According to reports, the twin sisters Abby and Brittany Hensel, who gained fame for their TLC reality series “Abby & Brittany,” have successfully tied the knot.
Previous Reality Star’s Journey to Marriage
The former reality star, aged 34, silently married Josh Bowling, a nurse and a veteran of the U.S. Army, in 2021, according to public records obtained today.
Today and other news agencies have also referenced the Hensel twins’ Facebook profile picture, which displays a wedding photo – showing the twin children in white bridal attire holding hands with a man in a maroon suit.
Abby and Brittany’s Background
Abby and Brittany are now fifth-grade teachers residing in Minnesota, where they were born and raised, as reported today.
Life Updates and Public Persona
According to outlets, the Bowling couple’s Facebook page has shown additions to their natural life, including enjoying ice cream and snow tubing in posted pictures and videos.
Unique Medical Condition
According to the National Institute of Health, being conjoined twins is an extraordinary occurrence, happening in about 1 in every 50,000 to 100,000 pregnancies. However, since 60% are stillborn or die shortly after birth, real instances are close to 1 in 200,000 live births.
Description of Their Condition
Abby and Brittany are dicephalic parapagus twins, a rare phenomenon where twins share a single body with two heads. They have separate hearts and stomachs, but a shared chest, arms, and legs. Their spine joins at the ribcage, they share blood circulation, and their organs below the waist are shared.
Unique Abilities
Abby controls their right arm and leg, while Brittany controls the left side.
Public Exposure and Personal Lives
The twins first gained notoriety during a presentation on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” in 1996. Later, their lives were documented on TLC, following their pursuit as they graduated from college and traveled through Europe.
Parents’ Initial Response
According to a 2001 Time interview with the family, both parents had rejected the idea of separating the twins from the start, believing that the chances of survival for both through their methods were minimal.
Medical Insights
Dr. Joye Westerdahl, the family’s physician who assisted in their birth, stated in 2001 that predicting their long-term prognosis was impossible, but they were amazed at their ability to synchronize complex movements between two separate brains, including clapping, learning, walking, and riding a bicycle.
Family’s Aspirations
Their mother expressed in the 2003 documentary film “Joined for Life” that Abby and Brittany once showed interest in having children someday.
“It’s perhaps something they could pursue because they function as individuals,” Petie said in the documentary as reported today.
“Yes, we’re thinking about becoming mothers,” Brittany said. “We haven’t really thought about how it would work yet. But we’re only 16 – we don’t need to think about it yet.”
