A 'super-fertile' mum discovered she had fallen pregnant while already pregnant after conceiving her twins 28 days apart. Sophie Small conceived Holly and Darcy, now two, one month apart due to an incredibly rare phenomenon known as superfetation, where a new pregnancy occurs after the first one.
Sophie and accountant husband Jonathan, 34, who already have a son named Oscar, six, were trying for another baby when they conceived Holly after a party in December 2019. Although the 30-year-old had an inkling that she was already pregnant, the couple decided to keep trying just in case and they conceived Darcy a month later.
The swimming instructor was thrilled when she took a pregnancy test and discovered it was positive. But the concerned mum went for a seven-week scan to make sure the baby was healthy after she suffered from extreme morning sickness.
The scan showed that she was pregnant with twins but the two babies were different sizes and medics were stumped as to why. The couple only discovered the tots weren't conceived at the same time after the birth in August 2020 when Darcy was born weighing 4lbs 2oz and her sister followed two minutes later weighing 6lbs 1oz.
Sophie said: "Instantly I knew I was pregnant because of headaches but I thought I might not be, so we carried on trying. After I conceived Darcy, the sickness was horrific. I was hospitalised eight times in seven weeks and spent 120 hours on a drip.
"I was carrying two babies who were growing at different stages but we didn't know that. They couldn't work out why I was so sick. I had a scan at seven weeks and they said it was a bit different.
"I was expecting twins but one was bigger than the other. They could tell something wasn't right. They had their own sacs and placentas so they could feed when they wanted to. They couldn't work out why one twin was bigger than the other.
"When they were born there was a 35 per cent growth difference between the two of them, which is massive and they [the staff] realised they'd been conceived four weeks apart. Darcy was a 32-week baby and Holly was a 36-week baby. I said it couldn't be right, I'd never heard of it. I didn't know how it happened."
She says although the tots are twins, they couldn't be more different and girly girl Holly still weighs 6lbs more than tomboy Darcy. The mum says she likes to confuse strangers in the street who stop to ask how many minutes are between the girls, while others don't believe her when she says they're twins.
Sophie said: "They don't even look like sisters, you wouldn't even know. Holly has blonde hair, big beautiful blue eyes and wants to be a princess or a jockey. Darcy's hair is a mousey brown hair, she's a tomboy and wants to be a train driver when she's older.
"People think I'm a nutter when I explain. They ask how many minutes apart they are and I say Darcy is two minutes older and four weeks younger, while Holly was born two minutes after but is four weeks older and I just walk away. Some people question whether they are twins."
Sophie says she knew she was 'very fertile' because of how quickly she conceived Oscar and believes she ovulated again when she was already pregnant with Holly. At the 29-week scan, doctors broke the news that they couldn't detect movement from the smaller twin and they may need to induce labour.
They managed to stop Sophie from giving birth using medication until August when Holly was born at 36 weeks and Darcy at 32 weeks. While Holly was born with cerebral palsy, which affects the right side of her body, Darcy's stomach lining hadn't developed properly.
Sophie said: "I'm very fertile. There was no need to try, it was one attempt with Oscar.
"At 29 weeks there was another scan. They said the smaller twin wasn't moving and they couldn't find a heartbeat. I couldn't take it in. They said I possibly needed to give birth. I was distraught. I was given a pill to keep them in for longer. When I gave birth doctors thought they were similar sizes but there ended up being a 35 per cent difference.
"There's still 6lbs between them now. It was extremely difficult during the birth. It was covid as well so we didn't have any family or support around us.
"We had two little ones in and out of hospital going to different appointments. The first eight weeks were the hardest of my life. They're still hard work. They're very mischievous, fun-loving little girls.
"They're absolutely thriving. They've started nursery and they're very confident. They're extremely active and lively. I had no idea what the future would hold for them when they were born.
"It was so difficult but we're so happy and blessed to have them."
