Updated: August 13, 2015
Originally Published: July 25, 2013
Almost four years have passed, yet I can still recall the details as clearly as if it were yesterday. The room was dimly lit; I reclined back, and the technician squirted warm gel onto my belly. I cringed. I absolutely despise that sensation—it’s so off-putting! Leaning in, I asked in a hushed tone, “Do you have any of that stuff that’s not warmed up?”
“What? Oh, I think most people prefer it warm,” she replied.
“Not me! It feels like—well, you know.”
“What? Oh! Wow, no one has ever said that before!”
“Yeah, I get that a lot.”
“Alright, shall we begin?”
“Yes, let’s.”
Then, the technician brought a plastic wand into action, sending sound waves through me and creating images from the echoes. She took measurements, occasionally murmuring thoughtful “hmms.”
“What? Hmmm, what?” I asked, genuinely curious rather than sensing any bad news.
“Is this your first sonogram?”
“Nope, I’ve had about four with my first child,” I replied, blissfully unaware of the tension in her tone.
“No, um, I mean, is this your first one for this, uh, pregnancy? Have you found out anything yet?”
“Oh, right. First one! Nope, we don’t know anything yet. I mean, we know I’m pregnant, right? Ha ha!” — could I have been more oblivious? She was clearly trying to tell me something.
“Right. Well, let’s see what we’ve got.”
“Oh, there’s the baby! That’s the head, the arm, the legs,” I said, pointing at the monitor, while my husband stood beside me, squinting to catch a glimpse of the tiny features.
“Okay,” said the technician as she shifted the wand to another side of my belly. “And what do you see now?”
“Um, the baby turned over?” I guessed, noticing the profile had changed.
“Nooooo.”
[Long pause, a pregnant pause, if you will.]
“Two babies.”
“WHAT?” I exclaimed, shooting upright, my eyes wide and fixed on the technician.
“I’m just the messenger,” she said, flinching slightly and raising her hands defensively.
“WHAT?” I repeated, as if the message hadn’t quite landed yet.
“Two babies.”
“WHAT?” Because honestly, I couldn’t use that question enough. “HOW? WHAT?”
“Well, let’s see…” she said gently pushing me back down to a reclined position, pointing out key details that explained the situation—two umbilical cords, two placentas, two amniotic sacs, and there they were—four arms, four legs, and two heads.
Cold shock washed over me. Fear gripped my thoughts, and my mind started to spiral like a Tilt-A-Whirl. All we wanted was to give our daughter a sibling—a sibling, not two! I had never envisioned myself with three kids. Three felt like an odd number. We would never fit at a table for four—there would always be one left out. Growing up with two sisters, uneven teams had been a constant. Five? My family would be a party of five! “Party of Five” was a show I loathed! Sure, I watched it as a teen, but the parents died in that show! And our house has only three bedrooms—too cramped for twins! Twins! Oh my gosh, I would have to juggle two screaming babies at once! I barely managed with one last time. How could there be two?
As the technician explained that the twins were definitely fraternal, my thoughts continued to race.
“Two eggs,” she stated.
“Two eggs,” I echoed. “So this is my fault?”
“What?” she replied, momentarily taken aback. “There’s no fault here—just two babies.”
“Yeah, I got that part. But how? There are no twins in my family or his,” I gestured towards my eerily silent husband still hovering nearby.
Looking back at the monitor, she said, “Let’s see, you’re 35. Well, as you age, your body tends to release more viable eggs.”
“Like rats off a sinking ship?”
“Um, yeah, you could say that.”
“Fantastic,” I muttered as I reclined back slowly.
Somehow, I endured the rest of the exam, where they measured everything necessary for tests recommended for women over 35. I left the office in a daze, called my sister, and said, still in shock, “You’ll never believe what just happened.”
Even four years later, I can hardly believe it myself.
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Summary
This reflection on a life-changing sonogram reveals the shock of discovering twins during a routine pregnancy checkup. The author navigates the unexpected emotions of fear, disbelief, and humor while contemplating the implications of expanding her family.
Keyphrase: Twin pregnancy surprises
Tags: [“home insemination kit” “home insemination syringe” “self insemination”]