Samantha and Arnold Winters* from Cape Town knew there was an outside chance of having twins when they opted to try in-vitro fertilisation (IVF). They never expected to fall pregnant on their first cycle.
For Samantha, who works in IT for the Foschini Group, and husband Arnold, the birth of their twins was the miracle for which they had hoped after a struggle to get pregnant had led them to IVF. They were lucky the first time around.
Twin girls Kim and Sarah were born on 26 March 2016 and, says mother Samantha, they have brought so much love to the family.
Getting to this point wasn’t easy for the couple.
Going the IVF route
When they found out about an obstruction in Samantha's fallopian tubes, they decided to go the IVF route. Fertility treatment is not covered by any medical scheme, so they had to fund this themselves. Being in her late twenties, Samantha had age on her side and quickly fell pregnant.
They decided to have two embryos placed in the uterus, in the hope that at least one would lead to a pregnancy. They had prepared for a long and expensive journey down the IVF road and were delighted when they heard she was indeed pregnant after the first cycle.
Unlike many other parents of twins, they had an inkling that there was a chance of twins, but it still came as a surprise when not only was the pregnancy confirmed, but also that both eggs had 'taken’.
"Of course there were concerns,” adds Samantha. “I was worried about how I was going to get through the pregnancy and how I would cope once the twins were born."
A complicated birth by caesarean section
Her pregnancy was not without complications. She developed high blood pressure and from the 26th week of her pregnancy, had to spend most of the time lying down. The doctor expected the twins – baby girls – to be born early and gave Samantha steroid injections in an effort to strengthen the babies' lungs.
Also, the gynaecologist they chose to see charged more than medical fund rates, and they had to make co-payments. Because she was carrying twins, some consultations were twice as long, which added to the cost.
The babies were born by caesarean section at the Life Kingsbury Hospital when she was 32 weeks pregnant. They weighed just over 1.5 kg each and spent some time in the neonatal ICU before they were strong enough to be taken home.
"I was very grateful that the medical scheme covered all of the hospital costs, as they were high. It would have been very tricky to fund that ourselves," says Samantha.
A few weeks later they were all home.
The reality of raising twin babies
"We had lots of help, thank goodness. A year before, we had taken over the house from my parents-in-law and built on an extension for them on the property. This turned out to be a real blessing, as they have been absolutely wonderful in helping us raise the twins. I am not sure what we would have done without them, as well as several other family members who have been so supportive," adds Samantha.
To get through the first few months, Samantha and Arnold decided on a strategy of each caring mainly for one of the babies each.
"There were many days Arnold went to work having had very little sleep. I was on maternity leave then and only returned to work when the twins were about seven months old. We separated them during the night, so that they did not wake each other when they cried and all of us managed to get some sleep, at least," she adds.
"To this day, the twins are primarily attached to the respective parent who cared for them when they were babies. They are very different in personality. Kim, the older one, is more sensitive, and needs slightly more attention than Sarah, who is more expressive and outgoing. Every now and then they quarrel, as all kids do, but they also play very well together," says Samantha.
If she could give advice to prospective mothers of twins?
"The good news is that it really gets easier as time passes. Accept that you cannot control everything and appreciate the small, rewarding things. Kids bring so much love to the family. And speaking of family – we really could not have done it without several members of the extended family pitching in when we needed it most."
*Names changed to protect the family’s privacy