Multiple births bring joy to super-mums
Monday 21 March 2022
Life is a constant juggling act for Brisbane super-mum Evette Ludeman, but the mother of triplets wouldn’t have it any other way.
The baby girls, Charlotte, Alyssa and Aria, were one of six sets of triplets born in 2021 at Mater Mothers’ Hospital in Brisbane.
Born nine weeks early, the baby girls were also amongst 121 multiple birth newborns who required special care and support at Mater Mothers’ Neonatal Critical Care Unit (NCCU) last year.
Because triplets and higher multiples are often born prematurely, the babies are much more likely to require NCCU care after birth.
Shining a light on Multiple Birth Awareness Week (20 – 27 March), Evette said mums of triplets needed to be masters of multi-tasking.
“I always have my hands full, whether it’s breastfeeding and bottle feeding every four hours, or changing nappies,” she said.
“Getting three babies in and out of the car can take about half an hour but we enjoy our trips to the park and to the shops a lot more now.
“We try to stick to a routine as best as possible, but that doesn’t always go to plan.
“Look, it has been difficult, but my partner Jesse is a very hands-on dad.”
Weighing just over 1.3 kg each at birth, Charlotte, Alyssa and Aria have grown into happy, healthy four-month-old babies who are now tipping the scales at 4 kg each.
Regents Park mum Jacqueline George also gave birth to her twin girls, Theodora and Calliope, nine weeks early when her firstborn, Alexandria, was just 16 months old.
“Looking after Alexandria and visiting the newborns in the Neonatal Critical Care Unit is really challenging but seeing them get stronger every day has been really fulfilling,” Jacqueline said.
Jacqueline’s babies were diagnosed with Twin to Twin Syndrome (TTTS) during her pregnancy, a rare condition affecting identical twins and other multiples with one placenta shared amongst all babies.
“One of the babies was taking all the goodness and I had laser surgery in-utero to correct the blood-sharing imbalance caused by TTTS,” Jacqueline said.
Jacqueline said she was looking forward to bringing the twins home.
“I’ll be busy setting a sleeping schedule, tracking their milestones, and juggling day-to-day life with three children under the age of two years,” she said.
More than 2,000 seriously ill and premature babies are cared for at Mater Mothers’ Neonatal Critical Care Unit (NCCU) at South Brisbane each year.