for parents of twins & multiples
My birth story… by Donna Belcher At 35 wks +6 days I was due for my 36wk check up the following day. I was hoping they would give me a date to induce me as i could hardly get out of bed by this stage. I woke up that Sunday morning aching a bit, but […]
My birth story…by Amy Savvides The first big shock was when the sonographer told us there was ‘two in there’ – the second big shock was when the consultant told us they were identical! We’d only just started getting used to the fact there was 2 of them, let alone them being identical and the […]
Mums and Dads give their verdict on the best and worst bits of parenting multiples.. What would you add? Send us your Bests and Worsts… THE BEST THING IS : “Best thing – is having an instant family. I can’t imagine having a singleton – they must be such lonely children! ” “Having […]
Twin Terminology There are 3 main reference points which you may hear a lot of from now on in. They include the chorion (placenta), the amnion (the sac containing fluid in which the baby grows) and the zygosity (referring to the egg). These terms refer to whether the babies have their own amniotic sac, their […]
Differences in identical twins ? Although genetically identical, monozygotic twins can be different in one incredible way. Scientists now believe that identical twins fall into one of two categories, either mirror image twins, or carbon copy twins. What are mirror image twins ? Mirror-image twins occur only in identical twins. A definitive explanation for mirror imaging […]
Multiple pregnancies occur when either more than one egg is released for fertilisation, or when one egg is fertilised and subsequently splits. In identical multiples, the egg splits shortly after fertilisation (within 2 weeks). Identical triplets and higher order multiples occur when one or more of these eggs splits again. Identicals will be of the same […]
What is Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome (TTTS)? Also sometimes known as ‘FFTS’ (Feto-Fetal Transfusion Syndrome), and as ‘TOPS’ (Twin Oligohydramnios-Polyhydramnios Sequence), TTTS is a disease of identical twin fetuses caused by abnormal connecting blood vessels in the twins’ placenta, resulting in an imbalanced flow of blood from one twin to another. The implications of […]