Mum gives birth to identical twins after life-threatening ectopic pregnancies, miscarriage and IVF
A mother has given birth to identical twins after two life-threatening ectopic pregnancies, one miscarriage and two rounds of IVF.
Helen Corsi-Cadmore described her "pure joy" after having identical twin girls with her husband James Cadmore.
The couple's journey to parenthood had been a difficult one after multiple attempts to try and have children.
Helen, 40, suffered her first ectopic pregnancy in 2016, followed by a miscarriage and a second ectopic pregnancy.
After two attempts with IVF, Helen finally gave birth to twin girls, Bella and Sofia, in March 2020.
Describing her first ectopic pregnancy, Helen said: "I started bleeding then was in a bit of pain. This carried on and the pain got worse.
"I had some blood tests and then a very stern sonographer, who was very matter of fact, just said: 'There's an egg in the Fallopian tube'.
"There was no empathy and I felt really alone. A consultant gave me 10 minutes to decide what to do; medically manage the pregnancy or operate.
"We went down the non-operation route initially but that night at home the pain became excruciating. I ended up having emergency laparotomy surgery as I was bleeding internally and I lost a Fallopian tube."
An ectopic pregnancy happens when a fertilised egg implants itself outside of the womb, usually in one of the Fallopian tubes.
It occurs in around 11,000 pregnancies a year and it's not possible to save the unborn baby.
Helen explained that she had never heard of an ectopic pregnancy before and added "there's definitely a huge lack of awareness considering how common they are".
"Little did I know I was going through something that was life-threatening but many of the signs and symptoms of an ectopic are similar to a miscarriage."
Helen was supported by the team at the Ectopic Pregnancy Trust who she described as "a lifeline".
She explained: "It took me three months to recover mentally and physically from this trauma and nine months before we thought about trying again".
After their second round of IVF, the married couple found out it had been a success.
"At seven weeks we got the news that the egg had split – twins! How lucky were we? Two for the price of one!
"But I couldn't enjoy it. I was constantly worried something would go wrong", Helen explained.
Despite this, Helen went on to give birth naturally at 35 weeks to Bella, weighing 5lb 2oz, and Sofia, weighing 4lb 15oz.
Looking back, Helen admitted that the pandemic made the first few months difficult with the new borns.
"I really did not cope very well. We couldn't see anyone and did not have the physical support of family.
"Just asking someone to watch the babies when you have a shower or go to the loo, simple things. I really missed human contact, it was a tough time."
"Now we feel we have come out the other side. The girls are walking and talking and we're enjoying every single moment.
"They're real characters. Even though they're identical they have their own personalities. Bella is very cheeky and independent while Sofia is much more cwtchy."