8 Things that Helped Me Survive a Twin Pregnancy 

I survived a twin pregnancy. I should really say that I thrived since I was so very fortunate to not have any complications like so many mothers of multiples do. Even with no complications, carrying two full-term is hard – harder than my previous pregnancies by a long shot. 

But there are ways to make it easier. Below are a few things that helped me get through it:

1. Yeti mug. You have to drink a lot of water to keep those contractions away at the end. Every morning I would fill mine up with ice and water before going to work. The ice would last all day so I could always have cold water without too much of a hassle. 
2. Ensure. I never thought I would say this…but I actually got tired of eating. At the end, the girls sucked every bit of energy I had and I was hungry but too tired to get enough food in. I’m not a medical professional but I really think that getting enough calories and nutrition helped my babies be as big as they were (7 lbs and 6 lbs 13 oz). I was hesitant to try Ensure but it actually tasted pretty good and was super easy. I bought it at Sam’s Club to save money.
3. Recliner-glider. I got a big one for our living room in preparation to nurse the twins. Getting it early is good because you’ll likely need a place to prop your feet up and may even end up sleeping there. Plus, we are loving it to easily hold both girls now. 
4. Pregnancy pillow. This is a personal preference but I don’t think I could’ve slept without my Leachco Snoogle Total Body Pillow.  It was worth every penny. With my other singleton pregnancies I used Leachco Back ‘N Belly Contoured Body Pillow but found that this was going to be waaaay too hot this round since it wrapped around my front and back.  
5. Twin and extra long maternity clothes. Finding clothes that fit over my belly from the end of the second trimester on became a challenge. I worked until 35 weeks in a position that required me to wear professional attire 5 days a week. Professional maternity clothes is hard enough to find but it became even harder when you add an extra baby in there. I found twin maternity clothes by Dr. Luke during my third trimester after almost everything I had no longer fit. I wished I’d found it earlier. The shirts and dresses were cool, comfy, and plain so I could accessorize easily. I also found a few long enough shirts that worked from other stores but it was much harder and they weren’t as versatile. Even my husbands XL shirts were snug and too short for me. 
6. Flats. And for me, in a wide size. To say my feet got huge would be the understatement of the year. You will want to find comfy flats that are easy to slide on and kick off. You are going to be carrying a lot extra weight. It’s ok to shop the aisle with the Easy Spirit shoes. I found a pair that fit and bought them in black and tan. Between flat shoes and a recliner, your feet will thank you at the end of the day. 
7. Fan. I was hot at night even with the overhead fan and AC on. I slept with only a sheet. Having a fan on the nightstand blowing directly on me helped to get cool enough to sleep. This was helpful even after delivery, when my hormones were even more out of whack. 
8. Support camisoles. I had terrible back pain….to the point that I almost went to physical therapy. I tried a couple of different support bands but they were big, bulky, showed through my clothes, dug into me, and always moved around. I finally found BellyBra Maternity Support Tank and wore them pretty much every day. I had two black and one white, which made it easier to always have one clean. If I had it to do over again I would’ve bought these and worn them from the start of second trimester on. 

I didn’t list this, but a helpful, patient, supportive, and loving partner and family  is super helpful too. I know you can’t buy that on Amazon or Buy Buy Baby but I wanted to make sure to give credit where it’s due (especially Garen and my mom, in my case). 

If you’re expecting multiples, I’m sure you’ll read plenty of other great lists like this but these things really made my twin pregnancy a lot easier. I guess most of these would make a regular pregnancy better too. I hope they can help any expecting Mamas (and their supporters) out. Hang in there mamas!