Her amniotic sac was leaking at 22 weeks, but doctors saved her twins

When Laura was 22 weeks pregnant with twins in 2003, she suddenly found herself facing a medical emergency. The amniotic sac was partially prolapsed, and fluid was leaking, putting her babies' lives in danger and increasing her risk of infection. But doctors didn't suggest abortion. They worked to save all of them — both of the baby girls and their mother.

Key Takeaways:

• Laura was just 22 weeks pregnant with Abby and her twin Audrey when she began leaking amniotic fluid and learned her amniotic sac was protruding.

• Doctors admitted her to the hospital, where she stayed for two days before being transferred to a hospital that was better equipped to care for premature babies.

• She was kept on an inverted table with her head down for six days until she gave birth at 23 weeks.

• The baby girls overcame the odds stacked against them and survived.

The Details:

In January 2003, at 22 weeks pregnant with the twins, Abby's mother, Laura, knew something was wrong, and she went to a medical center for help. Once there, doctors admitted her, telling her she was at risk of delivering early. However, the hospital was not equipped to care for babies born so prematurely, and doctors decided to transfer her to another hospital that was better suited to care for all three of them.

"It was one of the hardest days of my mother's life," said Abby.

While premature labor can be common with twins, Abby explained to Live Action News that, at 22 weeks, there was only a small chance of survival for her and her sister, Audrey. And that was 20 years ago.

Today, the chances of twins surviving birth at that young age are only 10-20%, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

After two days at the medical center, Laura was taken to the other hospital by ambulance, and once there, doctors came up with a plan to prevent labor. They placed her on an inverted table where she stayed for the next six days.

"During that time, she was lying on a bed at an angle where her head was down, and her feet were up to prevent us from being born," said Abby.

After six days, labor could no longer be prevented, and Abby and Audrey were born at 23 weeks on Sanctity of Life Sunday.

"It was a God thing that we were born on that day," said Abby. "You wouldn't expect that 23-weekers would survive. Doctors gave us a 10% chance of survival, and here we are, 23 years later, and we're surviving and thriving."

After the twins survived birth, their chances of continued survival jumped to 30%, but they were diagnosed with mild cerebral palsy and dealt with complications in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) for four months. They had feeding tubes, oxygen assistance, surgery to correct blindness since their eyes hadn't fully developed, and Abby required heart valve surgery.

As infants, they underwent physical therapy, occupational therapy, and orientation and mobility services. As they grew and went to school, they had speech therapy and special education services.

Abby told Live Action News:

"We've come through a lot of stuff. We weren't expected to survive this long, and we've proven that we can do a lot of things that we were told we wouldn't be able to do, like walk and talk.

A lot of doctors marveled at our progress throughout the months. They asked our parents why they were so calm through it. They said they had God. It was hard for my parents, but they are strong people."

Laura and her husband, Clay, a pastor, are indeed so strong that they went on to welcome five more children after this experience, including the youngest three, who are adopted. The seven girls range in ages from infant to 23.

Abby and Audrey have attended college, and Abby is planning to work at a private music school. Audrey is considering returning to school to study theater and music.

Abby also feels a calling to advocate for preborn babies. She told Live Action News:

"I can share my story with more people and hopefully touch hearts and lead some people to Christ. That’s the definition of success in my work. If I can do what God told me to do, that would be great. ...

I’ve always had a passion towards the unborn because of my story. Because I was born at 23 weeks, if I said that to a person who was abortion-minded, perhaps they would say you were a person then. But at 23 weeks, most people wouldn’t consider that viable. If I were born a few days later at 24 weeks, then some people would consider me a human, rather than at 23 weeks, which is insane to me.

That and the fact that my twin and I have disabilities — they don’t determine our quality of life, and I’m a strong advocate for the unborn and people with disabilities."

She added that it "hurts my heart that people out there have little to no regard for the life of people in the womb."

Amazing Timelapse of EVERY SINGLE DAY of a Child’s Development in the Womb | Window to the Womb

Zoom Out:

Stories like Abby's and her family's have made headlines in recent years, portrayed as reasons that abortion must be legal through all 40 weeks of pregnancy. But abortion — the direct and intentional killing of preborn babies — is not medically necessary.