Twins Piran and Poppy were born via C-section at 34 weeks
THEY were shocked to discover they were having twins.
But at their 20-week scan, Jennifer Ashwood and Andrew House were left lost for words.
10Jennifer Ashwood and her partner Andrew House were shocked to find out she was pregnant in two different wombsCredit: SWNS:South West News Service
10At their 20-week scan they discovered their twins were in two wombsCredit: SWNS:South West News Service
Jennifer was carrying her babies in TWO separate wombs.
Up until that point, the mum had no idea she had been born with two wombs.
The 31-year-old was born with the rare condition known by the medical term bicornuate uterus.
But doctors told her the chances of becoming pregnant with twins in this way was a staggering one-in-500-million.
10Twins Piran and Poppy were born via C-section on May 6 at 34 weeksCredit: SWNS:South West News Service
10Jennifer’s condition is known as a bicornuate uterus, or a ‘heart-shaped womb’Credit: SWNS:South West News Service
In Jennifer’s case one egg was released into each womb and fertilised at the same time.
And twins Poppy and Piran were delivered safely via C-section at 34 weeks.
The mum-of-three said: “To have the double uterus is rare in itself but to have an egg in both, then for those to be fertilised, and for both eggs to be in the right part – it’s a miracle.
“It is ridiculously rare.
10At their 12-week scan the couple discovered they were having twinsCredit: SWNS:South West News Service
10Then following their 20-week scan doctors revealed Jennifer was carrying the babies in two separate wombsCredit: SWNS:South West News Service
“The odds were stacked against us but it all worked out.
“You think you know your body well, but it turns out you might not.”
Jennifer was even more shocked, having already given birth to her daughter Millie, now eight.
To have the double uterus is rare in itself, but to have an egg in both, then for those to be fertilised, and for both eggs to be in the right part – it’s a miracle
Jennifer Ashwood
That pregnancy was straightforward, giving away no clues of her rare condition.
“My body has surprised me this time,” she admitted.
“I have two separate uterine cavities joined by one cervix.
“Everything else is the same, I have two Fallopian tubes, one each side, with an ovary each.”
10Jennifer’s condition is rare in itself, but to carry two babies in the separate parts of her uterus is incredibly rareCredit: SWNS:South West News Service
The condition is caused by an abnormality when Jennifer was in the womb.
Rather than looking like a regular womb, Jennifer’s is heart-shaped, with with two sections stemming from one cervix.
It makes it no harder for a woman to conceive, but does increase the risk of miscarriage or premature birth slightly.
In most cases women with the condition will only carry one baby, in one uterus.
But during Jennifer’s normal monthly cycle, she ovulated and released two eggs – one from each Fallopian tube.
Both were fertilised and remained in each separate section of the uterus.
Jennifer said: “It’s crazy when you think about it.
“It’s possible that fertilisation could have occurred one or even two days apart, but it was from the same time.
“We found out at the 20-week scan and ever since people have been saying how rare it was.”
10Piran and Poppy are younger siblings for Millie, eightCredit: SWNS:South West News Service
Jennifer and Andrew, a firefighter, from Camborne in Cornwall, found out they were expecting twins in December last year at their 12-week scan.
They got engaged on New Years’ Eve, and then in February they went for their 20-week scan and discovered Jennifer’s womb abnormality.
Jennifer went into early labour at 28 weeks, but medics managed to stop her contractions with drugs, and she had a C-section on May 6.
Piran was born first at 5lb 10oz, with Poppy born minutes later weighing 5lb 3oz.
Doctors even took a photo of Jennifer’s uterus’ during surgery at her request, so she could see what it looked like.
It clearly shows the two uterus’ with one measuring much smaller than the other.
10Despite having been pregnant with Millie eight years earlier, Jennifer didn’t know she had the womb abnormalityCredit: SWNS:South West News Service
“They had their own uterus, their own amniotic sacks, and their own placentas,” she said.
“They said it was realistically like having two single pregnancies at the same time.
“It’s hard to compare this pregnancy to my last one. Definitely compared to my first pregnancy I was sick much, much more.
“Because it’s so rare to carry a baby in each one, they didn’t really quite know what was going to happen until they opened me up and took a look.
10Jennifer went into early labour at 28 weeks, but medics managed to stop her contractions with medicationCredit: SWNS:South West News Service
“They thought they were going to have to do an incision in each one to get them out, but they made one and managed to get the little boy out.
“They were just about to start on the other one, but she managed to kick her little foot through.”
Jennifer was allowed home after five days, while the twins stayed in hospital for two weeks, having jaundice treatment and feeding support.
Source: kidspot
