Twins do develop differently because they share a deep and primary attachment. Often young twins can feel inseparable. Alongside closeness, twins and triplets also have to share their parents' attention. Vying for attention from mom and dad creates competition and intensifies their fighting.
Statistics show twins or higher order multiples can take longer to reach milestones, especially those born prematurely. With the average pregnancy usually lasting 40 weeks, if twins were born at 35 weeks, their progress and milestones will be monitored as though they were five weeks younger than they really are.
Twin psychology has been studied to a very limited extent. Only few remarkable peculiarities of the twins'" development are known for sure, such as delayed intellectual development, language retardation with frequent cryptophasia, difficulties and fragility of self consciousness, reduced sociability.
In fact, studies have shown there is no difference in reaching motor milestones between twins and singletons within normal range.
LAWRENCE — A study of 473 sets of twins followed since birth found that compared with single-born children, 47 percent of 24-month-old identical twins had language delay compared with 31 percent of nonidentical twins. Overall, twins had twice the rate of late language emergence of single-born children.
It is likely that twins' awareness of one another starts sooner than seven or eight months of age. An article by the late doctor, T. Berry Brazelton, observed that at age three to four months, an infant identical female twin seemed disoriented when her sister was removed from the room.
Age. People over 30, and particularly those over age 35, are more likely to conceive twins. 4 This is because the level of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) rises as birthing parents get older. FSH is responsible for the development of eggs in the ovaries before they are released.
“Twin studies of major depressive disorder have showed that if one twin has the illness, a fraternal twin has an increased likelihood of developing the disorder and an identical twin's likelihood is even higher,” says Dr. Avari.
It's the feeling of never being completely alone; there's always someone on your side. Being a twin doesn't feel like there is another “you.” Instead it feels like together we make one; that we complement and complete each other. We are the Yin to each other's Yang! It's having a teammate for life.
As twins separate in adolescence and go their own ways, anger and sometimes estrangement from one another is more common than most people would imagine or believe. The attachment that twins share is seriously hard to disentangle and creates strong expectations and disappointment.
The hardest thing about having twins is...
“Managing the movement of two babies. Carrying them both up and down the stairs, getting them into the car, etc.” —Simeon R. “Often having to make one baby wait!” —Catharine D. “Being outnumbered—the logistics of two on one is definitely the hardest.
Some say that twins are always hard (yet amazing), while others say they truly didn't find them to be difficult. A few said that the first two months with twins are easy (being in the rose-colored glasses phase), then reality hits from months 3-6 (when the sleep deprivation catches up), then it can get easier again.
If one identical twin has autism spectrum disorder (ASD), the other twin has a 76 percent chance of also being diagnosed with it. The numbers are lower for fraternal twins. The percentage of fraternal twins who each share an ASD diagnosis is 34 percent for same-sex twins and 18 percent for boy-girl pairs, Dr.
If you are parents of multiples, you may be well aware of a behavioral trait that can affect twins in a way that is unlike any other children. It is characterized by misbehavior or tantrums that can escalate exponentially, occurring anywhere from infancy right up until early childhood.
Brain-imaging research has shown that during mental tasks, such as memorising numbers, the patterns of brain activity (which can be considered a physical correlate of thought) are more similar among identical twins than non-identical twins.
Postnatal depression after having twins
More than 1 in 10 women get postnatal depression within a year of giving birth. This figure is slightly higher for mothers of multiple babies. Twins are more likely to be cared for in the neonatal unit. It's thought this could increase the chances of postnatal depression.
The longest interval between the birth of twins is 90 days, in the case of Molly and Benjamin West, dizygotic (fraternal) twins born in Baltimore, Maryland, USA to parents Lesa and David West (all USA) on 1 January and 30 March 1996.
The twin gene is carried by the mother, meaning that it is her genes that determine whether someone may have fraternal twins.
To minimize confusion, take a close look at both babies, because even identicals can have unique features, such as birthmarks or moles. Some parents will paint a toenail for each twin, either using different colors or painting just one. You can also try putting an anklet or different bracelets on one or both babies.
There is no right or wrong answer, it's a personal preference. Some chose to be completely open or tell their twins to give a “smaller” twin leverage if he/she is older. Other choose not to tell so that they don't bicker about the subject or the dominate “older” twin doesn't have more leverage.
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.
They may struggle in social situations or have difficulty with friendships. Some twins are even victims of teasing or bullying. These difficult issues are one of the many challenges in parenting twins.
Identical twins reported similar levels of happiness, while fraternal twins exhibited greater variation in their reported sense of well-being. These results were found in families of twins raised together and extended with twins reared apart.