The autopsies

Well, it looks like the medical part of our long journey has nearly ended. Though we still have to go meet with the doctors in a few weeks, I was able to talk to the Pathologist and hear the results of the autopsies.

It is confirmed that the boys were identical: they had the same DNA and shared the same placenta. The latter is what introduced the problem. Commonly known as Twin-to-Twin-Transfusion-Syndrome (TTTS), the boys shared circulation because the blood vessels in the placenta were conjoined. This situation is common in identical twins and can be safe for both babies if the blood levels within the babies stays equal. If it is thrown off balance, the problems can be severe, and that is what happened in this case. Basically, Isaac (who died at 17 weeks) had too much blood in his body and John (who died at 20 weeks) had too little. The extra blood in Isaac's body caused him to die of a stroke. When that happened, all of the blood rushed into John's body, causing a stroke in him as well.

The doctor believes that this was a complication of having twins and is not connected to genetics whatsoever. She believes that the chances of it happening again are slim because the chances of getting pregnant with identical twins is slim. So, in a nutshell, this is the best of the worst: it's the most reassuring news we could have gotten considering the horrible situation.

Now, we keep moving forward. We are both feeling a bit more relieved knowing that we can move forward to have more children, but "the end" is sad as well: we didn't want to lose these. That said, we trust, and trusting is all we can do. We find comfort knowing that both of our sons are with God and we are so thankful for the love and support we've found as we've travelled -- and continue to travel -- this journey of grief and subsequent restoration. Thank you for all your continued prayers.