Kallum, left, and Rhyden Pickering are now happy and healthy. 73440 Picture: XAVIER SMERDON
By XAVIER SMERDON
WERRIBEE Mercy Hospital welcomes hundreds of little miracles every year, but for two lucky fighters it was a case of one battle after the other.
When she was six weeks pregnant, the doctors thought Coralie Pickering’s baby had passed away.
They took her in for an ultrasound scan to confirm their fears, but instead found that there were two babies instead of one.
The family would soon get used to close calls as little Rhyden and Kallum continued to beat the odds. “Every two weeks, there was something different,” Coralie told Star.
“Because I knew how fragile they were, I did everything for them.”
The scariest hurdle came when Coralie went into labour after just 26 weeks of pregnancy. The labour was stopped though, and she eventually gave birth to two fragile bundles of joy after 33 weeks, almost two months early.
“I think part of me was relieved when the pregnancy was finally over, even though they were premature,” she said.
“I had a really bad pregnancy, so when they were finally born I knew they would be okay.”
But it was still an ongoing battle as the twins spent a month in hospital.
“The first time I went and saw Rhyden, I just sat at his bed and cried because I couldn’t even touch him,” Coralie said.
“Every day, I still think how lucky I am to have two beautiful babies.
“Now the hardest thing is working out who gets more cuddles.”
