by Mother, 26, ʙᴇᴀᴛs 200 Million To One Odds To Give Birth To Naturally Triplets
conceived IDENTICAL triplets – and had to leave their hospital tags on to tell them apart. Many women look forward to becoming pregnant and starting or growing their family. Most of the time, you don’t expect to see three tiny Fᴇᴛᴜsᴇs ᴏɴ ʏᴏᴜʀ ᴜʟᴛʀᴀsᴏᴜɴᴅ . But if you do, here’s what you need to know about triplet pregnancy.
A mother ʙᴇᴀᴛ sᴛᴀɢɢᴇʀɪɴɢ ᴏᴅᴅs of 200 million to one to give birth to naturally conceived identical triplets – doubling the size of her family overnight. Sʜᴏᴄᴋed Katie Craw, 26, from Pentre Maelor, Wales, said she and partner Rob Ellis ᴀʟᴍᴏsᴛ Fᴀɪɴᴛᴇᴅ when they were told their second child was actually three at their 12-week sᴄᴀɴ .Usually triplets are non identical and are created when two eggs are Fᴇʀᴛɪʟɪsᴇᴅ and one goes on to grow into twins. But Katie is one of just a handful of women in Britain to have identical triplets – known as ᴍᴏɴᴏᴢʏɢᴏᴛɪᴄ – where the Fᴇʀᴛɪʟɪsᴇᴅ egg sᴘʟɪᴛs ɪɴᴛᴏ three after conception.
It makes miracle tots Tommy, Joshua and Eddie – born by ᴇᴍᴇʀɢᴇɴᴄʏ ᴄᴇsᴀʀᴇᴀɴ on February 9, 2020 – ɢᴇɴᴇᴛɪᴄᴀʟʟʏ ɪᴅᴇɴᴛɪᴄᴀʟ. The couple already had a four-year-old son Jacob, born in 2015, and wanted him to be at school when they started trying for their second. Luckily Katie got pregnant the second month of trying and they excitedly prepared to welcome a new baby brother or sister. But going in for their 12-week sᴄᴀɴ at their local hospital, the Wrexham Maelor Hospital, they were about to get the sʜᴏᴄᴋ of their lives. Katie wasn’t as far along as she thought and was only actually at eight weeks’ gestation with not one but three babies.
Katie explained: ‘Within five seconds of the sᴏɴᴏɢʀᴀᴘʜᴇʀ having the sᴄᴀɴner on my tummy she asked me to take a ᴅᴇᴇᴘ ʙʀᴇᴀᴛʜ in. I thought she was going to tell me some bad news but she just came out with I can see three heartʙᴇᴀᴛs. I just knew she wasn’t ᴊᴏᴋɪɴɢ. They kept saying to me you are taking this really well and I thought ‘I am not taking this really well!’
‘They told us about all the ᴄᴏᴍᴘʟɪᴄᴀᴛɪᴏɴs but they said you can still have three healthy babies.’ Doctors said
Two weeks later the couple returned for another sᴄᴀɴ where it was discovered that the babies each had their own sᴀᴄ ᴏF Fʟᴜɪᴅ. The pregnancy went swimmingly, with Katie seeing her midwife weekly and being sᴄᴀɴned every fortnight to make sure the little ones were developing properly.
But at 26 weeks, the consultants in Wrexham began to worry. Katie was given a sᴛᴇʀᴏɪᴅ ɪɴᴊᴇᴄᴛɪᴏɴ and booked in to see an expert in multiple births at Liverpool Womens’ Hospital 35 miles away. The babies carried on growing at brilliant rates and Katie was booked in for a ᴄᴇsᴀʀᴇᴀɴ at 32 weeks – normal practice with multiple births. But at 28 weeks, Katie, a Fᴏʀᴍᴇʀ ᴘʀɪsᴏɴ ᴡᴏʀᴋᴇʀ, began sᴜFFᴇʀɪɴɢ ᴄᴏɴᴛʀᴀᴄᴛɪᴏɴs. She spent five days back in Liverpool as they tried to stop them and was then sent home for bed rest.
However at 30 weeks and one day, they started up again and she was rushed by ᴀᴍʙᴜʟᴀɴᴄᴇ to hospital in Wrexham. The plan was for her to ᴜɴᴅᴇʀɢᴏ sᴜʀɢᴇʀʏ in Liverpool, but there wasn’t enough time to get her there. Welder Rob, 29, was at her ʙᴇᴅsɪᴅᴇ as she had an ᴇᴍᴇʀɢᴇɴᴄʏ ᴄᴇsᴀʀᴇᴀɴ on February 9,2020 with Tommy born at 17.50 weighing 2lbs 11.5oz, Joshua at 17.51 weighing 3lbs 4.5oz and Eddie at 17.52 at 3lbs 3.5oz.
‘The whole team at the Maelor dealt with it so unbelievably well, I can’t thank them enough,’ Katie said.
Tommy and Joshua were transferred that night to Glan Clwyd Hospital in Bodelwyddan, while Eddie followed a day later. Katie was discharged after a week and spent a further fortnight in parent accommodation, but it was then shut as the ᴄᴏʀᴏɴᴀᴠɪʀᴜs ᴘᴀɴᴅᴇᴍɪᴄ began to take hold ᴀᴄʀᴏss Bʀɪᴛᴀɪɴ. It meant she and Rob had to spend the next eight weeks ᴊᴜɢɢʟɪɴɢ work and childcare for Jacob while visiting the tots. Thankfully Josh and Eddie only spent almost seven weeks in hospital and Tommy came home ten days after them on April 10 – with the family together for the first time.
Overjoyed Katie added: ‘It was difficult not having us all together. There were times when I felt really lonely and I could never see this day. None of them have really had any issues and a lot of other mums do so I feel really lucky.
And she says the new family-of-six have been ʙᴏᴡʟᴇᴅ ᴏᴠᴇʀ by the kindness they have received from members of their community. Neighbours have even left packs of nappies and other supplies on their doorstep anonymously to help the young couple financially.
Katie and Rob say the birth of their babies has been a ray of sunshine amid the ɢʟᴏᴏᴍ ᴏF Cᴏᴠɪᴅ-19.
