Gina and Craig Dewdney welcomed their miracle triplets, who shared a single placenta. One of them was born in an amniotic sac, decreasing his chance of survival.
Only one in 200 million babies survive sharing a single placenta with their siblings inside the womb, but Liverpool, England, triplets Jimmy, Jensen, and Jaxon proved that miracles happen every day.
Their parents, Gina and Craig Dewdney, are over the moon to see them surpass what many others could not. Here’s their story.
Gina and Craig Dewdney with their newborn triplets together. | Source: Instagram.com/the_cheshire_triplets
Gina didn’t think that she would get pregnant right away, but she found out she was carrying a child within a month of trying. She shared in an interview:
“I found out very early that I was pregnant, within a few weeks, and I started getting really severe migraines, which I don’t usually suffer from.”
The headaches and insomnia continued, keeping her up throughout the night. Suddenly, Gina had a feeling that she was carrying more than one baby.
Gina only told her husband about the hunch, given that no one else knew about her pregnancy. It wasn’t until the first scan that she received the confirmation. She said:
“Our first scan wasn’t until 13 weeks, and we went to the Liverpool Women’s, and straight away the woman who put the ultrasound on said it was twins.”
Already shocked that she was right, Gina was in complete disbelief when the scan suddenly showed three heads. It turned out that the couple was expecting three identical sons who were sharing one placenta.
Having triplets share one placenta placed the couple’s triplets at risk as they fought for the same food and nutrients from their mother. Initially, doctors planned for Gina to undergo a c-section during labor, but when her water broke at 31 weeks, they had to do an emergency operation.
Darcey came out weighing only 1 pound and 5 ounces and was placed in a sandwich bag to survive.
About 30 medical professionals were in the operating room when she gave birth, as each child needed their own neonatal team. Their son, Jaxon, was born in the amniotic sac, lowering his chance of survival. Fortunately, the babies came out safely in less than two minutes.
THE THREE SURVIVORS
The triplets spent six weeks regaining their strength in the Neonatal intensive care unit but were able to go home with their parents soon after. At present, they are five months old and regularly returning to the hospital for monitoring.
Although identical and raised the same way, Gina already sees her sons’ distinguished personalities. “I think that is fascinating because they are all being brought up the same, and you think of nature versus nurture,” she shared.
A lot of premature births happen, and although chances of survival are low, many babies try to make it through. One of them, Darcey Clegg, was born when her mom was 28 weeks pregnant.
Darcey came out weighing only 1 pound and 5 ounces and was placed in a sandwich bag to survive. Currently, Darcey is preparing for her first day of school.
