INQUISITR.COM / Entertainment

‘Monoamniotic’ Twin Girls Born Holding Hands Turn 2 And Refuse To Be Apart

By Jennifer Ricketts
Published on: 09:31 PST, Jul 17, 2016

The “monoamniotic” twin girls who were born holding hands two years ago right before Mother’s Day are still as close as they were on the day they were born to their mother, Sarah Thistlethwaite, told People. Despite the odds being stacked against them, Jenna and Jillian Thistlethwaite arrived healthy on May 9, 2014, weighing almost five pounds each.

The twin girls were “monoamniotic,” meaning they shared the same amniotic sac. Twins usually have their own amniotic sack during pregnancy. Also known as “mono mono” twins, monoamniotic twins is the rarest form of twinning and carries the highest risk. This condition occurs in about one in 35,000 to around one in 60,000 identical twin pregnancies.

Up until 24 weeks gestation, there was only a 50/50 chance these girls would survive. The umbilical cords can become tangled which can then cut off blood supply to one or both of the twins, according to Dr. Melissa Mancuso, the doctor who delivered the twin girls. Dr. Mancuso is also the director of the fetal treatment center at Akron Children’s Hospital where the girls were born.

Nineteen weeks into the pregnancy, doctors found the pregnancy was monoamniotic during a third ultrasound. That was the same day the Thistlethwaites found out they were having twins. They already had a 1-year-old son named Jaxon. Sarah Thistlethwaite, an eighth-grade math teacher from Orrville, Ohio, took time off from work and spent 57 days on bed rest due to her pregnancy being high risk.

On Thistlethwaites’ 57th day of bed rest, she underwent a Cesarean section, and the twin girls were delivered at 33 weeks. Doctors told the parents they could deliver the twins at 32 or 34 weeks of gestation, and they decided on 33 weeks.

The twin girls were born 45 seconds apart, according to the Daily Mail, and when they were held close together, they immediately held hands.

“Oh my gosh! They’re holding hands!” Dr. Mancuso said in surprise.

Hospital spokesperson Amy Kilgore, who was present during the birth, told Fox 8, “Once they made sure they were OK, they held them up so mom and dad could see. As soon as they were side by side, they held hands. It gave me chills.”

In her interview with People, Sarah Thistlethwaite told the magazine her “heart just melted,” and the moment affected everyone in the delivery room.

“My heart just melted. Even my husband got tears in his eyes – I don’t know that anybody in the room had a dry eye.”

Thistlethwaite’s husband added, “When they held them up and I saw their hands together… It’s indescribable, really.”

The girls spent time in the neonatal unit before being allowed to go home. When they turned a year old, they reached for each other often during meals and when sitting together.

Now 2-years-old, the girls remain close although they very much are developing their own unique personalities. Thistlethwaite says Jillian is a daredevil while Jenna is more cautious. They share a number of things they like such as the same foods, swimming, being outside, and the same toys.

To prevent fights, the Thistlethwaites buy two of everything, although the girls still end up fighting over the same toy. As twin siblings often do, as well as siblings who aren’t twins, the girls like attempting to get each other in trouble.

While they may fight, they also take care of each other. When one is upset, the other tries to comfort her by rubbing her back, hugging her or offering a pacifier.

“Sometimes if my husband goes to the store, he’ll take one twin and I’ll keep the other. When that happens, they both get really upset and ask for each other. They’re definitely really close. They’re like two peas in a pod.”

The twins’ parents are looking forward to watching their girls grow up and remain close.

“Twins have this special bond and I can’t wait to watch them grow up and be best friends,” Thistlethwaite said.

Share your thoughts below on the amazing beat-all-the-odds birth of the monoamniotic twin girls from Ohio.

[Image via Twitter]

Share this article: ‘Monoamniotic’ Twin Girls Born Holding Hands Turn 2 And Refuse To Be Apart
ohio
More from Inquisitr