[Personal Story] Naturally conceived identical triplets. From the discovery of pregnancy to the C-section at 31 weeks

"Huh? It's not just one. Wait a second."
The doctor said that while moving the ultrasound probe.
In 2023, I naturally conceived identical triplets.
It took about a year from then until all three were home.

Hello, I'm Ichigo.
I am a mother of identical triplets (girls), and I now live with my husband, my mother-in-law, and the three of them, making a household of six.
My mother-in-law is living with us temporarily, and our days are lively.
Last time, I wrote about "10 things I'm glad I bought," but this time is the story leading up to that.
https://note.com/ichigo6938/n/n88ac4d0c838d
It's rare enough to have triplets, but they are identical and, on top of that, naturally conceived. When you put it all together, the probability is said to be
1 in 200 million.

Moreover, there isn't even a history of twins in either my husband's family or my own. I truly have no idea why, and my honest feeling was, "Why us?" People around me are often surprised, and even though I'm told I'm that one in 200 million, it still hasn't really sunk in.
As I was writing this while reminiscing, it became incredibly long‼️
So, I will divide it into a first and second part. The first part is from "the day I went to the OB-GYN without knowing anything" until "the day I met the three of them at 31 weeks and 2 days"👶🏻👶🏻👶🏻

■ The day I found out I was having triplets

My period was late, so I visited an OB-GYN just in case.
At the first visit, only the gestational sac was visible, and nothing unusual was mentioned, so I was just happily thinking, "I'm pregnant!♪"
I went to my second checkup expecting to hear, "Everything is growing well."
On the ultrasound screen, I saw two round things.
Lacking knowledge, I thought, "Huh? Where are they looking at now? What are these two things...?"
Then the doctor said, "Huh? It's not just one. Wait a second," and started moving the ultrasound machine.
The screen changed, and there was another round thing🥚
"It's triplets!?"
At that moment, time stopped for me, and I couldn't speak. I remember sending a LINE message to my husband as soon as I left the exam room😂🥚🥚🥚

By the way, at this second checkup, it was also confirmed that there were three gestational sacs within one membrane, and it was determined that they were identical triplets👶🏻👶🏻👶🏻

From there, it was chaos. Since I couldn't give birth there, the condition was a hospital with a NICU. Eventually, I was given a referral to a general hospital that was easy to commute to from home, and I went home that day feeling nervous🚶‍♀️

■ My mother clung to the kitchen

I also vividly remember telling my family.
When I showed my mother the ultrasound photo, she was surprised by the pregnancy itself at first, but the moment I told her, "Actually, it's triplets," she lost her footing and clung to the kitchen, asking over and over again, "Triplets!? Triplets!? Wait, you mean three!?" (lol)
I also reported it to my friends, my younger brother, and my husband via LINE, and I still cherish the screenshots from that time📷

■ Weekly checkups and Shirodkar surgery

I found out I was pregnant around mid-April. From then on, my life began with weekly checkups, driving an hour from home to a general hospital in Niigata Prefecture.
In June, I underwent Shirodkar surgery (a procedure to tie the cervix), and from then on, I was forbidden from driving and instructed to basically stay in bed. I also took ritodrine without fail to suppress uterine contractions. There were more restrictions and risks than for other pregnant women, and it was a pregnancy supported not only by my husband but also by my mother, my brother, and my in-laws.

■ Hospitalization for management

I was originally told, "Let's see how things go after August starts," so I was relaxing, but then the doctor said, "How about being hospitalized for management starting next week?" It seemed like it would be earlier than planned. However, I really wanted to capture my appearance while pregnant—which might be the last time in my life—in a maternity photo, so I had the hospitalization postponed until after the Obon holiday.
The fact that my husband made many trips in the extreme heat because he wouldn't let me carry heavy things at the beach is still useful for calming my heart when we have arguments now😃

■ I gained 22kg🤰

On the day of my hospitalization, my husband and my mother came to see me off. Life in the hospital where visitors were not allowed,
At that time, I had already been told, "A C-section at 34 weeks at the latest," so for a maximum of 3 months,
separated from my family, living a life where I didn't know when it would end—I said goodbye to my husband and mother while shedding big tears like a grown adult 😂
Although visitors were not allowed during my hospitalization, my mother would connect via video call while she went to buy things for me
(essentially a drive-thru), or wave at me from the rooftop of a commercial facility across from the hospital in the sweltering heat,
doing everything she could to shower me with love so that I wouldn't feel lonely, and this time I cried a lot in my hospital room because I was so happy 😂
As for my weight, I had gained 22kg by the time I was measured before admission, and I was admitted while being scolded by the doctor 😇
However, after giving birth, I returned to the exact same weight in one year 👏 Just the numbers 👏 lol
Regarding hospital life, it was by no means easy. Checking my abdominal tension with an NST every day, moving around in a wheelchair as a rule, taking many pills, and when the effects wore off, moving on to an IV drip—the veins in both my arms were reaching their limit and I was on the edge 😖
I had the marks from the IV drips for a while after giving birth... brings back memories...

There were often times when I couldn't take a bath for a week because my abdominal tension was so strong...
I thought it was kind of nice to have my meals brought to my bed, though...
Anyway, I remember the last week being an intense ordeal where I was just so lonely, it was hard not being able to take a bath, and I was just doing my best to close my eyes and breathe.

■ "How about the day after tomorrow?"

One day, while continuing my hospital life, my attending physician suddenly asked me casually, "How about the day after tomorrow?"
and it was decided in a rush that I would give birth at 31 weeks and 2 days 😂
I contacted my husband and mother in a panic. My husband works on-site, but he managed to get time off in a hurry and was able to be there for the birth safely.

■ The day of the birth ~The operating room was packed~

The flow of the C-section itself was no different from a standard one. However, I heard later that it was difficult to gather enough staff for triplets because one midwife or doctor is needed for each newborn. In fact, I remember there were so many people in the operating room, and I felt both grateful and overwhelmed.
On the way to the operating room, I was able to talk to my husband for a little bit for the first time in two months. It was a short time, but that alone made me feel very secure as I headed into the C-section. My husband waited outside during the surgery.

■ Triplets brought in like Wanko Soba

The surgery began, and the three of them were brought to my bedside one after another like Wanko Soba.
Their tiny figures, weighing around 1500g, were smaller than anything I had ever seen in my daily life, and I was moved to tears. At the same time, I was surprised, thinking, "All three of them were inside my belly..."
During the surgery, I had a strange sensation where I could feel the pressure from far away, but it didn't hurt.
The nurse held my hand the whole time and asked how I was feeling, and she was like a mother to me, which was very reassuring. I was filled with respect and gratitude for the medical staff once again.
By the way, I heard that the amniotic fluid and placenta combined weighed about 8kg 😂
No wonder I needed to take a breath and gather my strength just to roll over or get up... I felt convinced, but also a little sad that my life as a pregnant woman was over and I felt lighter.
My husband, who was waiting outside the operating room, saw the babies covered in amniotic fluid
and was apparently surprised all by himself, saying, "Is this a baby!?" (lol)

■ That's it for the first part

The three of them were born safely, and I'd like to say I was relieved—but
the really long part started from here.
Four more months until the three of them could come home.
In the second part, I will write about the 4 months in the NICU. The phone call in the middle of the night saying, "Their heart rate is dropping," another set of triplets who were in the same ward, and the big miscalculation regarding the child seats that I discovered the day before discharge.

Click here for the second part 💁

Thank you for reading until the end 👶🏻👶🏻👶🏻