Endless Amount of Questions

Hello twin mommies!! I always feel like I go to the peds appointments with several questions, and then come home with many more that I could have asked!! Please let me know what you did or are doing about these concerns...
1. What type of sleep schedule were your two month olds doing? How many hours a day were they sleeping? Ours are lucky if they sleep 12 hrs. a day.
2. We had our first projectile vomiting incident this morning. Should I be concerned?
3. Our girls seem to be wide awake during most of the day. Sometimes they are content just sitting in bouncer or under play gym, but other times they are fussy and crying, is this normal?
4. How do you know the difference between gas, colic, or reflux? We are going to see a GI doctor tomorrow to find out what is the problem.
5. As much as I love my angels, when does this get a little easier??

Thanks and hugs to you all,
Jen

 

1. What type of sleep schedule were your two month olds doing? How many hours a day were they sleeping?
NOT ENOUGH!!!! Usually, they were only awake for an hour or so before they were ready to be put back to bed (which was often in the swing or a baby papasan). I found that if I put them down when they FIRST started to fuss, they MIGHT fuss for a moment and then they'd be out.

2. We had our first projectile vomiting incident this morning. Should I be concerned?
When in doubt, call the pediatrician; however, if the baby otherwise seems normal (nursing or taking a bottle, no fever, not OVERLY fussy, enough wet diapers), then I might just chalk it up to a giant air bubble/messy burp. If it were to continue, tho, I'd make an appt with the ped.

3. Our girls seem to be wide awake during most of the day. Sometimes they are content just sitting in bouncer or under play gym, but other times they are fussy and crying, is this normal?
I think both contentedness and fussiness are normal - however, they shouldn't be awake most of the day! It sounds as tho maybe they're getting overtired, which is why they're content one moment, and fussy/crying the next - try looking for yawns, eye rubs, ear pulling, etc, and put them down when they start doing those things so that they get to be BEFORE they're overtired and overstimulated. They shouldn't be awake for very long between naps at this stage!

4. How do you know the difference between gas, colic, or reflux? We are going to see a GI doctor tomorrow to find out what is the problem.
One daughter is gassy - if she's fussy, and doing the bicycle with her legs or rubbing her tummy works, we give her some gripe water and it usually goes away. BOTH daughters have reflux and are on Zantac for it - if they start to burp alot and it sounds wet, and they get fussy, I attribute it to that. One daughter had colic for a short time - and she screamed and screamed and screamed and screamed for hours no matter what we did!

5. As much as I love my angels, when does this get a little easier??
Everyone tends to say 6mos - mine are 8.5 and I think things are just now starting to ease up a bit...although we still have our moments

 

1. What type of sleep schedule were your two month olds doing? How many hours a day were they sleeping? Ours are lucky if they sleep 12 hrs. a day.
-At 2m mine woke every 3 hrs. to eat, all day/all night. They would stay up about an hour to an hour in a half at a time.


2. We had our first projectile vomiting incident this morning. Should I be concerned? My had projectile vomit at 2m also but accompied with diarrehea and at one point blood in the stool after switching formulas 4 times the Pedi said they were allergic to milk and soy. It could be reflux or you may want to try a gentler formula that breaks down the milk protein so it is easier for them to digest. I think alot of moms use Good Start. I had mine on Hyperallegenic Alimentum because of their allergy. And no, it did not affect their switch to whole milk at 12m, so don't worrry if that's the case for yours.


3. Our girls seem to be wide awake during most of the day. Sometimes they are content just sitting in bouncer or under play gym, but other times they are fussy and crying, is this normal? Yes completely. Mine had certain times of the day that was their fussy periods, everyday around the same times, just try and find something they may be content with whether it's a swing, bouncer (mine lived in theirs), sometimes nothing works and you just have to let them get over it.


4. How do you know the difference between gas, colic, or reflux? We are going to see a GI doctor tomorrow to find out what is the problem. I , don't know the specific details on the difference but I did have to use alot of mylicon drops, I think it's pretty normal for babies to be gassy. The GI doctor will be able to tell you specifics but if you google colic there are certain things that define colic, something like it can start around 3 weeks of age, last 3 hours a day for 3 weeks straight, again the GI or another mom on hear can give you specifics, mine did not have reflux or colic..thank god..lol!


5. As much as I love my angels, when does this get a little easier?? Um, for me the first year was rough, until about 11/12 months when they gain a little more independence from walking crawling and you have a solid routine going it gets better. I didn't do much last year, but since they have turned one I bring them to parties on my own, go out on my own they know what to expect everyday, that kind of thing.

GL...It goes fast!

 

I'll try to remember all this stuff...as you're finding out already, I'm sure, the first few months were a blur to me!

1. At 2 months I don't remember their exact schedule, but they were eating about every 3 hrs during the day. They'd nap 3 times during the day for 20-50 minutes at a time. Bedtime was around 9 or 10pm. They'd eat again around 1-3am and sometimes again at 4-6am depending on when the middle of the night feeding was. They usually were pretty fussy after 5 or 6pm until bedtime. We tried keeping them up during that time though, hoping they'd sleep more at night. I'm pretty sure they were sleeping more than 12 hrs a day, more like 14-16 maybe. We eventually started moving their bedtime up a little at a time. By 4-5 months they were going down around 7 or 7:30 pm and sometimes getting up once a night, sometimes not.

2. Only one of mine did the projectile vomiting thing. The first time it happened, it scared me to death...I think I started crying. My pedi told me as long as they aren't throwing up as much as they eat, its usually no big deal. Call your Pedi if you have concerns!!

3. Yes, I think its normal for them to sometimes be content and sometimes not. I think I was more shocked if they both were content. I used their swings a lot at that age when they were fussy. I also walked a track around our kitchen island singing to them with the radio more times than I can count...especially in the evenings when they were almost always fussy. I also remember in the evenings putting one on each knee and bouncy them until my legs wouldn't go anymore! By accident we found out that they liked to lay on towels on the kitchen island and listen to the radio when they were fussy. I think they liked looking at the bright light in the kitchen, but I'm not sure.

4. Gas, colic, reflux...I really don't know. Trial and error I guess. We'd try gas drops, if that didn't work, we'd put them in the "colic hold" face down on your forearm and swing them around. Around that age I guess, my pedi thought Madison had reflux even though she didn't spit up a lot, but because she was getting fussy when taking a bottle, so she put her on Maalox and a prescription (Zantac maybe?? twin brain :blink: ).

5. I'd say it started getting easier around 4-6 months. Around 4 months, I got them onto a pretty set schedule which helped immensly! By 1 year, I was really starting to love it!! I don't know how other people feel, but for me, once they could walk, it was awesome!

Hang in there, you'll get there!!!

Marcy

 

First of all, Congrats on your twins!

ok, the questions: Just keep in mind there is no right or wrong, you should never really compare to other people's situations and experiences, and as hard as it will be at times, try not to compare your twins to each other. They will do their own things at their own times, sometimes together, sometimes not.

1. At 2 months, things were still really rough for us. My girls were also awake a lot. It could have been my fault because at that time didn't know about the sleepy signs at all. However, to this day, my girls only sleep about 10 hours/nt. One dd takes 1 nap a day for about 1-2 hours and the other takes 2 naps a day for a total of about 2-3 hours. So, they're just not big sleepers. My ped has always told me that their sleep patterns are totally within the norm every time I have asked him.

2. We've had the projectile vomit here as well (still do sometimes ) As pp said if it was a one time occurence, it could just be a big air bubble and the vomit was the result. If it's happening more frequently then deffinately call the ped if anything, to just ease your mind about it. It is very scary when it happens so I can totally relate to your concern. And if it ever comes out the nose, that is also normal

3. Again I agree with Slackwater that they are probably overtired. Look for the sleepy signs and right away try to put them down. However, again my girls were also awake a lot during the day. Whether that was my fault I will never know but to this day, they are healthy, smart girls so I don't think it hurt them in anyway.

4. Well, my ped would either say it's gas or reflux. In fact, most babies who used to be diagnosed as being "collicky" are now being correctly diagnosed as having reflux (according to him and other peds in the office). Back in the day they didn't know a lot about it. That is not however the opinion of EVERY ped as they all seem to have their own philosophies. There are very obvious signs to reflux that make it stand out. My one daughter was diagnosed with reflux around 6-8 weeks and my second dd got it at about 3 months. The signs for reflux are this: Arching of the back during or after a feeding, crying during or right after a feeding, crying or fussiness if you lay them down soon after they have eaten, not eating very much and A LOT OF SPIT UP (although this is not necessarily the case for all babies but Lorien, who was the 2nd one to get it used to spit up about 10-12 times a day and that is no exageration)

5. As for it getting easier, hmmmmmmmm....well, that is entirely different for everyone as well. It just depends on your babies. My friends baby started sleeping through the night before she was 2 months old ( :angry: ). One of my dd started sleeping through the night at about 7 months and the other one at 11. They still often wake up even now, especially since they have been teething and are getting over colds GRRRRRR. I would say overall however, for me, it started to get easier around 7-8 months. Once they could both sit up on their own, it was so much easier. I could put a bunch of toys in front of them and they could play away. From that point on it got easier and more fun but at the same time, different things arise. It will always be a hard job (obviously). IMO I think anyone who says being a mom is so "easy" either has a full time nanny (not to say that all moms who have a nanny are not involved!) or isn't very involved with the babies. Hang in there, you are doing a great job and your concern, and questions, and frustration, and exhaustion are all part of being a great mom (and a human being)! GL

 

You are still in the midst of the madness. That is what I called it anyway! Do whatever you can to survive these first few months! It is hard!

1. No schedule! It was still nutso around here! They did sleep quite a bit still.
2. I wouldn't worry just yet...she might have had a big burp that needed to come out one way or the other!
3. Normal.
4. Lots of docs are now saying that the majority of colic is due to reflux. I put Mylicon drops in every bottle at that age.
4. Around 3 months. :hug99:

 

1. What type of sleep schedule were your two month olds doing? How many hours a day were they sleeping? Ours are lucky if they sleep 12 hrs. a day.
My guys did not come home from the NICU until right after 2.5 months. They were eating about every 4 hours. If they were not eating, they were sleeping
2. We had our first projectile vomiting incident this morning. Should I be concerned?
I would not unless it continues. Our little guy started projectile vomiting and it continued with every feeding in the NICU. Come to find out he had pyloric stinosis (The closing of the opening from the stomach to the intestine). This was resolved with surgery. But from what I hear it only occurs with boys.
3. Our girls seem to be wide awake during most of the day. Sometimes they are content just sitting in bouncer or under play gym, but other times they are fussy and crying, is this normal?
I would think yes this is normal.......think about it.......are you grumpy and happy at various times during the day?
4. How do you know the difference between gas, colic, or reflux? We are going to see a GI doctor tomorrow to find out what is the problem.
Gas can be handled by burping. The crying stops after burping. Reflux they cry during feeding or immediately after feeding for about an hour or so. Colic......not sure, but I hear it is HORRIBLE!
5. As much as I love my angels, when does this get a little easier??
Hehe!! It does get easier.........TRUST ME! I thought that I was going to lose my mind and I thought that I would kill my husband, but it does get easier.......just have patience. Life will be GREAT when you can get them to sleep through the night!

 

1. What type of sleep schedule were your two month olds doing? They slept whenever they wanted. At 2 months it is really hard to establish a sleep routine. How many hours a day were they sleeping? They slept a lot at that age, I can't even remember. Ours are lucky if they sleep 12 hrs. a day.
2. We had our first projectile vomiting incident this morning. Should I be concerned? Not unless it happens very frequently, then it could be a sign of reflux.
3. Our girls seem to be wide awake during most of the day. Sometimes they are content just sitting in bouncer or under play gym, but other times they are fussy and crying, is this normal? Very normal. I think you can ask anyone... and they will definitely tell you there are lots of periods of time when their babies are fussing or crying.
4. How do you know the difference between gas, colic, or reflux? We are going to see a GI doctor tomorrow to find out what is the problem. With colic or reflux, they will do a lot of fussing/screaming and arching of the back, and spitting up frequently. It is hard to settle them.
5. As much as I love my angels, when does this get a little easier?? I can't really say that it does get easier, but a lot of changes happen. When one bad thing ends, a new thing starts. I can definitely say it does get easier... but things are very different each time.

 

1. What type of sleep schedule were your two month olds doing? How many hours a day were they sleeping? Ours are lucky if they sleep 12 hrs. a day.

My boys are 9 weeks. I logged their sleep yesterday and they are sleeping about 16 hours a day.
They wake at approx 7:00 a..m. and go to sleep at approx 7:00 p.m. They take 3 naps. They awake once during the night to eat at around 3-4 a.m. (I "dream feed" them around 10 p.m. before I go to bed)

2. We had our first projectile vomiting incident this morning. Should I be concerned?

My twins projectile spit up, but I would ask the pedi to be sure.

3. Our girls seem to be wide awake during most of the day. Sometimes they are content just sitting in bouncer or under play gym, but other times they are fussy and crying, is this normal?

I would agree with one of the PP that it sounds like they are overtired. At their age, they should only be awake for a few hours at a time or they can get overstimulated, making falling asleep that much harder.

4. How do you know the difference between gas, colic, or reflux?

We are having lots of gassiness and reflux too - then fussiness in the afternoons/evenings. I have asked the pedi about it and he sort of acts like it's pretty normal. I am going to ask him about it again.

5. As much as I love my angels, when does this get a little easier??

I can't answer this one yet.