measuring a week a part and we were told one wouldn't survive. I immediately took to google, I found horror stories about miscarriages which made me hyperventilate, but I also found stories of women who had been told the same thing, and they delivered healthy babies, so that, of course, gave me hope. We delivered two perfectly healthy angels, so our story is a happy one. But just be aware that whatever it is you are searching for, be prepared for the good and the bad.
Whether your twin pregnancy has complications or not (and hopefully it doesn't) I would recommend getting as much information as possible about how you will be delivering, and if you've picked your hospital, check out the details on their NICU.
Not all twins are born super early, and not all twins have to be in the NICU, but it's just a good idea to research these things in advance, just in case. Luckily, where I live and where I delivered had a top-notch NICU, but in some areas, finding a hospital with an excellent NICU can be hard, and if you find one, it can be a ways away....so just research, research, research.
Hopefully this is helpful, and I'll be adding more stuff, keep checking back!
