Tiny conjoined twin girls, Erin and Abby Delaney have been successfully separated, just weeks before their first birthday.
On Tuesday, June 7, a team of 30 doctors, nurses and medical staffers at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia spent a gruelling 11 hours attempting to separate the 10-month-old sisters, who were born with the tops of their heads joined together.
“This past week has been one of the most intense weeks of my entire life. It included being excited, nervous, terrified, relieved, worried, stressed, tired, overjoyed, overwhelmed, and curious,” their mum Heather shared in a blog post on the family’s website.
The girls, who were born 10-weeks prematurely via caesarean, are now recovering in the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit.
The girls before their surgery (Via: Delaney Twins Facebook)
As the twins were joined at one of the body’s most critical areas, their parents’ main concern was in the separation of the blood vessels.
“My heart ached and all I wanted to do was be able to hold their hands and tell them that they could do it. That they would make it through the surgery. That they were so big, and strong, and brave, and that they could do anything,” Heather recalls of the nerve-wracking procedure.
Once it was all over, Heather began to realise that she was no longer a mother to conjoined twins, but to two separate girls.
“I stood in the middle of the room in-between two beds and realised what had happened. We had two girls. Two separate girls independent of each other. They were on their own. They were fighting on their own.”
Heather continues: “They each looked almost lonely in their beds without the other. It almost felt wrong in a way that they couldn’t be with each other.
“Before I could stand in one spot and read them both a story. I could change Erin’s diaper while chatting with Abby. I realised I couldn’t do that anymore. I couldn’t kiss them at the same time, and it blew my mind.”
The family have a GoFundMe page to raise money for their girls’ medical procedures. (Via: Delaney Twins Facebook)
While their journey is far from over – the girls will likely need further surgeries in the future – Heather plans to throw a big bash for her girls, who are doing well on their own.
“When we go home, it’s going to be a big party,” she said in a statement from the hospital. “Welcome home, baby shower, first birthday.”
