Wednesday 13 February 2013

Tips for a Twin Pregnancy

I know I'm only just over halfway through this pregnancy, and it's bound to get much harder in the last few weeks, but here are a few (only marginally serious) tips if you find yourself carrying twins...

1. Give up on the idea of 3 meals a day -
Especially in the first trimester when you're unlikely to be able to eat much of anything anyways. Just keep your crackers and water nearby to prevent / mitigate nausea.

Bonus - enjoy a few weeks of losing weight!

2. Eat as much as you can, whenever you can -
This means a spicy noodle bowl is totally acceptable at 10am or 10pm and yogurt and granola qualifies as a balanced lunch. I'm pretty sure after the first trimester your stomach has shrunken and migrated to a totally different place in your body. (Is this why we have a long intestine?) Also, get used to eating small, neat forkfuls; your 20 week belly means you're already sitting two feet away from your plate. (Otherwise invest in a serious bib or big napkin)

Bonus - you're learning how to stick to smaller serving sizes. Let's just not talk about the snacking habit you'll have to give up later if you want to return to a pre-baby body.

3. Don't get too comfortable -
It will make it that much harder to get up when you have to. I know you think that oversized comfy chair is going to feel so nice, but after ten minutes you'll need to shift position and all the wonderful cushioning around you is not going to help.

Bonus - think of this as training for when your kids won't let you sit still for two minutes. (If you already have kids, enlist them to help you get out.)

4. Keep moving -
This ties in to #3. Even standing still for 10 minutes will make you want to seek out a comfy chair, and we all know how that ends. Be prepared to turn over at least ten times a night to prevent unbearable hip/back pain. Install something / someone to help with this and the replacement of your mountain of pillows.

5. Stay close to the bathroom - 
Seriously, it's like I have the bladder control of a toddler. (Which actually works out pretty good in my case since I'm finishing up potty training my little girl - it's like having an internal 15 minute alarm. Every time I go, she goes too.)

6. Enjoy it!
- Think of it this way, it's like a BOGO sale that you didn't know you were getting (although I am very thankful to have found out very early in the pregnancy - 7 weeks)
- Looking pregnant from just about the moment of conception. No awkward "is she pregnant or just putting on weight?" stage.
- People always love it when they find out you are having twins. They say things like, "wow! double the fun" when what they really mean is, "I'm glad it's you and not me!"

And just for kicks, here are a few funny twin pregnancy shirts I've found online...
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Any other twin moms out there have some good tips for me?

7 comments:

  1. I love this list. And even though I am only carrying one baby, I struggle with the "turning over ten times at night" thing too!

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  2. Love it!! Although I had to take it easy. I was good till about 28 weeks then I was on modified bed rest. Luckily I didn't have any other kids yet. Just out of curiosity, have you been able to tell a difference in your pregnancies?

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  3. Those shirts are so awesome!
    New follower and commenter from http://fluffimama.blogspot.com/

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  4. I really like those shirts, Taara. While I still haven't been to the Dr., I'm fairly certain I'm not carrying twins. It's great that you've made it halfway through with wisdom to pass along!

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  5. I haven't carried twins before, but this looks like a great list for mommas who are! Love the t-shirt too!! Thanks for linking up to the mommy brain mixer!

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  6. Never had kids, but I do have 4 sets of them in my classes this year. I have 1 pair of sweet sweet boys, 1 set of needy boys (Ms. David is this right? Ms. David, is THIS right?!!), and two boy/girl pairs where 1 twin is good, and the other is troublesome.

    Not sure why I needed to tell you that!

    Love you and catching up on your news through your blog!

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