Becoming a parent is an incredible life-changing event which nothing can quite prepare you for. So what’s it like for parents of twins or multiples? All babies and their experiences are different but one thing you can count on is that your parenting life will be very different to parents with a single baby. You’ll often hear that the best advice you can get is from other parents of multiples who have been there and done that. Here are a few tips from a mum of twins, and an Infant Mental Health specialist from Tresillian. Hats off to all of you super mums out there!
Creating a workable sleep routine for two babies is important for you, the babies and the whole family
Try to be consistent and responsive to the need of the individual babies while establishing a similar pattern for both
Always follow safe sleeping guidelines
Keep the patterns of the daily activities similar for both babies in an attempt to reduce your workload
Take small opportunities during the day to rest and store your own energy level as while caring for two or more children is rewarding, it is extremely exhausting
Take time to build your confidence caring for two babies and spend time getting to know their individual personalities
Reschedule couple time as this important relationship can be forgotten with the arrival of two or more babies. Babies need to know that their parents are their safe secure base and they are connected to each other.
Helpful resources – The Australian Multiple Birth Association which has local resources that you may find helpful.
What’s the best advice you were given as a parent of twins or multiple children? We’d love to hear from you! Share your favourite twin tips, advice and stories with us so we can share with the rest of the SleepWellBaby family!
Did you know that SleepWellBaby app has a feature to support multiple children? You can track, view their progress all in one app! Easily switch between profiles to do that via the app.