Yikes!! Good friends are having Quadruplets!

[LoriABil]

Found out good friend and coworker is having quads! And they were using the same fertility pill DH and I were considering! My OB said it had the lowest possibility of multiple births!
Plus, their Dr was very conservative, and only did four implants. And they all took!

So anyone else with multiples have suggestions for a friend wanting to help?

 

[UnderTheMistletoe]

 

[Pooh Crew]

Congrats to your friends! I had triplets and then was pg again six months later, but that's not quads! Lol.

The only advice I have is don't desert them. She'll probably be on bedrest for a while, so just something to let her know you're thinking of her. Collect menus for local restaurants...we ordered out a lot when the kids were young.

And if she's looking to avoid attention, two double strollers with the kids dressed differently is the way to go!

 

[EMom]

When we did IVF, I was firm about not wanting more than twins. The drs. didn't even want me to have twins. Because of the way I'm built, they thought a twin pregnancy would be hard to carry. So we played it conservative. But they said that was no guarantee.

They once had a patient who wanted twins and no more. Period. So she only let them transfer two embryos. Two embryos....maximum two babies, or so she thought. BOTH split and she got two sets of identical twins. It had not happened at that clinic before or since.

 

[dispor]

Found out good friend and coworker is having quads! And they were using the same fertility pill DH and I were considering! My OB said it had the lowest possibility of multiple births!
Plus, their Dr was very conservative, and only did four implants. And they all took!

So anyone else with multiples have suggestions for a friend wanting to help?

Since it sounds like you are considering fertility treatments yourself, please educate yourself on the various treatments. It is my understanding that you do not take a "pill" in preparation for IVF. You have shots, eggs are harvested and fertilized, and then a certain number of embryos are transferred. And four embryos transferred is not a conservative treatment. I believe the recommendation for those under age 35 is two, and over age 35 it is no more than three. I could be wrong.

 

[BellePrincessBelle]

If it was clomid I know plenty of people who have had multiples on it.

 

[chrissyt27]

IVF has no pills. And they do not implant the embryos, they transfer them back in. Under 35 they only typically do 2.

Even IUIs are typically with shots, and doctors typically look for only 2 follies.

No responsible Doctor puts 4 back.

So many doctors pass out clomid like candy. This is why they should do ultrasounds.

Please do research before doing fertility treatments.

Good luck to your friend. They will needs lot of help with all those babies. I hope her pregnancy is a healthy one.

 

[LuvOrlando]

One of my close friends has triplets due to fertility treatments. The Dr's wanted her to eliminate one of the babies to increase the chance of survival. She refused and now has 3 beautiful absolutely perfect children who are now 13. There were times it was hard, and of course it can be $$$, but they are a very happy loving family. The best part is that wherever they are, it's a

 

[DizBelle]

It seems that if you are going to have fertility treatments, multiple births shouldn't be a surprise and, in fact, it is something you should mentally prepare for before deciding to undergo the treatment.

Hopefully, you would also determine if you are financially capable for a life with multiple children - including the special care they are likely to need.

 

[Disney Doll]

lfontaine makes a good point.
Although I'm not so sure about the "special care" part unless you had a huge number of multiple like sextuplets.
Usually twins and even these days, trips, turn out OK.

 

[DizBelle]

lfontaine makes a good point.
Although I'm not so sure about the "special care" part unless you had a huge number of multiple like sextuplets.
Usually twins and even these days, trips, turn out OK.

Agreed. But, even though the increased risk is small with twins and trips, it is still there and you should still ask yourself the "what if" question.

 

[usnuzuloose]

Congrats to them! But

 

[Acklander]

I was 40 when I had IVF (no pills, just shots) and the Dr. wouldn't put in more than 3 embryos, so don't think your friend's Dr. was being conservative. Was this her 3rd or 4th try??? How far along is she?

 

[4forMe]

I strongly suggest getting your friend the following book as it was a lifesaver during my pregnancy:

When You're Expecting Twins, Triplets, or Quads, Revised Edition: Proven Guidelines for a Healthy Multiple Pregnancy. It's available on amazon.

Be available for whatever your friend needs. In addition to meals, my family helping out with the laundry during those first few weeks was invaluable!

Good luck to your friends!

 

[MoniqueU]

Back to your original question op what about housekeeping services like merry maids or something with a group of coworkers and everyone pitching in for a cleaning like one person pay for one cleaning one pay for another etc.

 

[HeyIt'sMe]

I remember back when I was in high school a woman in our neighborhood had quads and all the other women in the neighborhood, including my mom, helped out. They had a whole schedule worked out with shifts and everything. It was literally "...it takes a village...".

Gosh, now that I think about it, those kids are almost 30 now.

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

help she will need:

housekeeping
diaper and feeding duty
laundry service!! - huge!
time to take a shower
bathing the babies help
meals - probably on bedrest and will have a C-section so recovery time for that
dishes - if she bottle feeds they are going to go through a ton of bottles. If she pumps she'll need down time to do that and someone to watch the babies.
food shopping

I strongly suggest a schedule get built.

Also shop for multiple things now. Hit up goodwill and friends for bouncy seats, high chairs, pack and plays (probably only needs 1 or 2 at first). She needs to get as much done now in case she does get put on bedrest.

 

[chloelovesdisney]

Found out good friend and coworker is having quads! And they were using the same fertility pill DH and I were considering! My OB said it had the lowest possibility of multiple births!
Plus, their Dr was very conservative, and only did four implants. And they all took!

So anyone else with multiples have suggestions for a friend wanting to help?

Four is not conservative at all. The conservative doctors transfer one or two. How far along is she? I know three woman (friend, relative, coworker) that miscarried triplets around 20 weeks. They lost all of the babies. It really is high risk despite how easy it looks from all the multiples shows on tv. I'm sure she'll need some help with housecleaning, laundry, shopping, or just plain keeping her company when she is put on bedrest which she will likely be at some point.

 

[Acklander]

Also shop for multiple things now. Hit up goodwill and friends for bouncy seats, high chairs, pack and plays (probably only needs 1 or 2 at first). She needs to get as much done now in case she does get put on bedrest.

Depending on how far along she is, I'd hold off on this a bit. Quads is an extremely high risk pregancy and it might be too soon to tell what she'll need. I wouldn't want to jinx it by buying a bunch of stuff too early.

 

[LoriABil]

If it was clomid I know plenty of people who have had multiples on it.

Yes, it was! I think we are at peace with the fact that we are a one child family - and we were blessed to have him! We were beginning the adoption process from Russia when they stopped all adoptions...

But that means we are free to babysit lots and lots!