“It’s very rare what they have, but they’ve been my little gems,” said the mother.
Savannah Combs always knew her babies were going to be special, but little did she know they were going to be extremely rare.
Twins Mckenli and Kennadi Ackerman were both born with Down syndrome. The chances of that are “exceedingly rare,” said Dr. Pamela Trapane, medical director of Wolfson Children’s Hospital’s Duran Genetics Center in Jacksonville, Florida, according to TODAY.
“For every 1,000 twin pregnancies, around two will have at least one baby with Down syndrome,” Trapane said. “However, the chance prior to a pregnancy that the pregnancy will be twins and that both twins will have Down syndrome is around one in 1 to 5 million.”
Combs actually knew one of her girls would be born with Down syndrome, but she did not confirm with a diagnostic test. “Every [prenatal] appointment they were alive was a blessing to me,” the Jacksonville mom said.
“It’s very rare what they have, but they’ve been my little gems,” said Combs, according to News4Jax.
The twins arrived on May 12, 2021, two months before their due date, which made them stay at Wolfson Children’s Hospital in Jacksonville, Florida for about six weeks after their birth.
“They’re called mono di twins, meaning that they had their own sacs, but they shared the same placenta, meaning that they were going to be identical,” said Combs. “Mo di twins as it is, it’s like very rare. And then you throw Down syndrome on top of it, it’s like one in 2 million.”
When both the girls were diagnosed with Down syndrome, their father, Justin Ackerman, was “very emotional” initially, shared Combs. But the 23-year-old first-time mom was “just happy they were here.”
Since their birth, the family of four is simply thriving now. The 8-month-old twins are “hitting milestones like no other,” Combs said. The sisters attend physical and occupational therapy two times each week. A proud mom also added that they are almost about to start crawling.
Combs then addressed the impression some people have about kids with Down syndrome, that they are always happy. Well, that's not always true, the mom said. While Kennadi is indeed a “ray of sunshine,” Mckenli is the opposite.“She’s a total diva,” her mom said.
She also said that while their condition is rare, they’re no different than anyone else. “They have feelings. They have a beating heart. They know how to talk. They know how to do things you do. They will get there. Like I said, it may be a step behind but they’re going to do it. I’ve learned these kids are feisty little things and happy little things,” said Combs.
References:
https://www.today.com/parents/babies/adorable-twins-syndrome-are-1-million-rcna13522
Cover Image Source: YouTube | News4Jax (Local twins with Down syndrome inspiring others)
