From a very young age, the twins have had a lot of media attention.
Editor's note: This article was originally published on January 28, 2022. It has since been updated.
Twins Abby and Brittany Hensel were born on March 7, 1990, and have had the media's attention ever since. The pair are conjoined twins who are dicephalic parapagus (having two heads on one torso). Born with a separate heart, stomach, spine, pair of lungs, and spinal cord, the sisters share the same body from the waist down and each of them operates an arm. With Abby controlling the right side of the sister’s shared body and Brittany operating the left, the sisters work together to do basic things like walking, reported BBC.
They first made their television appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show in April 1996. Later that same month, and in September 1998, the two were featured in the now-defunct Life magazine.
Abby and Brittany Hensel: Conjoined twins are very rare in the world. Since they have two brains, they should be regarded as two separate participants in examinations and assessments. Two separate sets of paper will be given to each of them.
— Knovhov TV (@knovhov) September 6, 2021
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As teenagers, the twins launched their own reality series on TLC. The show gave viewers an insight into the lives of the twins, but it only consisted of a single 8-episode season that aired in 2012. Despite not continuing for longer, the show earned the Hensel sisters a lot more fans. Though it's been a decade since there are still people out there who care about the two of them and wonder what they're up to now.
In fact, ever since the show ended, the twins have also mostly disappeared from the public eye. But, Distractify has confirmed that Abby and Brittany are elementary school teachers in New Brighton, Minnesota. The twins teach fourth and fifth grade with a concentration in math, and their students absolutely adore them. Although Abby and Brittany have separate degrees and two teaching licenses, they still share a paycheck. Honestly, this is something they were always aware of it, too.
Conjoined Twins Abby and Brittany Hensel Are Elementary School Teachers https://t.co/lwKZo8h5HV
— Rev. MAD Dog (@revmaddog3) January 22, 2022
"Obviously, right away, we understand that we are going to get one salary because we're doing the job of one person," Abby told BBC in 2013. She added, "As maybe experience comes in, we'd like to negotiate a little bit, considering we have two degrees and because we are able to give two different perspectives or teach in two different ways." Meanwhile, in 2018, Abby and Brittany revealed that the school that hired them offered them two contracts, and not one, but since they were working part-time, they wouldn't receive a full salary. Their compensation was split in two, meaning Abby and Brittany each got half.
It really is very endearing to see how the two of them have managed to build a life for themselves. Despite their limitations, and it sure is very motivational, isn't it?
References:
https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-22181528
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