Our Story: Pregnancy

So, I could go on and on about my pregnancy. And in my book, I actually do. But I'll just give the quickie synopsis here.

So Many Things “Two” Consider

I knew pregnancy would be a fun time. So many women rubbed their growing bellies exclaiming, “I love being pregnant.” Now that I’ve been pregnant and know what it feels like, I just have one thing to say: Those women are crazy. With all my book reading and internet research, I knew twin pregnancy was going to be difficult. I just didn’t know how difficult.

At times it seemed that the birth was years away and wouldn’t get here soon enough. Other times, I realized how much there was to do to prepare for bringing babies home. I read a lot on the internet, joined an online M.O.M. (Moms of Multiples) group, and bought the What to Expect book to thumb through in the evenings. I really liked Dr Barbara Luke's book called When You're Expecting Twins... because it was much more twin-specific.

The first few months, Ryan and I would go to bed at the same time and I’d read him bits and pieces from this or that book. I’d chat with him about names. I’d blab to him about what I wanted the nursery to look like, what gear I’d researched that day or how our lives would be different once the babies came. He went along with it. He knew I was so tired that I couldn’t babble too long before falling asleep.

Pregnancy Woes
Everything comes earlier for twins. Everything I read also says that the morning sickness most women experience can start sooner and come on stronger when pregnant with twins than a singleton pregnancy. Oh, joy! And looking back, it was true. Knowing dates and weeks gestation, I counted backwards. I started experiencing nausea and horrible strong scents probably around 2 weeks pregnant - well before I knew I was expecting one, let alone two babies.

Morning Sickness
Oh, the lovely morning sickness. Not many people tell you that morning sickness lasts all day. That was the worst part of it. If I didn't keep eating solids and keep hydrated, I got sick quite easily. I was constantly nauseated but never threw up. I kept saltine crackers at the ready.

There are so many remedies for morning sickness. The best one is to just keep eating and drinking, even when it sounds disgusting and especially then. The thing that helped me get over that yucky feeling even when I had been eating and drinking was to sip some peppermint tea. When you have an upset tummy, Grandma always gives you peppermint candy. It was hard to get used to the minty brown brew for a non-tea drinker. But it did the trick. I would slowly sip, and slowly but surely, I would feel better. Ask any woman and she'll have her own remedy for you to try. But this one worked for me.

I had my own kind of morning sickness. I had the runs. Like - every stinking morning. Poor Ryan would wake up and get me a drink of water and some Kaopectate pills (yucky, but safe during pregnancy). It actually became a routine for my husband. Get up to the sounds of your wife sick in the bathroom, bring her some Kaopectate and some water or a bottle of Gatorade, hold your breath as you enter the bathroom so you don't have to smell the stink, drop off the goods, and leave in a hurry. Every morning. Good thing we bought the 3-pack. I had diarrhea so much in the mornings that I was scared that the babies weren't getting any nutrition. By 14 weeks along, I had lost 10 pounds. The doctors office staff was concerned about that but said that since I was "fluffy" to begin with, there wasn't much to worry about.