How to Take Care of Preemie Twins

When you give birth to twins, who decide to come into the world early, you will need lots of help. My twins were born two weeks early or at 7 1/2 months gestation. They just turned 2, two weeks ago and today, you would never know they were once preemies.

With twin babies, preemies or not, a lot of help is something you will not take for granted.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Your baby or twins will start out in the NICU
• Your baby or twins will more likely than not be in the NICU for two weeks, like mine were for growth purposes and monitoring their heart and respiration from the nurses and doctors
• Your baby or twins will be fed through a gavage tube a special formula which starts out at 20 calories
• Your baby or twins will need to be at least 4 to 4 1/2 pounds before they can be released from the NICU

How to Take Care of Your Preemie Twins

1. 
   Twin "A" with purple sunglasses and headgear on

   Twin "A", was born at 3 pounds, 8 ounces and 17 inches. She was so small and was instantly put in an incubator in the downstairs NICU for monitoring by the NICU doctor and nurses.
   
   Twin "A" stayed warm in her incubator with purple sunglasses over her eyes and purple headgear for protection. She was well protected and monitored around the clock. I was upstairs in my bed recovering from my C Section.

2. 
   Mommy, Me, hold Twin A in downstairs NICU

   Preemies, like Twin "A", need to be held a lot to know they are not alone. Preemie babies have a very distinct cry too. Their cry, my Twin "A"'s cry was like a lost kitten. Oh goodness, she was so tiny and every time I saw her or held her, I cried. Just loving her and encouraging her to grow and thrive was the doctor, nurses, my husband and my goal.
   
   Once my stay at the hospital was up, because my insurance would not allow me to stay for more than a week, my husband and I went back every night to hold, feed and bathe our little baby.

3. 
   Twin B with purple sunglasses on

   Twin "B", was born 3 pounds, 13 ounces and 16 inches. She was so small and like her sister, was instantly put in an incubator in the downstairs NICU for monitoring by the NICU doctor and nurses.
   
   Twin "B" stayed warm in her incubator with purple sunglasses over her eyes and purple headgear for protection. She was well protected and monitored around the clock. I was upstairs in my bed recovering from my C Section.

4. 
   Mommy, Me, holding Twin "B" in Upstairs NICU

   Twin "B", a preemie like her sister, was also held a lot to know she was not alone. Just like her sister Twin "A", Twin "B" too had a very distinct cry too; like a lost kitten. Emma was so small and everytime I saw her or held her, I cried like I did with Twin "A". Just loving her and encouraging her to grow and thrive was the doctor, nurses, my husband and my goal.
   
   Once my stay at the hospital was up, my husband and I went back every night to hold, feed and bathe our little baby.

Tips & Warnings

• The NICU nurses will always request you wash your hands before holding your preemie as they do not want you to give something, like a cold, to your preemie who has not built up their immune system yet.
• Like your preemie, you too will have to wear a bracelet for identification purposes.
• If you have guests, they can only see your preemie baby with your authorization.
• Thank your nurses and doctors for taking good care of your preemie baby or twins.
• When you get home with your preemie(s), the routine you had in the NICU, keep doing it. It will protect them from whatever sickness is going around.
• Keep some healing lotion on hand because your hands will become cracked very soon and begin to bleed.
• Never, ever enter the NICU room without first cleaning your hands real good in the washroom, your baby or twins life depends on it

[labellefleur100]

on 4/20/2009 Good thing I never had to deal with preemies. Great tips! 5*

[tachic]

on 2/19/2009 This is great. luckily mine weren't preemies but great advice!