Kelsey Hatcher learned she had a double uterus at 17 years old.
Now, the Alabama woman is double surprised: She’s pregnant with twins, one in each uterus.
When Kelsey watched a home pregnancy test turn positive, she shared the news with her husband, Caleb, who has always been “the greatest encourager.”
The couple didn’t expect another baby, but Kelsey recalled, “When I told him I was pregnant again, he’s like, ‘OK, well, what’s one more? It’ll be great. It’ll be fine.”
About eight weeks into her pregnancy, the 32-year-old mother had some minor complications, which, she said, led her to set up an OB appointment.
“As the tech scanned and said everything looked great, I confirmed, ‘There is only one, right?’” Hatcher said.
“She smiled and said yes, so I took a breath and relaxed. But I then told her, ‘I’m not sure if it’s on my chart, but I do have a second uterus, just so you aren’t alarmed.'” Kelsey’s condition, called uterine didelphys, is found among only about 0.3% of the population, according to Cleveland Clinic.
“Essentially, the uteri are the size of one split in half,” Kelsey explained to Fox News.
The ultrasound tech then scanned over to find the other uterus.
“And as soon as she moved the ultrasound wand over to the other side of my belly, I said, ‘Oh, my gosh! There’s another one.’”
The chances of a woman having this type of pregnancy is about one in 50 million, an OB/GYN at Baylor College of Medicine told Scientific American.
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“All I could do was laugh,” she said. “I immediately called my husband, Caleb, to tell him, as he was not at the appointment with me. He and I just laughed together.”
Hatcher had her first three children in “normal” pregnancies — Raelynn (6), River (4) and Rhemy (2).
Dr. Shweta Patel, assistant professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Department of OBGYN, who is also Hatcher’s doctor, described the pregnancy as “very surprising.”
“I had to see the images of the ultrasound myself to believe it,” she told Fox.
“Since the pregnancies are in separate uteri, we know that they occurred with two separate eggs and two separate sperm, meaning they will be fraternal twins,” Patel explained.
Genetically, the babies — both girls — fit the definition of fraternal twins.
Fortunately, Hatcher’s double pregnancy does not carry any greater risk than an ordinary pregnancy with twins, the doctor said.
“Certainly children are a gift from the LORD, the fruit of the womb, a reward.” Psalm 127:3
“They are mostly just watching the girls more closely, to make sure they are growing properly and to discuss all our options for delivery,” Hatcher said.
“I have complete faith that this delivery will be great and will continue to beat the odds,” the mother told Fox.
Hatcher’s doctors are letting her carry her pregnancy beyond the typical duration for mothers expecting twins. They hope she’ll go into spontaneous labor—whether in both uteruses or just one.
“They will allow me to deliver one completely if only one side goes into labor, as long as the other baby and I are well. Then they will start an induction for the second baby,” Hatcher said.
If neither uterus goes into labor on its own, doctors will induce her on December 22.
“I’ve been extremely blessed and grateful,” Hatcher said.
Join us in praying for Kelsey, her preborn babies, and the medical team caring for them!
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