Posted on 04/15/2017 1:25:15 PM PDT by Gamecock
A doctor at a fertility clinic in the Mississippi capital of Jackson has made a startling revelation concerning a couple who sought treatment at the center. The married pair, who cannot be named to due to patient confidentiality restrictions, had been struggling to conceive and came to the clinic to take part in the IVF program.
During the in vitro fertilization process, we take a DNA sample from both the male and female to get a profile of their genetic backgrounds, the doctor involved told Mississippi Herald, whose name must also be suppressed to protect the identities of the patients.
Its just a routine thing, and we wouldnt normally check to see if there was a relationship between the two samples, but in this case the lab assistant involved was shocked by the similarity of each profile. The lab assistant summoned the doctor, who knew almost instantly that the patients must have been related.
My first reaction was that they must have been less-closely related; perhaps they were first cousins, which does happen sometimes. However, looking closer at the samples, I noticed there were way too many similarities. The doctor consulted the patients files, and noted with shock that both had the exact same birth dates listed in 1984. With this in mind, I was convinced that both patients were fraternal twins.
The doctor now had a dilemma on his hands: did the married couple already know that they were twins, and had yet still married and now hoped to conceive a child together? Or were they blissfully unaware of the situation. It was a difficult subject to raise, but I had to discuss it with them, said the doctor.
During their next appointment at the clinic, the doctor did his best to break the news gently. They burst out laughing when I asked them if they knew they were twins, he said. The husband said that a lot of people remarked on the fact that they shared the same birthdays, and looked similar to each other, but he said it was just a funny coincidence and that the couple were definitely not related. The poor man had no idea.
After the doctor insisted that the DNA evidence proved the pair were twins, the couple started to take him more seriously. The wife kept pleading with me to admit I was joking, and I wish that I was, but they had to know the truth, said the doctor.
Once the news had sunk in, the doctor tried to establish how the twin brother and sister had unknowingly wed each other. From what we were able to piece together, the biological parents of the couple had died in a car crash when the couple were infants, and they had no close family willing to adopt them. Theyd been taken into state care, and were adopted out to separate families. Due to a filing error, neither foster family had ever been told that their adopted child had a twin.
The doctor explained that the couple had met during college, and a relationship between the pair soon flourished. They were attracted to each other due to their similarities, said the doctor. The fact that theyd both been adopted, after their parents had died, meant theyd both experienced a similar childhood, and they felt they could really connect with each other. If only they had known the truth, it could have saved them so much pain later on.
For now, the couple are reported to be considering the future of their relationship. I really hope they can work something out, said the doctor. For me, its a particularly unusual case because my job is all about helping couples conceive a child. This is the first time in my career that Ive been glad I havent succeeded in that regard.
From a legal standpoint, marriage between siblings in Mississippi is prohibited and subject to a prison term of up to 10 years. However, the maximum fine is only $500, which critics have claimed encourages marriage between siblings or close relatives. In this case, however, it is believed the couple involved will not face charges due to the unique circumstances of their case.
Yep. You’ve proven it!
:)
Yeah no names. Nothing that can be verified.
That was one sick book — read it decades ago. Ewwww.
So called “Mississippi Herald” has no address, no “About” section, no listed editor or employees. Doubt that it exists. Fake news alert.
Ever seen;
JOE DIRT!
You know, in some parts of Kentucky, the hardest job of a divorce lawyer to explain to a couple is that even though they will no longer be husband and wife, they are still brother and sister.
No. It’s actually #2, or possibly, #3 depending on how you number the “bad news” items in Oedipus Rex......
Now they know why they got along so well together. Surprised it didn’t happen in West Virginia.
This story is several days older than the UK versions.
Multiple sites including Fox News and a number of UK sites are carrying it.
No names because of HIPPA Federal regs.
And do you really think the couple want their names publicized?
Would you?
And a little Googling will show you multiple cases of this, including one back in 2008.
It happens.
Honestly, stay married and adopt. At this point. They have no “sibling taboo” because they did not grow up together nor know they were related.
One freaky weird story.
Multiple sites including Fox News and a number of UK sites are carrying it.
No names because of HIPPA Federal regs.
And do you really think the couple want their names publicized?
Would you?
And a little Googling will show you multiple cases of this, including one back in 2008.
It happens.
Yeah, WV escaped that bullet.
“Instead, we tend to be attracted to people who are similar to us in one way or another.”
My college son (soon to be graduate!) is madly in love with a gal. “And she even eats Lucky Charms the way I do - keeping the ratio of cereal to marshmallows even so you don’t end up with no marshmallows at the end!” (”Well - I hope there is more to the relationship than THAT!”)
I’m always amazed at the unknown twins that find each other, and find out they both are great tennis players and play piano with Bach being their favorite, both married a Dentist and have a yellow lab. So while this story might be fake - it almost sounds like it could be true and classify as a weird (okay - really weird) “twin” story.
Yes, instead of adopt, use a sperm donor. Cheaper and easier. Good point.
Links to other reports?
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