1st u/s today showed.....

PrincessPix

TWINS!!!

Holy moly! How do you switch from IF brain to twin brain?

Anyone else having twins, please share your insights thus far!  I'm pretty sure DH and I are still in shock! We obviously knew it was a possibility, since we transferred 2 embryos, but we are just beside ourselves right now... Not in a bad way, mind you... We're just still taking it all in...

Baby A's heart rate was 116, and B's was 121 at 6w4d... RE said everything else was measuring right on track and looked good!

Wow.

Ylvelill

Let me know when you figure it out I am still in shock at week 22!

PhillyJ33

Congrats!!

FishyMom

Congrats!! I am so happy for you. That is amazing news!

PrincessPix

@Ashris13‌ - when is your u/s? We are pretty close aren't we?

FishyMom

PrincessPix said:

@Ashris13‌ - when is your u/s? We are pretty close aren't we?

Mine is tomorrow. I am beyond terrified.. Trying to stay positive tho.

PrincessPix

Fingers crossed for you. I was a mess all day. DH wanted a later appointment so he could come with and it just dragged by!! I'm sending you positive thoughts & many prayers!

healz413

Congratulations! We also got the amazing twins surprise at our 6w ultrasound.
Here are my reflections on the move to twin brain:

First, because twins is a whole different ball game, we had to start believing that we were actually going to get to bring home these babies so that we could start planning for having twins.

Second, we quickly realized that we needed twins-specific books and the multiples board, because, like I said, it's a different ball game.

Third, at our seven week ultrasound it finally actually started to set in that we are actually having twins. I panicked about needing a minivan, how we'll ever afford child care, etc.

Fourth, after the 7 week ultrasound, I started stressing about pre-term labor and the NICU, and my partner (@Manada, the one who is pregnant) started looking into her company's policies about working from home (if she gets put on bedrest).

Anyway, we still worry about losing one or both babies. But, I really do think that the realities of what having twins will mean has taken over most of the obsessing and worrying parts of our brains.

xtina78

Congrats! I think twins are awesome!

I would definitely start checking out the multiples board, reading back posts on there gave me a lot of info. Also check google to see if you have a local Moms of multiples group and also find out if your hospital has a prenatal parents of multiples education program. Mine does and we have classes on breast feeding, nutrition, etc.

I just have a regular OB. But now that I'm having issues with placenta previa I'm wondering if I should have asked for a high risk OB from the beginning. I just wonder in my case if I had been getting more frequent ultrasounds if they would have picked up the previa earlier, put me on activity restriction and pelvic rest, and I could have avoided bleeding - at least for a little longer. It was also important to me to deliver at a hospital with a NICU, just knowing the likelihood they will come early and need the NICU.

You can always page or PM me if you want to talk more.

LSN8308

Welcome to the twin club! It never stops feeling surreal, but of course like we all keep telling ourselves after winning the battle with IF "ALL that stress and worry is so worth it in the end"

just take a deep breath and soak in the moment. RE should lead the way to your next steps as far as graduating then definitely finding out if your OB works with an MFM... from what I've read on here some obs don't think mfm are necessary, but they are worth the piece of mind so it's nice to have a Dr you're on the same page with.

Also as far as the hospitals go, idk if anyone has already mentioned, but finding a OB that's affiliated with a level 3 nicu hospital was very important when knowing its twins. FX your babies never need to be there but its awesome to know that the services are readily available should they be needed.

monimu13

Congrats!!

FutureMrsW9

Congrats!!

Jeffreysmom24

Wow congrats!

JSM0801

Congrats, and welcome to the twin club!! I have to agree with Ylveliil-I'm still in shock too at week 24! It's a fun and exciting shock though!! 

overwhelmed29

I definitely agree with healz!! I've had the same thoughts run through my head! 

It's so amazing to go from not knowing if you could have one child to being blessed with two!! Congratuations to you!

PrincessPix

Wow! Thanks for all your responses.  I'm still in shock.

@healz413 - can you recommend any twins books?  I ordered "from the hips" from Amazon before my u/s and just got it yesterday so I'm excited to start it!

@xtina78 & lsn8308 - our city has one of the best NICU's in our area so I'll def. be looking into that... Never even crossed my mind..

Thanks again!!!

PrincessPix

@overwhelmed29 - that's totally how I feel! After 6+ years of trying, it's so surreal.  DH and I always wanted 2, and after IVF, I wasn't sure I'd want to go through that process again... I feel truly blessed!

overwhelmed29

It's just surreal! We will be 8 weeks tomorrow and the MS is terrible, not going to lie but to know that there are babies in there makes it worth it! I did find that emetrol helps a little with nausea.. hopefully you won' t get it, though! 

curlylocks3

Double congrats! It definitely is an adjustment that takes some getting used to. Come on over to the Multiples board As for books, I'd recommend against the Dr Luke book- I really struggled with severe nausea and vomiting and it made me feel like a bad mama that I hadn't gained enough weight by the time she thought you should.

absolutelymaybe

Congratulations x2! 

PrincessPix

@intuitiveblue - You're right! I seen your question about different due dates, you'll have to let me know what you find out! My RE's office still gave me the EDD of 11/16 yesterday after my u/s... So after visiting Dr. Google, I'm very curious!

edit: spelling goofs

Manada

Twin Books - I ordered a bunch from the library.   I'll post a pic when I get home later of the stack, but so far I have found the "When you're expecting twins, triplets or quads" book by Dr. Luke to be one of the better ones.   There is one other that's a bit smaller that I also like -- but I can't remember the name of it.     

@PrincessPix - @Healz413 gave our story pretty thoroughly.   It was pretty overwhelming for me at first to let the idea of carrying a twin pregnancy and giving birth to two sink in.   I had lots of ideas before about the sort of pregnancy, birth and parenting I would work toward - and it really overwhelmed me to consider that much of that had to change with twins.   I walked around for about a week going "I don't know nothin' about having twins!!!!!"  in my best Gone with the Wind drama.     Learning my way around each of those has been a new challenge, and one that is taking time to learn an get comfortable with -- getting the twin-specific books and resources really helped me though.   I'm also focusing a lot on learning about twin parenting skills, and thinking about what we will need to know/do/negotiate before the babies come. 

Congrats though!  It's a shock, and it has been scary for us at times -- twins really are a whole different ballgame, but we're learning that they are special in their own right!

auntjessy

Congrats!!! I've read a LOT, especially since I've been on bedrest and have so much free time, LOL, although not as much as @monimu13‌! I really got a lot,of good info from Dr Barbara Luke's book. I also had trouble with nausea in the 1st tri and lost 10 lbs, but I didn't feel guilty about it - I just made sure that as soon as I could, I started gaining. Insights: 1. It isn't as hard as you think it's going to be 2. It isn't easy, either. It's got a whole new, fun set of challenges. Symptoms are more intense, more nausea, more weight, more hip pain, more insomnia, heartburn, swelling, blood pressure and pre-e concerns, gestational diabetes risk goes up, etc. That being said, I have gestational diabetes, pregnancy-induced HBP, and at this point am on bedrest and going in for check ups every other day. However, I really believe that it's because I took it easy as much as possible going into the 3rd tri, I haven't had any cervix issues or real signs of pre-term labor. I keep my feet up, wear compression stockings if I'm going to be traveling or sitting at a desk!!! to avoid swelling. I got everything ready probably 2 months earlier than the average mom of singletons, because even if you're not on bedrest, you're huge and have zero energy. Hire someone to clean your house if you can afford it, even just once or twice a month. Be careful buying regular maternity clothes and don't spend much, because chances are they won't fit you in the third tri. You'll be very hungry in the mornings unless you eat a protein-packed snack at night. And go ahead and start wearing pads or more absorbent pantiliners toward week 22, because you won't know the leak is coming until it does. These are the things they don't tell you in books. Good luck!!!