This is called co-bedding and is perfectly safe. In fact, putting twins in the same cot can help them regulate their body temperatures and sleep cycles, and can soothe them and their twin. If you put your twins in the same cot, follow the same safe sleeping advice as for a single baby.
This means that each twin won't obstruct the other's breathing. Have your babies sleeping in the same room as you until they are at least six months old, particularly if they were premature or born with a low birth weight.
The AAP clearly states that each baby should sleep on his or her own sleep surface, and not in the bed with an adult. Before you're ready to put the babies in their own cribs in the nursery, use two portable cribs or a double bassinet for twins, such as the HALO® Bassinest® twin sleeper.
And when it comes to helping twins or multiples co sleep soundly, there's no best practice when it comes to positioning. Though most twins sleep side-by-side for the first month, you should feel free to let your twins shift to head-to-head, feet-to-feet, or side-by-side diagonal without concern.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) firmly advises against having a shared bed for your twins. The reason is that sharing a crib increases the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
Studies show several possible benefits of letting twins sleep together in the NICU. 1 Multiples who are co-bedded seem to sleep better, gain weight better, have fewer episodes of apnea and bradycardia, and (as long as they're about the same size), keep each other warm.
“Having twins is not twice as hard—it's exponentially more difficult,” says Natalie Diaz, author of What To Do When You're Having Two and CEO of Twiniversity, a global support network for parents of twins.
Measures included actigraphy, sleep diaries, and standardized instruments for fatigue, sleep quality, and depression. According to the results, by the time the twins reached full-term, mothers were sleeping an average of 5.4 hours in a 24-hour period, with over 70 percent reporting less than six hours of sleep.
You may like to sleep your twins in their own Moses baskets or cots from birth, or you may decide to co-bed them in the early weeks and months. Co-bedding means siblings share the same sleep surface during any sleep period, for example by being in the same cot together.
The reality is that although a good night's sleep is coming, it is safe to assume that your twins will be waking each other up during the night. And it's not just twins. Often two children of different ages who share a room will wake each other as they get used to sharing a room.
With twins sleeping together, SIDS is a very valid risk that you might be exposing your babies to. Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is usually the reason why parents are advised to keep their baby in a separate crib, and not have him sleep in the same bed as themselves.
Some twins will start sleeping through the night as early as 8-10 weeks. Typically you can start seeing longer sleep stretches around 12 weeks. Many twins wait until 4-6 months. The bottom line is that every twin is different.
In fact, once twins get the hang of sleep, they might even outshine non-twins in the zzz's department. As obstetrician-gynecologist Dr. Manju Monga tells WebMD, “Young twins are easier to raise, have each other to play with, and sleep better than singletons once they turn 2.”
There's no specific age when you should separate your children into their bedrooms. Many people don't have the house space to do that, especially if the children are of the same sex. Plenty of same-sex siblings share the same room until they leave home, and for twins, it's no different.
You shouldn't share the same bed with your twins because it increases the risk of SIDS. But the AAP does recommend that you room-share — having your twins sleep in your room, each in their own bassinet or crib — ideally for the first six months.
The group Rednose (Australia) claims that research shows that the safest way to sleep twins in the home is in their own safe sleeping container (crib, portable crib, bassinet, or cradle) in the parent's room for the first 6-12 months.
Breastfeeding twins or more
It's perfectly possible to breastfeed twins, triplets or more. Lots of twins are breastfed until they start eating solid foods. You may like to try a few breastfeeding positions to see which suits you best.
At three months:
The three-month stage marks the end of the “fourth trimester” and your twins can better adapt to life outside the womb. For one thing, they'll sleep in longer stretches of about three- to four-hour chunks.
This is called co-bedding and is perfectly safe. In fact, putting twins in the same cot can help them regulate their body temperatures and sleep cycles, and can soothe them and their twin.
Having two babies at a time is associated with a longer life, according to a new study. But that's not because doubling up on dirty diapers increases life span; instead, moms of twins are physically stronger in the first place.
The reality is that raising multiples is hard. You have double or triple the feeding, diapering, and laundry and, as a result, less time to spend cuddling and getting to know each baby. To be sure, there will be days when you feel as if you're walking up a down escalator.
While 40 weeks is the full gestation period of the average pregnancy, most twin pregnancies are delivered at approximately 36 weeks (range 32-38 weeks depending on the type of twin pregnancy).