EVERYTHING IS GOING SWIMMINGLY: Empty baby formula shelves have families scrambling.

For the past several weeks, following the premature birth of her twins, Maxine and Lawrence, Nguyen has spent hours every day searching the internet or making phone calls trying to find more baby formula to buy for them.

“I’m a first-time mother. There’s already enough anxiety with that,” she said. “My husband sees my stress level and he’s worried.”

Nguyen’s twins were born in early December, arriving six weeks early. Although breastfeeds them, her milk production isn’t enough to nourish both of them sufficiently. Now she’s worried the stress is impeding her milk production even more.

The twins require a specialized, hypoallergenic formula to help them gain weight and get the nutrients they need.

“I just can’t find that formula anywhere,” Nguyen said. She’s doing daily checks at nearby Walmart, Target and CVS stores only to find the product is either out of stock or on back order, with no clear indication of when it will arrive. She’s even had to deal with a confirmed order getting canceled.

“It’s very frustrating and scary,” Nguyen said. “I’ve been searching for it in towns three hours away from where I live. Why can’t I just go into a store and be able to buy formula?”

“Why can’t I just go into a store” and buy it? That was the old, bad America, the one with mean tweets.