Have twins on the way or struggling with twin sleep challenges already? See what seasoned twin parents had to say about advice that changed the game for them during the first 6 months with twins!
While it’s natural for tiny humans to wake frequently for feeding in those early months, when you’ve got twins, getting enough sleep can feel downright impossible.
No matter your parenting style or your approach to sleep, there are tangible ways you can make twin sleep feel less overwhelming in your home.
So keep reading to hear what other twin parents shared as being the number one piece of advice that made twin sleep feel more doable through the first 6 months!
We recently asked our twin parent community:
What was the single most helpful sleep tip that changed the game for your twins’ sleep during the first 6 months?
And here’s what twin parents had to say:
Honor your babies’ needs and trust yourself
“Routine for sure. But after all the advice and info you’re gonna get just remember they are babies. They have needs. And those needs may not be convenient but hold the babies, sleep with them, love on them. They will eventually grow out of it. You’ll be tired for sure. It may be really long nights. But you’ll never regret nurturing your babies no matter how hard it feels at the time. I got pushed to sleep train my babies and do things I didn’t really want to and now we’re back to doing it my way and I feel so much better.” – Kristin
“Listen to yourself, nobody else is there at 2am.” – Caitlin
Be flexible and manage your expectations in the beginning
“Trial and error. I’ve tried both ways – caring for one at a time and keeping them on the same schedule. I find the latter better for us, for now. I get both sides, and I think there’s a season for each method. I’m currently in the first six months. I get more sleep when my twins are in sync with each other. The nights they are not are rough.” – Sarah
“Giving up any expectation that I would get decent sleep. After 2 weeks of tag teaming our twins my husband and I decided to trade shifts. I slept from 7-1 and he slept from 1-7. When he came to bed he would leave the bedroom door open and turn the baby monitor on so I would hear them. Some nights he was tagging out at 1:01am and passing off a baby. Other nights I got to sleep until 2:30/3am.” — Jessi
“Let them lead the way, but if one wakes, wake the other or you will be up 5 minutes after you fall asleep. Stop looking at the clock as night and day and instead just baby time. The more you watch that clock, the harder it is for you to adjust to their schedule. Part of our pregnant need to pee constantly was our body’s way to train us for babies.” – Christina
“Don’t waste time or energy trying to figure out how to make it better. Doesn’t change the twins sleep just makes you more exhausted with the stress of trying! They’re all different.” – Catherine
Be prepared for changes as they get bigger
“I would say as you get closer and closer to 5-6 months, don’t be afraid to let a baby sleep. Eventually, I noticed one baby ate more and would sleep more. I assigned myself and my husband each a baby and we only woke up with that baby. Baby B slept through the night way before baby A. I assigned myself baby B.” – Amanda
Switch to separate bedrooms
“So far the biggest help I’ve seen is putting them in their own room, if possible. Once we started doing this a couple of weeks ago, the babies really have only been waking to eat. They usually wake up 1-2 times after I dream feed them at 10 and then wake up for the day around 7. Not perfect, but definitely better!” – Maggie
Stick to a consistent routine/schedule as best you can
“Definitely have the same routine for both babies. Last feed at 10pm. An hour of prep for the next day and I always went to bed at 11pm to get 3 hours sleep before the next feed at 2am. For that feed stay in the bedroom with lights down low so they don’t fully wake up. No playtime at that time. Bottle and nappy change and back to bed until 6am.” – Catherine
“Bath, bottle, book, and SNOO religiously. Always at the same time.” – Amy
“My twins were sleeping through the night (7-9 hour stretches) at 3 months and I think it was because we would do the same bedtime routine every night and they knew it was time to sleep. We would place them in their double bassinet by our bed awake and they fell asleep on their own.” – Bree
“2 babies, same routine. Dream feeds at 10:30pm.” – Ainsley
“Same routine/sleep training saved us.” – Kristy
“Bedtime routine-hands down! Bath, story, massage, white noise, red light. We still use it now at 3 years old.” – Wendy
“When one baby wakes, feed and change both together. Dream feeds if needed too!” – Jessica
“Start a routine early. Once their weights are managed, if they’re okay sleeping longer, let them. Give a dream feed at 11. And then slowly pull that last feed back until it’s at 7pm. By two months we had the babies sleeping 730-630. Total game changer.” – Larissa
“A sleep schedule tailored to twins.” – Jessica
“Same routine for them both.” – Rikki
Miscellaneous
“Do feeds at the same time. Pay attention to wake windows. And sleep train.” – Natasha
“Feed when they wake not before sleep.” – Lynne
“I allowed them to cuddle in the same bassinet the first few weeks and they slept better together than apart. They needed each other.” – Kelsie
“Sleep begets sleep. The better they nap the better the overnight sleep.” – Whitney
“I’m a true believer that some babies are good sleepers naturally and others take longer to figure it out. Yes, routines, schedules, habits obviously can play a part in it but I think some babies naturally don’t sleep as well. My twins are almost 2 and have yet to sleep through the night. I’m typically still awake about 5-7 times with them. It can be hard not to feel like you’re failing because your babies don’t sleep through the night at a set age like you’re told. My boys will one day learn to sleep and until that day comes I will continue to tend to their cries regardless of the time of day or night.” – Kimberly
“Wait people’s twins sleep? (LOL) I got no tips but to invest in a nice coffee machine.” – Dani
“Every kid is so different. You have to find what works for your individual child. Some are more difficult and need sleep training (Ferber Method worked well for me) and others find comfort in their beds early on. My twins are 5 & 2 and I still find at least one in my bed most nights tho sooooo idk. I feel like no one has all the answers. Have to try different things and see what works for you.” – Ashley
“Unless you have unicorn sleeper babies, it’s gonna be rough… in the early months, sacrifice what you need to in order to get some sleep. For me and my spouse, we sacrificed time together and “me time” to each take shifts on baby duty while the other slept. If we hadn’t, we’d have been absolutely, horrifically sleep deprived- more than we already are.” – Kait
Looking for next-level twin sleep support?
We have several ways you can get even more help tackling all things twin sleep:
- Join us for our next live Twin Sleep Class! We offer this class several times throughout the year. One version is for twins ages 0 through 6 months, and the other is for twins who are 6 months through 2 years! The live class is led by our in-house doula, certified gentle sleep coach, and twin mom Lauren Oak.
- Enroll in Twin Sleep School, a comprehensive on-demand course created by Twiniversity founder and IBCLC Natalie Diaz and Kim West, aka “The Sleep Lady.”
- Schedule a twin sleep consultation with one of our Twiniversity-approved certified gentle sleep coaches.
Want to learn more about twin sleep? Check out these articles too:
- Infant Twins Sleep Arrangements for Nap Time and Bed Time
- Twin Cribs: Our Best Advice for Your Setup
- Twin Sleep Schedules: 6 Months to 1 Year
