PART 1
November 5, 2018, was the day my life changed forever.
A few days earlier, I had gone to my OB-GYN for a routine Pap smear.
Then my doctor told me something I wasn’t expecting:
My urine test was positive for pregnancy.
I was already a mother to an 11-year-old and a 9-month-old baby.
I remember thinking:
“How is it possible that I’m pregnant again?”
My husband worked long hours, and we barely saw him.
Another baby so soon wasn’t something I had planned for.
I spent the entire weekend overwhelmed, anxious and unsure about what we were going to do.
Then Monday morning arrived.
It was time for my first ultrasound.
6
The ultrasound technician began examining me.
Then suddenly she asked:
“Oh, do you see what I see?”
I looked at the screen.
My heart started racing.
I thought I saw two sacs.
I immediately said:
“Oh no. Two sacks? Don’t tell me we’re having twins!”
The technician smiled.
Then she said:
“No, no. Count the eggs.”
I started counting.
One.
Two…
And then I realized there was another.
Three.
I completely lost it.
“Oh my goodness! Is that THREE eggs?”
She confirmed it.
“That’s right. You’re carrying triplets.”
I was lying on the ultrasound table crying hysterically.
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.
Meanwhile, my husband was holding our 9-month-old daughter.
He was crying too.
But his tears were happy tears.
4
The technician asked whether we’d used fertility treatment.
We hadn’t.
This pregnancy had happened completely naturally.
She told us spontaneous triplets were extremely rare—around a 1-in-10,000 type of occurrence.
I left the ultrasound room and met with my OB.
I was only six weeks pregnant.
And then came another difficult piece of information.
There was a high possibility that I could lose one baby…
or possibly all three.
I was devastated.
Instead of celebrating, I went home and curled up in bed.
I cried.
And cried.
And cried some more.
I kept thinking about the reality of having five children.
How would we afford them?
How would we manage?
How could I possibly do this?
6
For four weeks, I lived with anxiety, fear and depression while waiting for another ultrasound.
Then appointment day finally came.
I held my breath as the technician examined the babies.
And then…
All three were thriving.
All three had strong heartbeats.
All three were still there.
I was relieved.
But my doctor also suggested that I consider a fetal reduction procedure.
I can’t pretend the thought never entered my mind.
It did.
But how could I choose to reduce my pregnancy?
These were already my babies.
