We all know that twins can be very different from one another. They can be the opposite sex, have different skin tones, eye and hair colour, as well as contrasting personalities. But most people assume that twins will share at least one thing in common: a birthday...
Sure, there are exceptions, such as when one twin is born before midnight one day, while the other is born the following day. (That difference can be even more striking when one twin is born on New Year’s Eve, while the other is born the following day – and, therefore, year.) But it’s rare to hear about twins who were born many days, or even weeks, apart. Yet recently, one couple from Tennessee, Kristen and Ian Miller, welcomed twins who were born five weeks apart. A few months after getting married, Kristen and Ian discovered they were having twins. The twins were due in June this year. Kristen’s pregnancy was smooth sailing, up until she felt contractions during a church service when she was around 22 weeks pregnant. Her waters then broke at home. When Kristen arrived at hospital, the doctors were able to delay her labour. This allowed her son Micah to reach 24 weeks gestation before he made his grand arrival on February 14 this year. While most parents would then expect the arrival of the second twin, the doctors tried to delay Micah’s sister’s birth. This was possible because the twins were fraternal, with each twin having a separate amniotic sac and placenta. Midwife Amanda Bude says this practice – known as delayed interval birth – is uncommon. However, she explains that, when possible, it is done for good reason. “Sadly, premature babies are at a higher risk of many complicated neurological problems (such as cerebral palsy), heart problems, respiratory problems, gastrointestinal and metabolic problems and infections,” Bude says. Consequently, she says: “Mum’s womb is always a better incubator for growth and as a stable environment [for the baby to be in for] as long as possible.” So if one baby is born prematurely, the medical team may aim to hold off on the other twin’s birth. Mum Kristen was put on strict bed rest following Micah’s arrival for this reason. The doctors thought his sister’s arrival could occur anywhere between a few hours, or days, later. But as the days kept passing, Micah’s sister showed no signs of being ready to enter the world. “We made it five and half weeks before Madelyn decided she wanted to come into the world. Thirty-eight days,” Kristen told WBIR. The Millers aren’t the only family to have experienced this unlikely phenomenon, nor is the gap between the births of their twins the longest. The daughters of Irish couple, Maria Jones-Elliot and her husband Chris, hold that title. Maria and Chris’s daughter Amy arrived at 23 weeks gestation on June 1, 2012, while her twin, Katie, was born 87 days later. Amy and Katie’s story is so impressive, The Mirror reports that they hold the Guinness World Record for this reason. Do you know any twins born on separate days? Did you know that it was even possible? Words: Evelyn Lewin Photography: Raegan Glazner