Last updated on February 12th, 2024 at 03:15 pm
Once you find out you are having twins (or more) it probably won’t be long before someone (your doctor, your mother, your sister, or a complete stranger) tells you that you might have to go on bed rest.
It is NOT inevitable; there are plenty of women who get through multiples pregnancy without needing bed rest. However, some do not. Should you find yourself (or someone you know and love) headed for bed rest, here are some tips for surviving it!
When it comes to twin (or more) pregnancies, my best advice is to hope for the best, but plan for the worst. Apply this method of thinking to the possibility of bed rest. If it doesn’t happen, you can breathe a big sigh of relief. But if it does, you will want to have a lot of your “do before the babies come” list accomplished.
Things to do Before Bed Rest
- Take your hospital tour and whatever classes you plan to take, birthing class, breastfeeding, etc. before 24 weeks.
- Get the nursery ready. Embrace the nesting while you still have the energy to do it.
- Make a backup plan at work for if/when you go on bed rest and present it to your supervisor no later than 20 weeks.
- Register for all the stuff and have your baby shower early.
- Start cutting expenses to plan for additional time off of work, just in case.
What to Do if You End up on Bed Rest
- Listen to your doctor. Bed rest is no fun but having your babies in the NICU is worse!
- Try and stay positive. You have a superpower. You make babies two at a time (or more). And because of this, you are more susceptible to needing bed rest. Don’t beat yourself up.
- Recruit some help. It may be too much for just your husband/partner to take care of you. Enlist your parents and friends to help out.
- Remember that as hard as it may be to lay down and watch others do things for you or take care of things you would like to do, your only job is to keep those babies in cooking as long as you can! An additional day in the womb is potentially one less day the babies might spend in the NICU.
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- Find yourself some good entertainment. Now is the time to read all those books (pregnancy and non-pregnancy), and binge-watch all those TV series you’ve wanted to watch. Live it up, once those babies come, your “me time” is going to take a really big hit!
- If you are having trouble sleeping, stop worrying about what the clock says. Sleep when you’re tired, even if it’s the middle of the day! As your pregnancy progresses sleep will probably become quite a commodity. Get as much sleep as you can, regardless of the time of day. Read or watch TV until you’re tired, if you can’t sleep at night.
Don’t be afraid of hospital bed rest if it ever comes to that, it is much easier being there. You’ll always have someone to talk to, the doctors are minutes away and the nurses will treat you like the queen you are! Try and enjoy all the extra rest you are getting!
