Strategies used by parents of twins to obtain sleep.

Empirical evidence on how parents of twins manage their need for sleep is nonexistent. Lay publications provide advice for parents of multiples, yet their recommendations have been neither studied for their frequency of use nor tested for their effectiveness. Parents of twins were interviewed by telephone regarding strategies they used to obtain sleep during the first 6 months postbirth. Reported strategies were grouped into a priori categories suggested by the literature. Findings indicated that parents attempted various strategies to increase their sleep but disagreed on their effectiveness. Development and testing of a repertoire of effective strategies tailored for parents of twins are needed.