After 23 years as a Multiple Birth Educator, on many occasions I have heard from parents without multiples, “So what’s one more baby?” Another common comment, “I know what you mean. I had two children 18 months apart.” Let’s face it all babies are wonderful, most certainly life-changing and a lot of work.

Twins, triplets or more enter another realm and only parents with multiples understand the double/triple joy coupled with the double/triple workload.

For parents expecting two or more, being prepared is essential. This may include taking appropriate multiple birth prenatal classes if they are offered in your area, talking to other parents of multiples, joining your local twin and triplet support group and checking out your local library or bookstore for books on multiples. The latest addition to the multiple birth library is by Dr. Rachel Franklin. Dr. Franklin has an interest in women and children’s health and her busy practice includes obstetrics and pediatrics . She is also Mom to 4-year old boy/girl twins and her new book is a must read for getting prepared for the arrival of your own babies.

Dr. Franklin has a light-hearted, easy to understand writing style, generously laced with humour. Her book takes you through each stage of the pregnancy. She includes Chapters on learning the news “…and What To Do About It”, she addresses issues you might expect to face in each trimester of your pregnancy, focusing on nutrition, exercise, and preparing for the babies.

The Labour and Delivery chapter is particularly humerous as she describes “…a cute pregnant belly [that] swells to the size of a midsize sedan…” Having gone 40 weeks and 1 day with our bundles of joy, I had no trouble at all envisioning what she was talking about!

First time parents will be particularly pleased to read a detailed description of what a contraction is. While most of us are aware that a contraction (make that many contractions) are necessary to get the babies out, there seems to be an age-old tradition (competition?) involving women whom have already given birth, to compare the length, depth and breadths of their own contractions. For some reason it is felt that first time Moms will appreciate and be excited by such stories. Dr. Franklin’s presentation of the “sisters” experiences had me nodding and giggling more than once. She continues by explaining what the signs of preterm and term labour are, and lists some signs of other potential problems of the pregnancy. My comment on the latter is that ‘knowledge is power’ and it is really important to be aware of what might happen so that you can take appropriate action (e.g. I have a lot of swelling. I will go directly to the hospital) or answer questions asked of you, if necessary. Dr. Franklin explains about anesthesia, ‘God’s Gift to Labouring Women.’ She covers all of the potential anesthetics and explains what they are and how they function.

There is a Chapter on the birth of the babies and what you might expect if they are premature and need to stay in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) for a time afterwards. She takes away the mystique of the NICU equipment as she explains about the type of equipment your baby or babies might need and why.

She covers the chances of bringing home only one baby at a time. Not every family is prepared for such a possibility. There is a detailed section on taking care of the babies once they are home; what you can expect if you plan to return to work (and hiring a nanny), postpartum depression (PPD); taking care of yourself; breastfeeding; and a detailed chapter on ‘Rapid Reference Guide to Complications in the NICU.’ This doesn’t mean that your babies will experience some or all of the complications discussed, but the content is clearly presented using everyday language and if you needed to know about jaundice (something that is very common with newborn babies, even for a short while), this is the place to learn all about what it is and how it is treated.

I wish this book had been around 23 years ago when we were preparing for the births of our babies. I would have felt much better prepared. The book is sprinkled with Dr. Franklin’s own experiences of pregnancy and birth and I enjoyed reading about her journey. I also appreciated the down to earth approach to the information. The book is well-thought out and follows a natural progression through a multiple birth pregnancy. You certainly can’t go wrong in adding this book to your list of “Must Reads.”