Giving birth is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for any woman, but Rebecca Roberts’ pregnancy is so unusual that it’s only the 14th of its kind in medical history. It’s unusual to have twins, but this story has an “extra uncommon twist.”
Rebecca, 39, and her husband, Rhys Weaver, had been trying for several years to have their first child together. The couple went to a fertility clinic in Bath, England, since they were worried that she wouldn’t be able to get pregnant due to her age.
Rebecca has been prescribed a medication to aid in ovulation, and after completing her first cycle in February 2020, they received the news that Rebecca was expecting.
Rebecca had her first two scans at seven and ten weeks, and physicians only saw one baby each time. Her physicians discovered something unexpected during her 12-week scan—a second baby!
“To be told there were two babies instead of one was extremely, truly upsetting,” she told Good Morning America. “Then they informed me the physicians couldn’t fathom a three-week growth difference between the two newborns.”
Rebecca’s doctor, David Walker, an OBGYN at Royal United Hospital in Bath, said her circumstance was so unusual that no one knows how many times it has happened.
They later diagnosed Rebecca’s pregnancy as superfetation, where a second, new pregnancy happens during an initial pregnancy.
Her twins aren’t typical and are considered “super twins” because her eggs were released on separate occasions and fertilized at different times.
“My first thought was, ‘How did I miss the second twin?’” said Dr. Walker. “And after that, I was little comforted that it wasn’t my fault, but rather a truly amazing pregnancy.”
In Rebecca’s instance, Noah, her older twin, was three weeks older than Rosalie, his younger twin. This is thought to be one of the most significant age differences among known superfetation twins.
Without Rhys by her side, Rebecca learned about everything. Due to COVID-19 rules, he was not permitted to accompany her inside for appointments.
“I was so taken aback that I didn’t believe what I was seeing. “It’s a good thing I was on the couch or I would have passed out on the floor,” she told CBS News. “I felt extremely fortunate, but also incredibly astonished.”
The couple tried searching for any information online about superfetation, but there is hardly any literature about it. However, Rebecca believes they are the 14th case of super twins in the world.
The most challenging part of her pregnancy came when doctors said that her younger twin may not survive. But Rosalie was a fighter, and she came out alive and kicking with her brother Noah!
Doctors had to induce labor when Rebecca was 33 weeks pregnant because Rosalie had stopped growing due to a problem with her umbilical cord.
And on September 17, Rebecca gave birth to Noah, who weighed 4 pounds, 10 ounces, and Rosalie, who weighed only 2 pounds, 7 ounces.
Rosalie then spent the next 95 days in the NICU, while her brother spent just over three weeks at a different NICU.
The family was reunited just before Christmas when Rosalie finally came home.
“They’re my super twins,” Rebecca said of her babies. “Every day I look at them and think, ‘Wow, I’m so lucky.’”
Rebecca said that as early as now, she sees an incredible bond between Noah and Rosalie, who is catching up to her brother in size.
“When we lay them down next to each other, it’s like they instantly know and they reach out and touch each other’s faces and it’s just the most beautiful thing,” she said.
“Twins have an amazing bond anyways but the story between these two, when they’re old enough to find out, they’ll feel even more special.”
Rebecca has been sharing her pregnancy journey—and now her life as a mom of super twins—on her Instagram account. She hopes that by sharing her story, other people will see that “anything’s possible.”
“This wasn’t supposed to happen, but it has. The female body is amazing,” she said.
Rebecca’s pregnancy experience is something that can only be described as a beautiful miracle!
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