So it’s 6:30am and the house is quiet … my boys are still sleeping but I’m wide awake. Today we are off to the zoo for Jaden’s birthday celebration! We are supposed to be rain free until about noon. Then we’ll come back to the house for a bbq and some presents. I just home there is enough room in our little house for everyone!
While I enjoy the silence I started to google some information on multiples. I figure it’s about time I try to find some information/groups for support.
Everyone asks about the babies being in the NICU and I’m not sure myself. Here is some of the information I found:
- How long will the babies need to be in the NICU?
| Average days in the NICU by Multiple Type and Gestation | ||||
| Gestation | Triplets | Quadruplets | Quintuplets | |
| <25 weeks | 60.8 | 18.9 | 68.5 | |
| 25 weeks | 113.5 | 90.0 | 83.0 | |
| 26 weeks | 90.0 | 76.4 | 80.6 | |
| 27 weeks | 82.0 | 52.9 | 75.8 | |
| 28 weeks | 55.2 | 63.4 | 58.3 | |
| 29 weeks | 46.9 | 47.9 | 49.0 | |
| 30 weeks | 39.6 | 39.2 | 48.5 | |
| 31 weeks | 30.7 | 28.6 | 38.3 | |
| 32 weeks | 22.6 | 24.5 | 30.2 | |
| 33 weeks | 16.8 | 18.3 | ||
| 34 weeks | 11.4 | 8.5 | ||
| 35 weeks | 6.2 | 8.1 | ||
| 36 weeks | 3.0 | 5.7 | ||
| 37 weeks | 3.5 | 0.2 | ||
| 38 weeks | 9.3 | |||
- What are the most common complication my multiple birth infants will face?
Complications usually depend on the delivery gestation. At 35 weeks, babies may just need a little time to feed and grow. However, at 23-28 weeks, babies would faces significantly more difficult challenges and may spend many more days in the NICU. Premature babies frequently experience problems with sucking, swallowing and breathing. Other complications may include jaundice, breathing that may require intubation. While not as frequent, babies born before 30 week may experience complications such as intraventicular hemorrhage (IVH), Periventricular leukomalacia (PVL), necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), and infection. (I had no idea what any of these were, so I looked them up on Wikilpedia – links provided for you to use too!)
I’m just going to keep praying and listening to the doctors. Doug has been taking great care of me! Always making sure I’m well rested, not pushing myself too hard and always willing to jump in when I need to rest. Thank you Dougie for being so great to me!
I should get the boys up … we’ll have company in about an hour and a half! Happy birthday party day Jaden!