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Sleeping

During the first months after your babies come home, sleep is the most important thing!

 

Sleep when they sleep is good advice - take sleep whenever you can get it if they are sleeping at the same time!

 

Let the house be dirty before shorting yourself of sleep. If you have to choose between taking a shower and taking a nap -nap today and shower tomorrow!

 

All parents and children are different. There is no formula that will work for all. Find a strategy that works for your family.

 

Consider having a sitter come and watch the babies so that both mom and dad can nap.

 

During the first few months it is hard to establish a regular feeding and naptime schedule for both babies. Be flexible.

 

Get a pair of sleep blindfolds -the type many people use on an airplane. They help considerably for sleeping during the day when the babies sleep.

 

Some night time strategies (in no particular order):

  • Have each parent care for one twin each night and switch off every night, so that each parent is responsible for 1 baby and has equal time with each. Have both parents get up for all feedings.
  • If breastfeeding, learn to feed both at once so that the feeding is as short as possible. Dad can help position babies for feeding and change diapers.
  • Have each parent sleep through one feeding. For example, have dad sleep through the 3 am feeding and mom sleep through the 6 am feeding. If mom is breastfeeding, then she should get up to pump, but can go immediately back to sleep. If everything is set up for pumping before going to bed, she is up for less than 20 minutes.
  • Have set shifts. For example, mom takes 10 pm to 3 am and dad takes 3 am to 8 am. Whatever care the babies need in that time is up to the parent who is "on".
  • Have a relative, friend or hired help come in one night a week to let both parents sleep as much as possible. If mom is breastfeeding, she still needs to get up to pump.

If babies want to play and be active during the night, you need to make changes to differentiate day and night. Most books recommend keeping it light and noisy during the day and quiet and dark at night. That works for some kids. For others, parents have reversed that -noisy and light at night, quiet and dark in the day with good success.

 

Some babies do not sleep if it is dark and quiet, especially if they spent time in the NICU which is a noisy, bright place. You may need to have a light or radio on for them at least for the first few nights at home. If the babies are both napping, then nap no matter what time of day it is. You're going to need it!

 

 

Getting your multiples on a sleeping schedule

 

a. Start at about 3 months to try and nap the babies at the same time. Put both babies down to sleep at same time, even if one is not sleepy yet -they can look at a mobile or book or talk to themselves (or cry) until the fall asleep. Wake both babies up at the same time.

b. Co-sleeping- babies may sleep together in one crib or bassinette initially and can be moved apart once they are moving and waking each other up or posing a risk for suffocation. You can also purchase a crib divider to separate them within a crib.

c. Initially babies usually nap in bouncy seats, bassinettes, play yards, swings, car seats etc. For daytime naps -you can try using a different place than the crib initia1ly to help them learn to differentiate night from day. By 3 months (or earlier), you can start having them nap in the crib.

 

d. Sleep, eat wake cycle: If a baby is fed .then spends time awake then goes down for a nap, this can help develop a feeding and sleeping schedule for the babies. This often help,s develop a schedule so that they sleep better at night and also helps develop the ability to fall asleep on their own without being fed a bottle or breastfeeding. Some mothers prefer to burse or fee babies to help them fall asleep, so there are different ways of doing things and you need to figure out what works for you and your babies.

e. At night -keep lights off, use a dimly lit lamp to see and don't socialize. If you live in a two story house, and you are bottle feeding ( formula or pumped breast milk) you can either buy a small fridge for upstairs and a bottle warmer or you can bring up ready made bottles in a cooler with an ice pack and warm them up in a jar with hot water. If you are feeding formula, you can also buy ready to make formula for nighttime only (since its more expensive).

f. Ultimate Crib sheet -this is a white sheet that fits over the crib sheet and can be changed easily when the baby spits up or has a diaper leak. Having 4 allows youto always have one clean one on hand when one is in the wash. Otherwise you can layer the bed with sheetl mattress pad/ sheetl mattress pad to allow for a quick change by just pulling one set off and there is a clean one underneath.

g. Night time routine -this can be started quite early (2-3 months) and try using the same routine every night i.e. a bath (not nightly in young babies), change into PJs, read a book or sing a lullaby or play music. This helps develop a schedule for the kids so they know what to expect and don't resent going to bed. Y,ou can do the same thing with a wake up schedule every morning as well.

h) Sleeping schedule for you and spouse-

i) Decide in advance who is up and when and what shifts they are taking. Examples: 11-1 PM goes to sleep at 5 PM and sleep to 12 AM and dad takes care of them and bottle feeds the 9:00 PM feeding. Second example -mom goes to bed at 10 PM after 9 PM feeding). mom wakes up to pump at midnight/ 1 AM and dad bottle feeds this feeding. Mom goes back to sleep right after 15-20 minute pumping and then wakes up for 4 AM feeding and then back to sleep once babies are back in bed.

ii) Split the night time into shifts and that parent is responsible for that time period (i.e. dad- 12-4; moJD- 4-8).

 

iii) One parent takes a baby for the night and is responsible for feeding and changing that baby -I personally don't like this because it means that neither parent gets any sleep and both are tired the next day.

 

 

How to catch a few extra minutes of shuteye!

 

a. Have your husband or someone help you with feedings. For example, someone else can feed once at night while mom just pumps or sleeps through feeding (depending on your milk supply). This may allow you to get some extra sleep. Have someone watch babies in the AM after the early feeding, so you can go back to sleep for a few more hours.

b. Sleep when babies sleep.

 

c. Sleep in once a week if someone else can help you.

 

d. In early stages try to go back to sleep after the 4-6 AM feedings and hopefully babies will sleep too. If not (i.e. feeding is at 6 AM, see if someone else can watch babies after you feed them so you can get extra sleep ).

 

 

 

Products and Tips :

* Work in shifts!

* Sleep when they sleep!