When you’re 16 weeks pregnant with twins, you’re well into your second trimester of twin pregnancy and likely have had quite a few visits with your healthcare provider and possibly have started frequent ultrasounds, especially if you have identical twins.
Your twin pregnancy symptoms may be getting more intense than a singleton pregnancy and you may not feel the relief of being in your second trimester like singleton pregnancies enjoy.
By 16 weeks pregnant with twins I had already started seeing a perinatal physician in addition to seeing my OBGYN. We learned a lot within those first visits including the sex of our identical twins!
16 Weeks Pregnant with Twins – Development
By the time you’re 16 weeks pregnant with twins, they’ve done a lot of growing and each twin is about the size of an avocado. Fine hair is already developing on their heads, they can make sucking motions, and their hearts are pumping blood. They’ve even started to pee out the amniotic fluid they’ve been swallowing. As we found out at 14 weeks, you can even learn the sex of your babies via ultrasound scan at this point as well.
By 16 weeks gestation, your twins’ ears are developed enough that they can hear you talk and react to light by turning away from it. Morning sickness likely has lessened by now though honestly, some of these symptoms may last your whole pregnancy, possibly due to higher hcg levels. As I’ve mentioned in previous twin pregnancy posts, ensure that you’re taking folate, not folic acid, in your prenatal vitamins to prevent neural tube defects. This is because some women are unable to properly process folic acid and instead need folate to help them and their babies.
16 Weeks Pregnant with Twins Symptoms
The twin pregnancy symptoms I’m experiencing are intensifying. I’ve always had a bad back but my back has been acting up more lately. I’ve started going to my chiropractor on a regular basis and doing stretches at home. I’ve started to have intense round ligament pain as well which is a huge bummer.
I’m feeling tired and huge already. I’m so much bigger now than I was with my first child/singleton pregnancy and it’s really wearing on me. I’ve already gained 16 pounds which my doctor said was good. I’m already measuring 7 weeks ahead of where I’d be if I were carrying just one baby. Wow!
I’m always feeling nervous about the babies and whether they’re ok or not. I’m always really tired when I wake up, during the day, and when I go to bed. My body is working so hard making these little identical twins. I’m sure my other health problems, mainly autoimmune disease, isn’t helping either.
My oldest is being great with all of this though I’m no where near as active as I used to be, we still have a healthy relationship and he’s my little buddy. I’m glad that he’s able to have playdates with other kids and run around with them while I sit on a bench with some water.
That’s the other thing, holy cow the amount of water I drink is intense!! I used to drink water just casually, probably not as much as I should have, but now I’m constantly downing huge glasses of water and of course peeing constantly. It’s what babies and I need but it’s a bit much sometimes!
If I don’t get enough water I start to feel weak and have hot flashes. It’s really weird.
I also have a rough time if I haven’t consumed enough calories. I have Larabars with me at all times to make sure my blood sugar doesn’t drop and I don’t get weak. This is so intense compared to my singleton pregnancy. In the coming weeks, I’ll be tested for gestational diabetes which is more prevalent in twin pregnancies. Luckily, I didn’t have it with my first pregnancy so hopefully I won’t with this one either. If I do have gestational diabetes I don’t even know what I’d eat since I’m already on such a healthy diet. Hopefully it won’t be a problem, we’ll see!
I Started Seeing a MFM/Perinatal Physician
Due to being pregnant with MoDi Twins, I had my first appointment with the perinatal physician (high risk pregnancy specialist also known as an MFM / Maternal-Fetal Medicine Specialists) at 14 weeks, 4 days. Things looked great at that time, two healthy babies, and they were glad I came in when I did. Often they wouldn’t start seeing me until 16 weeks gestation but they wanted me in at 14 weeks, as soon as I had worked hard to convince my OBGYN to give me a referral to see them earlier than he had planned on referring me.
MORE BOYS!!
We found out at 14 weeks 4 days along that the twins are BOYS! I now will be a mother of 3 boys under 3! Craziness. Not gonna lie, we were hoping for girls since we already have a boy, but I’m sure these two will be loads of fun and have a great time with their older brother. I’m going to have to get used to being a boy mom, wow!
Below are some of the ultrasound scan pics from our 14 week ultrasound. I’d show pictures of our 16 week ultrasound scan but they were mainly of the babies’ faces which…at this age they look kind of creepy so I’ll spare you those images. It is neat to see their facial features develop though. Beyond the ultrasound scan images, the fetal movement is as it should be, each twin is floating within their own amniotic sac, and they are healthy babies at this point!
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Pregnant with Twins? You’ll want the Twin Pregnancy Journal!
When I was pregnant with twins I was using a regular pregnancy journal but there was no place to keep track of all the extra appointments, all the measurements, ultrasounds, etc. Years later, I decided to make the twin pregnancy journal I wish I would have had when I was pregnant!!
The twin pregnancy journal has over 100 pages you can use digitally on a tablet or iPad or print it out and put it in a binder to hold even more info. It includes a page for every week, ultrasound pages you can duplicate if you need more, places to keep track of Baby A and Baby B’s measurements, weights, etc. each week, birth plan pages, and even the hospital bag checklist I created from when I had my twins!
Here it is below, click the button or image below to learn more and purchase. It’s much less expensive than the pre-printed ones, that’s for sure! I know you’ve got enough expenses right now, though this took me a lot of time to put together, I’m ultimately here to help.
As a mom of identical twins and a son two years older, I have gained invaluable experience in the realm, and chaos, of parenting. With a Master's Degree and Education Specialist Degree in School Psychology, I spent years as a school psychologist, helping children navigate through their educational and emotional challenges. Now as a stay at home mom and professional blogger, I combine my areas of expertise to help you in your parenting journey.