A woman was told she might never have children again after being diagnosed with a medical condition and was left stunned after falling pregnant with triplets.
After two years of trying for a baby, Kimberly Robb, from Portsmouth, knew something was wrong.
The mum had two children from a previous relationship, aged 16 and 9, but was eager for a third child with her then-partner, Corbin.
It wasn’t until she struggled with stomach pain so intense she was left bed-bound for days, that the panic began to build up, as the mum rushed to the doctor.
Kimberly was soon diagnosed with adenomyosis, a condition that affects the uterus and fertility, and was told the only available treatment was a hysterectomy.
But fate had other plans.
“It was so scary when I got my diagnosis, but all I could think about was what our next options were, such as having IVF,” Kimberly, who is 40 years old, told NeedToKnow.co.uk.
“I didn’t want to get a hysterectomy because there was still the tiniest chance I could get pregnant, and I didn’t want to give up.
“It was a couple weeks until our first IVF appointment and I remember realising my period was late and my breasts felt sore, but it didn’t even cross my mind that I was pregnant.
“I was so used to having negative test results and feeling upset, I didn’t want to get my hopes up.
“However, I decided to get a test anyway, and I couldn’t believe it when it came back positive — I just burst out crying.
“Me and Corbin couldn’t believe it, we were so happy.”
Kimberly’s joy was short-lived after she began heavily bleeding at nine weeks and was sent to the hospital to have an emergency scan, with doctors suspecting she was having a miscarriage.
Nothing could have prepared her for the news she was about to receive.
The scan thankfully showed that the mum was not going through a miscarriage, but also revealed that she was carrying triplets.
Kimberly said: “I went numb and I was in shock if I am being honest.
“I had so many emotions, I was happy but then, I was also thinking about how this was going to affect us financially.
“I didn’t know how we would cope with three babies, it was scary.
“I spent days researching complications we might have, whether we should terminate one or have an injection to see if any of them have spina bifida.
“We decided not to do any of those things, but it was so draining constantly worrying about what could go wrong while trying to keep myself healthy for the babies.”
Kimberly was left bed-bound for the last couple of months of the pregnancy as she struggled with sickness.
At just 30 weeks, her waters finally broke and she was rushed to the hospital for a c-section, welcoming three beautiful baby girls into the world in January 2020.
Due to being born prematurely, Elsie, Emmy and Addison had to remain in the hospital until they were fit to go home.
She said: “It felt weird because I didn’t get to see them be born.
“I didn’t get to hold them straight away, I didn’t get that happy moment, and I didn’t feel the emotional bond straight away.
“I was also quite poorly myself after the birth, so it took me a couple of days to go and see the babies on my own.
“It also felt weird having to go from one baby to another, I wasn’t allowed to hold them and it felt awkward as I didn’t know what to do.”
After four weeks in the hospital, Kimberly, Elsie, Emmy and Addison were finally allowed home.
Three years on, the mum and babies are doing very well, however, some of the children were diagnosed with various conditions post-birth.
Kimberly added: “We are all doing absolutely amazing.
“Emmy was diagnosed with severe autism and is non-verbal, she needs medicating to go to sleep, but things could have been a lot worse.
“Addison is also on the spectrum, but all of my babies are incredible.
“I am now a single mum to five children, but I love my life.
“The girls are talking and walking, we are going on days out, and I have also just passed my driving test so we can go anywhere we want.
“Life is just great now and everything is looking up.”
