Kirsty Hunnam, 32 from Frome, Somerset, who was ᴅɪᴀɢɴᴏsᴇᴅ with ᴇɴᴅᴏᴍᴇᴛʀɪᴏsɪs as a teenager, was told she would probably ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ have children of her own. But, now she is the mother of two sets of twins under the age of three.
Now, she shares her twin-credible journey to multiple motherhood. Kirsty said:” My ᴘᴇʀɪᴏᴅs started in my early teens and were always very ᴘᴀɪɴғᴜʟ and heavy. Although I went to the ⒼⓅ several times about it, I was simply prescribed ᴘᴀɪɴ ʀᴇʟɪᴇғ and led to believe I was just unlucky. By the time I was 18, the ᴘᴀɪɴ was so bad I was referred to a ɢʏɴᴀᴇᴄᴏʟᴏɢɪsᴛ. They ᴅɪᴀɢɴᴏsᴇᴅ me with ᴇɴᴅᴏᴍᴇᴛʀɪᴏsɪs, a ᴄᴏɴᴅɪᴛɪᴏɴwhere ᴛɪssᴜᴇ grows outside the ᴜᴛᴇʀᴜs. I was told it could affect my ability to ᴄᴏɴᴄᴇɪᴠᴇin the future, which was ᴅᴇᴠᴀsᴛᴀᴛɪɴɢ. After my ᴅɪᴀɢɴᴏsɪs, I had several sᴜʀɢᴇʀɪᴇs to remove the ᴇɴᴅᴏᴍᴇᴛʀɪᴏsɪs ᴛɪssᴜᴇ, during which ᴅᴏᴄᴛᴏʀs also discovered I had ʀᴇᴄᴜʀʀᴇɴᴛ ᴏᴠᴀʀɪᴀɴ ᴄʏsᴛs. And that the chance of me ever becoming ᴘʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴛwas slim. There was nothing I could do but hope that I might be lucky.”
The couple desperately wanted children, and they a half years we tried to ᴄᴏɴᴄᴇɪᴠᴇusing ᴅᴏɴᴏʀ sᴘᴇʀᴍ, but for some reason it wasn’t successful. Kirsty and her partner split up in 2019, and she sadly accepted that it was ᴜɴʟɪᴋᴇʟʏ her ever have a child. In summer 2018, Kirsty started dating Rob, now 34, who works for the NHS. She was immediately honest with him about ɪɴғᴇʀᴛɪʟɪᴛʏ and he insisted he would be happy if it was only ever just the two of they. The couple moved in together, but just a few weeks later, in October 2018, Kirsty began to feel peculiar in a way she ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ experienced before. She suspected her was ᴘʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴛ, but told myself not to be silly – as well as her ᴇɴᴅᴏᴍᴇᴛʀɪᴏsɪs, she was on the ᴍɪɴɪ Pɪʟʟ to help with her sʏᴍᴘᴛᴏᴍs.
Kirsty said:” My ⒼⓅ referred me for an early scan at six weeks and when the sᴏɴᴏɢʀᴀᴘʜᴇʀ said: ‘Everything looks fine and in the right place and there are two babies,’ my jaw dropped. Rob and I both have cousins who are twins, but I thought they were too far removed for it to be ʜᴇʀᴇᴅɪᴛᴀʀʏ. Seeing two little heartbeats flickering on the screen, we both cried tears of surprise and happiness. We left the ʜᴏsᴘɪᴛᴀʟ shell-sʜᴏᴄᴋᴇᴅ – we’d only just got used to the idea of having a baby at all, and now we were having two. Nothing could detract from the joy in knowing I was going to be a mum.” Kirsty ᴘʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴄʏ wasn’t easy. She sᴜғғᴇʀᴇᴅ from ʜʏᴘᴇʀᴇᴍᴇsɪs ɢʀᴀᴠɪᴅᴀʀᴜᴍ and was very sɪᴄᴋ, but Rob was her rock. On June 11, 2019, William and Willow were born weighing 5lb 9oz and 6lb 7oz, after Kirsty went into labour naturally at 37 weeks. Lying in bed with a baby nestled in each arm, she was the happiest woman in the world.
She said:” Six months later, I was advised to have a ʜʏsᴛᴇʀᴇᴄᴛᴏᴍʏ as my ᴇɴᴅᴏᴍᴇᴛʀɪᴏsɪs had ᴡᴏʀsᴇɴᴇᴅ and I was sᴛʀᴜɢɢʟɪɴɢ to ᴄᴏᴘᴇ with the ᴘᴀɪɴ. Nothing could be done apart from ʀᴇᴍᴏᴠɪɴɢ my ᴡᴏᴍʙ. After being lucky enough to have the twins, Rob and I had felt our family was complete, but suddenly we considered trying for another child. We agreed to delay my operation by six months and if it didn’t happen, we’d accept it wasn’t meant to be. To our huge shock and happiness, a month later, I was ᴘʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴛagain. We knew it was going to be hard work having another child when William and Willow were still so young just seven months old at that point but we were excited. It ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ crossed my mind that we could have twins again, until the six-week scan in early March 2020 when the sᴏɴᴏɢʀᴀᴘʜᴇʀ broke the news. Bursting into hysterical tears, I couldn’t process the fact we were going to have four children under 18 months. Rob held me while I sobbed and reassured me that we would cope.”
Kirsty added:” On October 14, 2020, Alice and Aoife were born at 36 weeks, weighing 5lb 3oz and 5lb 6oz. As I held them, all my worries faded away. Nothing else mattered but the fact we had four beautiful children. William and Willow are now two and a half, and Alice and Aoife are 15 months and life is as busy and tiring as it is fun and wonderful. They are very close and play beautifully together. The older pair go to nursery two days a week, and the other days I have all four at home while Rob works. I feed them in two shifts, and we get through 140 nappies a week. At least one child is up every night, so broken sleep is the norm. When I take them out in their quad pram, it’s quite a spectacle. People stare and ask if I’m a childminder they’re inevitably stunned when I say all four are mine.” The pair still make time for one another Rob mum babysits so they can go out for a meal, though they’er ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ had a night away from the children.
