When the Finley family welcomed conjoined twins last year, they knew it was going to be a long time before they’d get to bring their baby girls, AmieLynn and JamieLynn, home. Still, they never gave up hope they’d get the happy ending they prayed for.
Conjoined at Birth
The girls were born in October 2022 in Texas. They were joined at the chest and shared a liver. They were also the first conjoined twins ever to be separated at the Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth. The surgery took place in January and took 11 hours to complete.
“I would not have thought in a million years that I would have twins,” their mother, Arciniega, told Atlanta News First. “And then conjoined twins on top of that.”
“Some moments are just so hard; you have to stay positive, you have to keep the right mindset,” the girls’ father, James Finley, told an NBC affiliate.
The surgery went well for JamieLynn, and she was sent home last month at five months old. But AmieLynn needed more time to recover and to specifically create more space for her heart, diaphragm, and lungs.
“We’re excited that we get to get her home,” James said at the time. “We’ll have some good bonding time, but at the same time, Amie is still up there, so it’s kind of a double-edged sword. We’re happy Jamie is coming home, but they’re not going to be together for a bit.”
A Quick Recovery
Luckily, AmieLynn didn’t take as long to recover as initially thought, and she was recently sent home to live with her sister. Now, the family of seven is under the same roof for the first time since the girls were born.
“It’s neat when we get to see our kids go home to their families; it’s why we do it,” said medical director and lead surgeon Dr. Jose Iglesisas. “To get to see them with their loving family all together is just the ultimate for us.”
“They’re part of our family, and there’s a little piece missing now that they’re not here, but we’re also so happy they’ve done so well, and they get to go home and be with each other,” added Nurse Brianne Galvan.
The babies, who are already hitting milestones, reportedly share a room and love holding hands and playing with each other — much to their mother’s joy.
A Long Road
Having the babies home is a huge relief, of course, but these twins still have a lot of post-surgical care to get through. AmieLynn developed scoliosis as a result of pulling away from her sister, and both twins will need to be monitored.
That’s why organizers from the EECU Community Foundation have set up a fund and baby registry to help the family. All money raised will help with the rehabilitation process and other treatments that will help the girls reach their full potential.
“This is kind of the beginning again,” James said in a video from the hospital. “Surgery was one beginning, and now we're going home to another beginning.”
A Happy Ending
Everyone goes through hard things in life, and having conjoined twins has got to be one of the hardest — and scariest.
After all, conjoined twins only occur once in every 50,000 to 60,000 births, and most are stillborn. Those are some pretty tough stats. So the fact that this family pulled through really is a miracle.
It’s also a nice reminder that when things look bleak and it’s hard to keep the faith, it’s still important to try. Those girls pulled through their surgeries, and now they’re going to need their parents, not to mention their community.
Luckily, it seems like their community is coming out strong, and these girls are expected to go on to lead full, healthy, and happy lives.
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