The recent separating of nine-month-old conjoined twin boys in San Antonio set me to thinking about those cases when parents make the choice not to attempt the complicated surgery. Such is the case of Minnesota's Abby and Brittney Hensel.
Abigail "Abby" Loraine Hensel and Brittany "Britty" Lee Hensel (born 7 March 1990, Carver County, Minnesota, United States) have two separate heads but are joined from the shoulders down. They each have separate organs in the upper torso--two lungs, two hearts, three lungs, and each has an arm. They have a complicated nervous system that allows them to use their arms and legs in unison.
Below the belly button they share one intestine, one set of reproductive organs, one liver, and one stomach. Each has one leg.
They are two well-adjusted, vigorous and even athletic people whose complicated but high-functioning anatomy precludes separation. They show a remarkable degree of overall proprioception and they have a strong sense of selfhood, with a balanced blend of individualism and teamwork. They just recently graduated from high school.
Minnesota's Abby and Brittany Hensel, conjoined twins, make Newsweek
Filed under: Science
I still remember the day I walked in on my wife staring raptly at the TV screen. I followed her gaze and was stunned to see a girl who appeared to have two heads. In fact, it was conjoined twins Abby and Brittany Hensel, two of the most remarkable people in Minnesota.
I was reminded of this today as I flipped through the new issue of Newsweek and saw a picture of the Hensel twins in a swimming pool. They were mentioned at the tail end of an article called Reality's Believe It or Not. Here's the part of the article concerning the Hensel twins:
You hear a lot of mixed emotions from the stars of these shows—none of whom, by the way, is paid to appear. Abby and Brittany Hensel allowed the world to watch them take their driving test, even while the conjoined twins—they have two heads but one set of arms and legs—decided who would control the gas (Abby) or the blinker (Brittany). "Abby and Brittany Turn 16" is handled with great care, the girls are given plenty of time to talk about their anatomy in nonsensational ways. They explain that they made the film "so people wouldn't have to always stare and take pictures. Cause we don't like it when they take pictures … so they just know who we are and stuff." But as the film progresses, you see that any time the twins leave their Minnesota town, people blatantly photograph them, leaving the girls feeling "violated," according to their mother, Patty. She gets teary in the documentary when she explains how she doesn't want her girls to grow up like circus performers, and she hasn't let the girls speak to the media since the movie debuted two years ago. Watch the movie now—it's still in heavy rotation on the Discovery Health network—and you can see why they'd shun the spotlight. It's hard to shake the creepy, voyeuristic feeling you get when you watch the girls make pottery or brush each other's hair. The narrator explains that they are, "in nearly every sense, perfectly normal teenagers." But we know we're watching precisely because they're not.
The Hensel twins appeared in a followup documentary on the Learning Channel in December 2006, when they were 16. This was the documentary that my wife and I saw. The most amazing part of the story was when the twins passed their drivers license exam, which is described in the Wikipedia article:
They had to take the tests twice, once for each twin. Both control the steering wheel, Abby controls the pedals, transmission, radio, heat, defogger etc. , and Brittany controls the turn signal and lights.
These two young women have remarkable spirit and their story should serve
as an inspiration to anyone tempted to think his or her life is too
challenging.
To meet the twins, see them at school, and at home with their family view this video made on their 16th birthdays. It is just amazing how normal a life their family has managed to make for them.
Posted by Kevin Hoffman at February 28, 2008 8:01 AM
7 comments on Joined For Life
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WOW!! Very interesting.
Yes, I thought so too, Jenn
What an amazingly interesting post! After reading it and taking it all in, it is easy to understand that they are just normal, everyday teenage girls who have the same desires and interests as any girl their age. And, I could hear the chanting in my head, "Let them be who they are, don't stare or photograph them. Instead, see them as human beings... this is only one of the things that makes them unique, just like everybody has something that contributes to their uniqueness."
Isn't that pic on the cover of Life so sweet?
Thanks so much for the post.
They are amazing!
Yes, Donna, it is. It is an amazing tribute to their parents that they have been able to feel accepted and loved.
Maggie, they really are. They have a great family behind them that has kept them feeling as normal as they possibly can. They have all the same dreams and aspirations of any teenage girl.
An amazing story. So good to see these girls enjoying life.