anyone else expecting twins? - Page 4

[ithappened]

I eat a lot of nuts, cheese and dried fruits (without sugar added)... I try to eat things which are calories dense but not bulky if that makes sense, otherwise I have no room in my stomach :)
 

[mamalovex3]

Originally Posted by leebee13 

I just wanted to pop in and introduce myself. I am 18 weeks today with Di/di twins ("due" October 19th)! 

Is anyone else having trouble or had trouble gaining weight. I lost 12 pounds in the beginning from severe morning sickness and have just plateaued. I have been keeping food logs for my dr and he says the amounts and what I am eating look great and he is not too concerned as of yet, but then I am reading Dr. Luke's book and feeling like I am destined for teeny tiny preterm nicu babies. Any success stories with little to no early weight gain?

Hello and welcome :)  I haven't had as much trouble gaining weight this time around (I'm pregnant with my second set of twins) but the first time I didn't gain anything until well into the second trimester and gained just under 40 lobs total and my girls were 5 lbs 15 oz and 7 lbs 11 oz when they were born.  This time I gained about 13 lbs by 20 weeks and both babies are measuring right on track.  While I think Dr. Luke's book has some great tips for nutritional and is good as a guideline, I think that it is near impossible to eat the amounts she recommends.  Eat well, lots of protein and snack often on good stuff. 

wendipauline - I taught until nearly 25 weeks during my last pregnancy and it was exhausting!  Try to put your feet up whenever you can.  I had terrible swelling by the end of the day.  I would also partake in snack time with the kids - helps you remember to eat :)

[ithappened]

wendipauline I agree with mamalovex3 I worked up until 28w this pregnancy and its been/was nothing short of exhausting. There were days I wanted to come home and just collapse/cry..
 

[DoubleDouble]

At the very very end of pregnancy, I had an awful craving for goat milk. I wanted it so badly, I would almost start shaking if it wasn't in the house. I drank a lot of it, with the record consumption of 3 1/2 liters - almost a gallon - in one day. It was the perfect drink that also was a meal. Didn't take extra space in the stomach. (I also tried to eat lots of protein, etc., with snacks like 1 lbs of frozen shrimp, nuked, with sauce, or a large protein shake, or other healthy stuff; and I also drank lots of water on top of all that.) Our recycling was full of goat milk bottles.

I started out at 5'8", below 110 lbs, and gained 80 lbs - although at the end, a lot of it was water. My hands and feet were swollen (I wore compression hose), knees swollen and kind of disappeared, even the muscles above the collarbones were swollen and watery - that surprised my doctor. I was measuring 53 cm a week before birth.

Here's a link with some nutrition info:

http://www.askdrsears.com/topics/feeding-infants-toddlers/goat-milk

The babies were 6 lbs and 6 lb 3 oz, 18" and 19.5", at precisely 38 weeks.  I'd say my diet paid off.

[mamalovex3]

Funny you mention that DoubleDouble, during my last twin pregnancy, I drank milk by the bucket!  Seriously, we made almost daily trips to the store for more milk, I just couldn't get enough. 

[ithappened]

re: weight gain..

Im up about 26-28lbs at 29/30w depending on who's measuring. I started out at 5'8 and around 125lbs.. My doctor suggest/wants me to not gain more then 30-35lbs which seems low...? I also am wondering how little or much I will gain these last weeks as suddenly I'm craving way more junk foods and eating a lot from stress not hunger.

[wendipauline]

ithappened, 30-35 DOES seem low. my midwives said they would like to see me gain 50 or a bit more. 

and i'm in the same boat as you- i was doing pretty well for a long time, but now all i want is chocolate, popsicles, lemonade, cake, macaroons....

[BellyBean]

Ithappened, that does seem really low, I was told 45-55lbs.  We were about the same size at the beginning and I am more worried about not gaining enough.  Especially because I platuaed for a couple weeks.  Right now I am 32 weeks and up 35lbs, and

they want me gaining 2lbs per week.  I have had to try hard to gain and my stomach is so tight and feels like it might tear any minute...I attribute the 1.5lbs gained this week to splurging on cheesecake and ice cream :) 

[AHomebirthMama]

Originally Posted by mamalovex3 

AHomebirthMama - You have got some willpower, I had to get an early ultrasound this time to make sure there was only one in there...sure enough, there was two!  Will you get an ultrasound at 20 weeks or not at all?

I'm not planning on having one at all, unless my midwife feels it necessary (and then I'll have to have a big discussion with my husband about it before actually scheduling...he is totally against ultrasounds unless there is definitely a medical reason for one, LOL).

Tomorrow is my 16 week appointment, and I will be asking my midwife to palpate carefully and tell me what she thinks. It feels to me like there is just so much baby in there. And I'm fairly certain I have one up front and one below much of the time. If I'm palpating carefully, I feel definite kicks and jumps from the one in the front, and I can sometimes, within seconds, feel little softer kicks from behind, while one up front is still easy to feel. Part of me does just want to get the u/s just to see, because I don't want to be that crazy lady that thinks she has twins all the way through and then turns out to only have one. But my pride isn't enough to make me need an ultrasound. We'll see, I guess.

[ithappened]

bellybean after eating I get that feeling of my stomach ripping too.. its horrible.

right now at 32/33w I am at a 29/30lb gain..  I am eating all the time but just small amounts, still trying to be active 30-60m a day of swimming, biking or walk/hiking but getting really tired much faster all of a sudden.

I have a meeting tomorrow with my new doctor since my old one won't do a twin delivery and there are no midwifes in our little Podunk town who will do a homebirth.. trying to find peace with going to the big state run hospital here..

[AHomebirthMama]

Well, my midwife thinks there's probably just one, apparently...or either that or she just really isn't worried about it. Her initial response was, "Well, we'll know when a second one comes out at the birth, right?!" LOL! I let her use a doppler just this once and she found only one heartbeat, but she didn't search very long for a second. Besides, I also don't think that if there is a second one in there, it's in a position that will allow its heart to be heard. Something still tells me that I have 2. But we won't do an ultrasound. So I guess I'll definitely know for sure whether I'm just one of those crazy twin-wishing mama's or if I'm right on when I have the baby/babies. I've all of a sudden (at 16 weeks) had a huge weight gain. And my midwife measures fundal height differently from me. Her measurements are consistently 4 cm less than mine. This is the way I've measured my fundal height with all three of my other babies and it's the way I remember it being explained by my first midwife (and probably the way it is explained in Spiritual Midwifery--if it's explained in there). I've never had such a big difference between me and my midwives before. So, my measurement puts me way ahead, while her measurement puts me within the 'normal' range. Oh well. I've decided that I will just continue with what I was doing: taking my own measurements and recording them, continue listening for a second heart tone with my fetoscope (we have found one...the one that keeps trying to push its butt, I think, up above my belly button, and it has a beautiful FHR of 150 or 151 bpm), and continue my own palpations. I'll pay closer attention to my diet and water just in case, and see if anything changes as I get closer. But, really, most of all, I have to relax, and not feel upset that my midwife didn't concur with me. She's a good midwife, and I'm fortunate to have her. Nearly all others would insist that I get an ultrasound so that they could risk me out. She's not going to risk me out unless something really severe comes up. I comforted myself by reading about women who have had midwives that thought they only had one, or women whom no one suspected that there was more than one, and there ended up being twins. Perhaps I'm crazy; perhaps I'm not. Only time will tell. ;-)
 

[nudnik]

Sounds a lot like where I'm holding! I'm really suspecting a second set of twins. I've gained about 35 lb now at nearly 29 weeks, despite significant nausea first trimester that left me barely eating, and in general not eating enough (think 2 meals per day instead of 3). My stomach is in my opinion due date worthy, but oddly enough I'm measuring fine. My first set of twins was undiagnosed, but I think I do remember measuring ahead. Plenty of movement, and like you AHomebirthMama, I have some distinct and some muffled movement. Honestly, my guess is that one baby is engaged (mine tend to do that early) allowing for average fundal height.

For me it's not so bad if I have diagnosed twins - my midwife of choice does twin homebirths.

In case it's only going to be one I'm not pushing anything, but I don't want anyone to think I didn't know if it does turn out to be twins! ;-)

[JodiAriel]

I am 18 weeks with di/di twins and having a really hard time gaining weight.  I started this pregnancy at 5'3"/187lbs and as of this morning am 186.  I am a super picky eater so that doesn't help but I also don't feel hungry and when I do try to force myself to eat my gag reflex kicks in bad. My midwife said she would like to see me start gaining 2 lbs/wk and that was 2 weeks ago.  I'm super frustrated with it because I feel like I am not doing enough for the babies but I also am battling my body.  Grrr....

[ithappened]

Jodi- I didn't start gaining till about 20w... I'm now 33w and up 28-30lbs with di/di twins... I gained almost all of it between 20-28w.
 

[ithappened]

How is everyone doing? Thought I'd check in :)
 

[wendipauline]

Hi all!

Doing ok at 28 weeks. Sleep is very difficult, belly and abdominal muscles are very sore, and today my feet are very swollen! I just looked down and realized my ankles have disappeared. Oops. Seems like it should be too early for this!

But just a couple half- days of work left to go and then I am free to rest and relax all summer. It's very hard for me to walk even a couple of blocks because my back starts to tighten and ache so badly, and I haven't been to yoga in a few weeks. The city's public pools open next weekend and I'm hoping that will give me a new way to stay semi active.

I must look enormous, because people keep asking my due date and then looking shocked when I tell them it isn't til late August.

Third trimester though, wooooooooo!

ithappened, how are you doin?

[QMtwins]

Hey all, just popped in here and was reading all the posts about wt gain and eating.  I think of it daily.  I'm at 18 weeks and I think I've gained about 10 lbs.  Last twin pregnancy I had an even more difficult time with wt gain as I was pretty sick until about 20 weeks.      Really, my wt gain brings me a lot of comfort that I'm growing big healthy kiddos!  Gained 60lbs with the first and they were 5lbs 5 oz and 6lbs at 36 weeks.  Just trying to do a bit better this time.  My OB cautioned me against gaining too much when I told her I was really focused on protein!  I'll never be able to eat Dr. Luke's 170 gms but I try! 

I am starting to look pretty pregnant.  I hadn't shared with a lot of people at one place I work (just a few times a month) that I was pregnant today it all came out...couldn't not when we change clothes in front of each other! 

[ithappened]

wendi I was doing great till this weekend and I sort of feel like I hit a wall- I am EXHAUSTED. I tried to go on a bike ride and made it about 30 mins before I just felt so miserable (and I was going slooooow) that I went home. . the pool has been amazing however but its been pouring down rain and freezing the last 4 days so I haven't been. . 

QM good luck with the pregnancy this round! My weight gain really jumped in the second trimester then totally slowed in the 3rd (at least, so far).

As for me, I'm 34w and having trouble eating much without HORRIBLE acid reflux- I am pretty much living off of smoothies with various proteins in them.. Im still trying to workout but its been too cold for the outdoor pool and this weekend I just felt very ... off.. so I didn't push myself to go out. . still at 30lb gain at 34w. . have a doctors appointment today, hoping the babies flipped, if not I will be scheduling a tentative c-section for 38w
 

[SeattleMolly]

My boys, born at 33 weeks, on their homecoming at 36 weeks. 

[wendipauline]

oh, congrats, SeattleMolly! look at those two big beautiful boys!