When to be concerned...

[kblackstone444]

My sister had twins about 2 months ago. One is right on target on everything, but the other... there are certain concerns my sister has been having. For example, she's very stiff, holds her hands in tight fists- it's hard for my sister to open her hands to be washed- but at the same time, she's very floppy- she still cannot hold her head up. There is a definate personalitly difference in the twins- Emma, is a little powerhouse, loud, paasionate, an attention getter. Ella, the twin we're worried about, is a talker, will have long babble conversations with her parents and siblings, but doesn't move much. They both has equal floor time, holding time, etc. Should my sister be concerned?

[Llyra]

For me, I think lack of any head control at all at two months would be mildly concerning. And the stiffness would also worry me. I would probably be speaking to my pediatrician about the issue-- and if my concerns were dismissed, I would be looking for a new ped. I wouldn't be alarmed, however. My DS (who was the second twin born) had some motor skill delays early on-- poor head control until about four months, sat late, crawled late, walked late. Anyway, he's almost four now, and as far as anyone can tell has caught up just fine. We were concerned for awhile, because he didn't breathe on his own for three hours after birth, and there were concerns that he might have been deprived of oxygen for a short time. But he's fine now.

[P.J.]

I have heard (and seen pictures) of twins that were born completely different sizes. Almost as if one got all the "juice" and the other got the leftovers in the womb. Are they very different sizes?

I also know every baby is unique and develops at a different pace. I suppose this could be the case with twins as well, where one develops much faster than the other. It also sounds like they just have very different personalities.

But I agree with the PP that no head control whatsoever at two months is a bit worrying and worth asking the pediatrician about.

In any case, there's a forum here for parenting multiples and you may be able to get some experiences from other parents of twins there, and see how common this phenomenon is. I have to say though, fwiw, that my first feeling about your post was that your sister doesn't really have anything to worry about.

[sunnygir1]

First, if your sister is worried she should talk with her doctor about it.

That said, I had two babies who were born 5 weeks early.

To this day every time I see a tiny baby in a baby carrier at the store I am totally surprised at how well they move their heads around. Both of my babes had crappy head control for 3-5 months. Dd was later than ds (but then she has a huge head ). They did both meet developmental milestones, though (age adjusted for prematurity).

I remember dd's hands being clenched a lot and having trouble washing them in the bathtub. I wouldn't have described her as "stiff" in general, but I do remember that about her hands when she was a little baby.

[ivymae]

Honestly the first thing that popped into my mind was cerebral palsy. Stiffness and low muscle tone is just one of the markers. I am in NO WAY trying to scare you, or say "Oh yes, this is what is going on," but it popped into my mind, and a quick internet search may help you go through the other symptom lists, or get her in for a screening. Best case scenario, she is fine and is just asserting her individuality early, but I couldn't not give you a lead if it is what is going on.

[kblackstone444]

Originally Posted by P.J.

Are they very different sizes?

No, actually, they're only I think three ounces from eachother, and have continued to grow at that rate since birth. The littler one is the one we're concerned about, though they're both really skinny babies.

Originally Posted by ivymae

Honestly the first thing that popped into my mind was cerebral palsy. Stiffness and low muscle tone is just one of the markers. I am in NO WAY trying to scare you, or say "Oh yes, this is what is going on," but it popped into my mind, and a quick internet search may help you go through the other symptom lists, or get her in for a screening. Best case scenario, she is fine and is just asserting her individuality early, but I couldn't not give you a lead if it is what is going on.

That's what popped into my head as well, though I didn't voice it to my sister or any family members 'casue, well, that's just a scary thought. It could be the personality difference, but my sister has been concerned about Ella since birth, she just "felt something was wrong". Birth twins had traumatic deliveries. Could be just fear, but it could also be intuition. Both her older children were very early and developed in all fine and gross motor skills- my nephew was walking at 10 months, my niece at 9 months.

[BetsyS]

My babies have all had very poor head control, for a lot longer than other babies. My 4 month old is just now holding his head up well. But, for all of mine, it's been a variation of normal.

[braidmama]

Ds didn't really have super awesome head control until about 4 months, since then he's been perfect with it. He's also very tense and stiff a lot of the time (I ALWAYS described him as floppy for about the first 3 months or so). He's a very fussy baby and has 11 out of 12 of Dr. Sears High Needs Baby Traits list...one of them is the tense/stiffness of limbs. I trhink if your sister is concerned there's definitely no harm in discussing it with the pediatrician but its probably fine and I wouldn't worry too much. Every baby is going to be a little different from the next. A friend of mine had a baby 5 days before ds was born and she's already sitting up on her own and rolling over, while ds isn't doing those things much at all. Being twins, its probably more noticeable since they're together but they are still separate babies!

[LynnS6]

When your "mommy instinct" says something is wrong is when I get concerned. Has she had her daughters into the pediatrician lately? I would voice her concern. The clenched fists and low tone are somewhat worrisome, IMO.

[sapphire_chan]

http://www.fpnotebook.com/Peds/Neuro/DvlpmntlRdFlgs.htm
Here's a list of red flags. You'll notice that Ella is still okay for having fisted hands. Also factor in if the twins were born early.

And head control isn't a red flag until 4 months adjusted for prematurity.

http://pages.uoregon.edu/asqstudy/ could be good for your sister to fill out if she's worried. It's a set of things to try out with your baby and then they'll email you back about whether you should talk more with your doctor and such.

[kblackstone444]

Originally Posted by sapphire_chan

http://www.fpnotebook.com/Peds/Neuro/DvlpmntlRdFlgs.htm
Here's a list of red flags. You'll notice that Ella is still okay for having fisted hands. Also factor in if the twins were born early.

And head control isn't a red flag until 4 months adjusted for prematurity.

http://pages.uoregon.edu/asqstudy/ could be good for your sister to fill out if she's worried. It's a set of things to try out with your baby and then they'll email you back about whether you should talk more with your doctor and such.

Thank you, I'll forward these to my sister. The twins weren't really premature- born 2 1/2 weeks before the due date, and well enough to go home the next day- so that's something that's been concerning my sister, the fact that they don't really fit into the "preemie" catagory.

[sapphire_chan]

Originally Posted by kblackstone444

Thank you, I'll forward these to my sister. The twins weren't really premature- born 2 1/2 weeks before the due date, and well enough to go home the next day- so that's something that's been concerning my sister, the fact that they don't really fit into the "preemie" catagory.

Well, that does make for a bit less time until the red flag ages are reached, but even without that, Ella's still got simply ages in baby time to do stuff.

I hope there is no problem. And if there is a problem it is a solveable one. And that the solution is easy!

[AFWife]

Originally Posted by LynnS6

When your "mommy instinct" says something is wrong is when I get concerned.

This was my thought. If nothing else she can get reassured that nothing is wrong...but I'd mention it.