Dr Penman – My Premature Triplets is an emotive article from Dr Penman, a fetal medicine specialist. Readers may find some of the content of this post distressing. Dr Penman would like to remind others that this is his account of his own experiences and does not necessarily reflect what other parents of premature babies might encounter.
My wife and I with our triplets in 1992
The triplets’ birth
In 1992, my wife Helen and I welcomed premature triplets – two girls and one boy – who were born at 27 weeks of pregnancy. The triplets each weighed less than 2lbs – an average baby born full-term weighs between 7-9 lbs.
Whilst we did expect that our triplets would be born before they reached full-term, we weren’t expecting them to come quite as early as they did, at 27 weeks; In the UK about 8% of births occur prematurely. Of this number only 5% occur before 28 weeks, 10% occur between 28-32 weeks and 85% occur between 32-37 weeks. The cause of premature birth is often unknown but there are number of risk factors including being pregnant with more than one baby.
My wife and I with our premature triplets outside St Thomas’ Hospital, London in Spring 1992
Some health problems
After he was born, our son suffered a haemorrhage in the motor cortex of his brain which led to him later being diagnosed with cerebral palsy. One of our daughters had a haemorrhage in the brain ventricles and later developed hydrocephalus. This, thankfully, resolved on its own without the need for medical intervention.
One of our daughters shortly after she was born
The triplets’ homecoming
At the end of August 1992, our triplets finally came home. This was a particularly poignant time, as it was around their original due date. Whilst our son remained on 24-hour oxygen for another year after this, we focused on the fact that he was healthy enough to be home with us and his sisters.
All three triplets finally at home together in August 1992
Coping with premature babies
The birth of our triplets was a very difficult time. For a while, there was a great deal of uncertainty as to whether or not they would live. Even after they were out of critical care, it remained to be seen how they would thrive. We tried not to think too much about the “what ifs” and focused on what we could know – that each and every day with our babies signalled another day that they were growing and fighting.
My wife with our triplets in the Intensive Care Unit of St Thomas’ Hospital, London
26 years on and our plans for this year’s World Prematurity Day
Our triplets are now grown up; our daughters are married and working, and our son is studying for his PhD. One of my daughters is expecting her own baby early next year.
As this year’s World Prematurity Day falls on a Saturday, I will be holding my usual Saturday baby scan and gynaecology clinics in Kent all day. In the evening, my wife and I will be having dinner with our triplets and their families, grateful for the fact they are all here today.
The whole Penman family together
This is such an inspiring story! Not only did they manage to have triplets, they had them early and yet they were still able to survive. I think people that are able to help their children survive after being born prematurely have a much deeper relationship with their children than parents that didn’t have many complications or any at all. In my opinion, it could be because someone who had no complications during birth aren’t faced with the idea of losing their children before their lives have even started, which means that sometimes their children’s lives are taken for granted.… Read more »
thankyou for your comments. Im not sure one can love their children more but i understand what you mean. I think it makes parents more determined to do the best they can for their premature babies. Not knowing what issues they will face through their childhood because of the prematurity is a worry but if you have done everything you can, they will definitely reach their potentials, what ever that is.
Oh wow! What beautiful babies they were. I have 4 children myself but no sets of triplets, or even twins for that matter but I would have loved to have twins. I have heard from a few friends of mine who has had twins and they said it was quite hard work when they were born looking after them but it seems like you had it even harder with triplets and with your son being born with a brain heamorrhage and cerebral palsy. It seems like he is doing really well for himself now though going for his pHd. That’s… Read more »
Thankyou Matthew for your comments. It was definitely a worrying time, the odds at the time were stacked against them surviving the neonatal period but as you can see, were were blessed and all three are thriving.
I came across your site as I have a friend expecting triplets and felt I needed a bit more information so I could at least talk logically with her about what to expect. So far her pregnancy is going well so while she is not expecting a full term pregnancy, obviously she’s hopeful of a lot later than 27 weeks as was you case. I had no idea there was a World Prematurity Day so thanks for sharing this information. It is so heartwarming to hear your children are all now grown and doing so well. My very best wishes to… Read more »
Thankyou Heidi, they are definitely a blessing and once we reached the ‘regular baby stage’ once we were over the prematurity worries, all the usual issues with 3 babies kicked in.. sleepless nights and lots of washing. If you want more information about caring for triplets, hop over to http://www.twinsandtripletsworld.com This has a lot of useful information on coping with twins and triplets.
What a story and great family. Patience, determination, love and giving back by helping others. Ads a bright spot to the world making it a better place for all. I’m sure it has helped others out with their situation and given hope in the face of adversity. The fact that you have gone through having triplets and having such good luck and success is probably very comforting to your patients. 1st hand experience and not just science and advice.
Thankyou JT, very insightful. It does help to understand patients when you have had first hand experience.
I’m glad to hear that even with all the complications your children had when born, that they came out alright and are doing well.
my twin and I were born premature as well, and both the doctors didn’t know if we’d make it. Luckily though we did and are both doing very well.
I have a quick question though. How hard was it raising 3 kids at one time? Did you get a lot of sleep, did you rotate who stayed up, and did you do anything to save money and curt back on cost?
Thankyou Michael, yes caring for 3 very young children was exhausting, particularly the night feeds. We had a rota for trying to get sleep and family members would come for odd nights which was a godsend. We had to be very careful with money, as a junior doctor with three babies, we had no spare cash for nannies or even au pair, it was down to us to cope and you do, you have no choice!
What an inspiring post! I’m so glad your babies grew and thrived adn are now grown up. It’s so amazing that they can go from so tiny to full grown. I follow a family with quads on Facebook and they were also very, very tiny when born and are now six years old and running around. Is the younger boy in the photo your son or your grandson?
Thankyou so much for taking the time to read the article. It was definitely touch and go for quite a while with our son, and thankfully as you can see they all survived ! The younger boy is my youngest son, he is 10 years younger than the triplets.
Dr. Penman, Your work sounds impressive and very helpful to mothers prior to giving birth. Your story of how you and your wife were able to cope with three premature babies all at once is an inspiration to others. The problems that can happen when a baby is born prematurely are countless and the more aware women are the better. Taking care of themselves during their pregnancy is vital. I am always amazed when I find stores like yours of the success that comes from a loving and nurturing family and how the babies can survive and turn into loving… Read more »
Thankyou Susan, for taking the time to read the article. I think prematurity is certainly something every pregnant woman should understand, but its sometimes the last thing they want to think about. Devastating when it happens, the full enormity of terrible outcome hits like a tidal wave. We were very very lucky that the doctors and nurses looking after our triplets had the skill and dedication to fight through all the emergencies through the first few weeks.
My youngest daugther was born slightly premature. Though I did not have triplets, the worry that we faced was very similar. She also had the cord wrapped around her neck and was a breach baby. She almost didn’t make it which was the scariest thing for a parent to face, but thankfully she is a fighter and was able to make it. She does have some learning difficulties, possibly from birth, but that doesn’t matter at all. What matters is that she made it and she is here with us today. I could not even imagine my life without her.
A child is a blessing and we very much faced the enormity of losing child with all three at some point in the first few weeks. Our older son is disabled with Cerebral Palsy but he is phenomenally clever and now doing a PhD. Life is not easy for him, he faces challenges every day but with us and his sisters and younger brother, he lives a very full and happy life. We wish he wasnt like this sometimes, because life is so tough, but we are very grateful he survived and is with us today.
I am so glad there was a happy ending to this story, and that all the triplets are alive and well. This is very good information and shows how important it is to have a baby scan and to be under the care of a professional such as yourself. Thank you for sharing,
Is there anything that can be done to prevent premature births?
Bill
Thankyou fo your comments, we were very fortunate, some parents of triplet are not so lucky. The premature delivery for us was because they were triplets and my wife had not had children before, so it was something on our minds right from the start. But there are often distinct causes for prematurity that can be treated whilst there are some conditions that happen suddenly and cannot be treated before a premature delivery occurs.