You most likely feel like your new pregnancy belly is huge which can lead some women to wonder, "Am I...
You most likely feel like your new pregnancy belly is huge which can lead some women to wonder, "Am I carrying twins!"
- You're just not used to being so large in front. Pregnancy can feel large and heavy simply because we're not used to this extra weight.
- Your belly may really be bigger than a typical pregnancy belly because you gained extra weight in your first trimester
- If you're small boned to start with, you may feel larger than what you really are.
- A larger than average uterus. Someone carrying multiples will likely have a uterus that grows faster than average.
- More pregnancy symptoms than average. I.e. headaches, morning sickness, indigestion, and edema can all be exaggerated in a multiple pregnancy.
- You had IVF.
- Paternal twins (not identical) run in your family. There is some evidence that paternal twins run in families. BUT this is only if the pregnant women has paternal twins that run in her family. The dad has no bearing on twins occurring or not.
- You are over the age of 35 when you get pregnant - women over 35 are more likely to release multiple eggs vs. one.
- Two heartbeats. It might seem like two heartbeats is a sure-fire sign of twins, but it's not. Frequently a single baby's heartbeat can be heard in various areas of a mama's belly.
- Two heartbeats are heard AND they've got different heartbeat rates.
- A visual ultrasound confirms twins. Although, keep in mind that ultrasounds are not 100% correct. At times one twin may hide behind the other making detection impossible. Also note that one twin hiding is SUPER rare. Most of the time a visual ultrasound can confirm twins vs. a single.
