- When Sam Albalushi’s twin girls were born conjoined at the hip at 33 weeks, she worried for their future.
- It took a gruelling 18 hour surgery to successfully separate the girls.
- Now age two, the girls are taking their first steps.
Here Sam tells her story in her own words.
Lying in the operating theatre, I felt my heart hammering in my chest.
Are my babies going to make it? I fretted.
It was November 2023, and at 33 weeks along with twins, doctors had urged me to undergo a caesarean after the bubs’ movement had severely reduced.
Suddenly, their tiny cries filled the room as they were lifted from me, allowing me to breathe a sigh of relief.
‘It’s girls!’ the doctor announced.
The babies were conjoined.
What will their quality of life be if they’re connected forever?
Doctors had first suspected something was amiss during my 27-week scan when they struggled to see any space between the babies’ bladders.
They looked very close to each other, but doctors couldn’t be completely sure they were conjoined until they were born.
Now, I struggled to process the news as my little ones, who weighed around 2.5 kilos each, were whisked off to the NICU before I had a chance to see them.
What will their quality of life be if they’re connected forever? I panicked.
‘Separation surgery might be an option once their organs mature,’ one of the doctors explained as I was stitched up.
Visiting the girls a few hours later, any concerns I had melted away as I took in their sweet faces.
READ MORE: ‘I had identical triplets: ‘We go through 126 bottles a week!’’
Naming them Ally and El, I wasn’t sure what their futures held, but I cared for my daughters the best way I knew how – with love.
Cradling the girls in my arms at two days old, I was able to nurse them both at the same time.
While doctors weren’t yet sure what organs they shared, the girls were connected at the pelvis – the bony structure between the hips – but had an opening so they could naturally urinate.
At just three days old, the girls underwent their first surgery where doctors created a stoma, to divert stools from El’s large intestine to a colostomy bag outside her body.
Scans showed that while the girls shared a large intestine, they had separate bladders, livers, one working kidney and separate reproductive organs.
‘They deserve to walk, run and play.’
Heartbreakingly, the girls battled with ongoing urinary tract infections and, when one got ill, both were of course hospitalised.
With few items available to care for conjoined twins, such as car seats, strollers or baby carriers, it meant I couldn’t take the girls outside.
I also had to get creative when it came to dressing them. Joining two nappies together, I’d wrap it snugly around them.
And with no clothes made for their body configuration, I split two pairs of pants down the side, sewing them together to make one large pair.
Hoping to give our girls the best chance at life, we began consulting with hospitals in the Middle East, where we live, and considering the next step in the girls’ future.
‘They deserve to walk, run and play,’ my hubby and I agreed.
READ MORE: ‘My Sweet Girls Were Born Conjoined’
So over the next four months, I spent hours researching, looking for a hospital with lots of experience separating conjoined twins, who could help us.
That’s when I discovered the Seattle Children’s Hospital in the US, who had successfully helped other families like us.
Meeting with their team, first we were hoping to find solutions to the girls’ ongoing UTIs.
At nine months old Ally and El underwent urostomy surgery to help them wee, which was a success.
Then in February this year, when the girls were 15 months old, they were finally wheeled into theatre to be separated.
I could tell the girls were unsure of how to feel being apart for the first time.
‘I love you,’ I said, kissing them goodbye.
During the gruelling 18-hour operation, a team of 30 medical experts worked to carefully separate the girls.
Next, they used absorbable mesh and soft tissue to rebuild the girls’ pelvis and genitals.
Seeing them recovering in separate cots, I could tell the girls were unsure of how to feel being apart for the first time.
Over the next three months Ally and El underwent physical and occupational therapy to improve their fine motor skills and strengthen their muscles as they learned to move independently.
In May, the girls, then 18 months, were finally discharged from hospital.
READ MORE: ‘I had identical triplets: ‘We change 126 nappies a week!’’
Back home, it was a big adjustment running after two toddlers, but we soon settled into a routine.
As they had been born prematurely, the twins took a little while longer to reach their milestones.
But last September, Ally took her first steps with El not far behind.
I couldn’t believe they were finally walking – something we never imagined would be possible.
Now two, the twins are the happiest little girls, who love to run and play together.
While El is more cautious in everything she does, Ally is much more confident.
And while Ally loves everything pink, and has a sweet tooth, El prefers purple and enjoys savoury snacks.
Watching my beautiful girls continue to thrive each day, my heart bursts with love.
They are my little miracles!
To support Ally and El on their journey search ‘Help conjoined twins thrive and heal’ on GoFundMe.
