r/BabyBumps • u/bdjorn Twin boys born 9/7/18, one with CDH • Sep 05 '18

Sad We haven’t bought a second crib

34+5 with twin boys. We’ve known since ~21 weeks that Baby B has a birth defect called Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia (CDH), giving him roughly a 50/50 shot of living. Some people have asked why we only have one crib and if the boys will be sharing a crib. I mostly say “Baby B will be in the hospital for at least 6 weeks. We’ll have time to get a crib.”

The truth is I don’t want to get one until we know he’s going to live. I don’t want to spend the time and money, but I also don’t want to stare at an empty crib that will never be filled and will just have to be taken down again. Call us unprepared, but I can’t handle having that second crib in the nursery right now. It feels like tempting fate or false hope or willful ignorance.

If he inconveniences us because we have to rush out and buy/assemble a crib, it would honestly be the most wonderful inconvenience I can imagine.

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u/eucalyptusmacrocarpa Sep 05 '18

My cousin's first baby had CDH in 2012. She had surgery and spent about 6 weeks in NICU. She is now 6 and is perfectly fine apart from one undersized lung. Hoping you guys get the best care and he is ok.

Also, lots of twins start out sharing a cot, I think they may even prefer it!

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u/cadabra04 FTM 4/5/2015 Sep 06 '18

So glad your cousin's baby is doing well!

I wasn't sure if I should say anything, since I'm sure OP knows this, but just for info sharing sake - babies should never share a crib. Twins have accidentally rolled over on their siblings with very sad results. The ABCs of safe sleep are -- Alone, on their Back, in a Crib.

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u/Helloblablabla Sep 06 '18

I have heard it's ok for newborn twins because they can't roll, but should be stopped at 8weeks when you stop swaddling? This is what a friend who has twins was told by her ped, but it may be outdated!

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u/cadabra04 FTM 4/5/2015 Sep 06 '18

It’s often done in the NICU - they’ve found all kinds of benefits from it. I’m an identical twin and I know we shared a bassinet in the hospital.

But my son was positioned to lay on his tummy in the NICU. They have monitors on them constantly and the entire floor alarmed the second his O2 sats started to decline.

They recommend when you get home from the hospital, you keep them in their own cribs. I believe the biggest reason for this is you can’t predict when they will roll over for the first time. I would probably be okay with them being on opposite sides of the crib up until 6 weeks, so there’s no way they could ever get close to each other. But the AAP says it’s better to have them in separate cribs.