What to Expect When You Are Expecting Multiples

I wish I was telling you the coolest, funniest, most creative way I told my husband we were expecting twins. I wish I could share his reaction with you that I captured on video. Unfortunately, there is no cool story. No memory of his reaction. Nothing. In this post, we will explore how I found out I was expecting multiples and what steps I took after to help prepare me for my journey of being a twin mom.

I was in such shock from the ultrasound technician telling me that the pain in my pelvis was caused by carrying twins that I didn’t even think. I immediately texted him saying “call me as soon as you can.” I needed to just get it out.

The three hours waiting until my husband was on lunch felt like an eternity. I went back to work and tried to distract myself as best I could to make the time go by. When he finally called me, he asked what was going on and if everything was okay.

The conversation went like this:

Me: Yes, everything is okay... but you’re about to have two babies instead of one.

Brian: Why would you say that, that’s not funny!

Me: I’m not being funny...I’m not joking, I swear.

Brian: You’re not having twins, come on, seriously... What did they really say?

Me: Look at your phone, I just sent you the ultrasound.

Brian: ...Wow...

Me: Yup. Twins.

We could only talk for a few minutes before Brian had to go back to work. Months later I found out there were some tears behind that “wow.” There was a lot behind the long pauses and silence. I didn’t realize how deeply it affected him.

I wish he was with me at the ultrasound. I wish I had waited to tell him. I wish I had told him when he got home. I wish I captured his reaction on video. I wish I planned a cute surprise. In retrospect, I can think of a million things I would have done differently in telling Brian about the twins. But... I didn’t.

Ultrasound Results

Later in the day, I received the electronic copy of my ultrasound with the diagnosis of the twins. This was the first time I could to digest what the technician had told me. "Live twin pregnancy, appears to be monochorionic, diamniotic." What the hell does that even mean?

Naturally I turned to Google... which was a big, fat, whopping mistake. Why?

Google "monochorionic diamniotic twin gestation"... the first thing that comes up? An article titled "Birth Defects in Monochorionic Twins" by Childrens Hospital of Wisconsin. The first sentence, " A birth defect or anomaly is a medical term meaning irregular or different from normal. Anomalies occur more frequently in identical twins than in other pregnancies." I should have known then that my natural, healthy, low risk pregnancy plan was straight out the window.

Finding A Doctor When You Are Expecting Multiples

As I scanned the results of my ultrasound, I got a call from my doctors office with the midwife I had been assigned. She asked me if I had seen the results and I said yes. She began explaining that I was carrying twins, most likely identical twins, and that I would need to be seen by one of the OBs in their office. When I asked why she said that twin pregnancies cannot be monitored by midwives. What?

I asked her to clarify why and she told me that twins are always delivered in the operating room because of the risks associated and because midwives can't perform C-Sections or other surgeries that twin deliveries usually needed, I would need an OB who was trained to do those things. What? What risks?

All I could think was what was this lady talking about! I was 27 years old, healthy, and in great shape. She told me that I would be referred a perninatologist at a Maternal Fetal Medicine's (MFM) office that would reach out to me to schedule my consultation in a few weeks. She told me to restrict my exercise to walking and biking and to try not get my heart rate over 140 bpm. Again, I turned to Google... again, another huge mistake.

Up next... the risks.