Abigail and Brittany Hensel: Two Souls, One Body

1. Me3
   July 14th, 2007 at 9:12 pm

   They are not "a conjoined twin," they are "conjoined twins." Two people.

2. Perceive
   July 14th, 2007 at 9:13 pm

   [deleted]

3. elisabeth
   July 14th, 2007 at 9:21 pm

   That's awesome!!!

4. Paul
   July 14th, 2007 at 9:30 pm

   Me3: You are correct, Neatos please fix.

   Perceive: Your right or my right? There's a Mel Brooks sketch in here somewhere...

5. Jerse
   July 14th, 2007 at 9:38 pm

   [deleted]

6. Whitney
   July 14th, 2007 at 10:03 pm

   I actually saw this documentary... I always wonder about the weird things, like how are they going to handle the job world, and applying for college. What if they want different majors? Can one get a credit card, and the other not be held liable for the debt? The coolest thing from the documentary is that each girl has independent control of one arm, yet they perform tasks and motions seamlessly without discussing it. They have the hand/eye coordination and dexterity that everyone does, but essentially their brains don't communicate with eachother.

7. Ant
   July 14th, 2007 at 10:48 pm

   Definitely check out the documentary. Interesting stuff. I wonder how marriage works. Two husbands?

8. Jessica Sanders
   July 14th, 2007 at 11:17 pm

   You can actually see earlier docuemtnaries as well. They first did Joined at Birth at 7, and Joined for Life at 11. Then this one at 16.

9. Alex
   July 15th, 2007 at 12:01 am

   Thanks me3 - fixed now.

10. Jacki
    July 15th, 2007 at 1:21 am

    I watched two of the documentaries (11 and 16). They are actually my age lol. I think they're absolutely amazing. I have fights with my sister on an hourly basis.

11. Sam
    July 15th, 2007 at 2:22 pm

    What happens when one dies?

    Speaking of dying - seems like they could live a long long time with double of the most vital organs. Two hearts? Awesome.

12. Sid Morrison
    July 15th, 2007 at 5:43 pm

    1. Ant asked how marriage works. Chang and Eng Bunker the famous Siamese twins of the 19th had separate wives. They would take turns spending time with each. That must have worked OK, as they had 10 and 12 children respectively!

    2. Sam asked what happens when one dies? Generally there has to be a really quick operation to separate them, or the other will shortly die as well. That was the case with Chang and Eng. Chang died first and Eng followed several hours later. For what it is worth, Chang and Eng probably could have been (relatively) easily separated today, much more so than these girls.

13. Leon
    August 4th, 2007 at 5:48 am

    I can't imagine how they eat and drink.
    They have only one tomach. and two esophagus?
    And how their lung work?
    If they have just one lung.
    how they talk? speak as a same time or?
    oh..It is unbelievable.

    At the end, Good Luck!

14. Metqa
    August 14th, 2007 at 11:32 am

    It is easy to imagine how they eat and talk ...

    They each have their own esophagus and stomach. The only organs they really share are below the stomach.

    Most people have TWO lungs, and many people who have lost a lung talk just fine. So they each have one lung and share the third. what's so hard to imagine?

    If you watch the documentary it is much easier to see that they obviously are two people in one body. It is a lot better than most peoples imagination of it.

    I think the danger in one of them dying is that it would be difficult for the body to deal with so much tissue death all at once. You'd have to have emergency surgery or the living body will be poisoned to death by the necrotic tissue.

    I'm really happy to see these girls doing even so much better than many other children their age. I'm sure they will be successful in life through their own efforts.

15. Tammy
    October 25th, 2007 at 2:21 pm

    This is really cool. There is so many reasons to be mad and angry at life but they're not. I believe that they love it and are making the best of it. I love how they inspire.?

16. Noah
    November 13th, 2007 at 1:46 am

    I remember seeing them every few years on TV or in the papers growing up. They are two all American girls, you want to feel bad for them, but they have taken what life has given them and are completly happy with it. I am guessing when one dies, the other will to soon after (I don't think they can be seperated ever) but with how well adjusted thay are I am sure that they would want it that way....mentaly I don't think one would be able to live with out the other at this point either. The only sad part I see for them now is the endless attention an questions they must get...but I am sure every one how gets to meet them walks away with a whole new perspective on life. I kind of wish they would be a little more in the lime light..just becouse there is alot they could teach the world...but again it's their lives and what ever makes them happy is fine by me.

17. gothlieb
    February 10th, 2008 at 9:18 am

    I don't realy know if it is abusive, but I want to know what will they do later... I'm talking about loveship (I don't realy know if dat word exist),
    Intimate relationships, wedding, having babies, etc...

    Have they a boyfriend for each one?
    If they have sex, who would feel the pleasure?
    Having sex with 'em is considered as a threesome?

18. Brian
    February 21st, 2008 at 6:42 am

    Medically speaking(seriously),can they ever be successfully seperated? This is a question for any medically knowledgeable peoople.

19. Brian
    February 21st, 2008 at 6:47 am

    Please note that in my previous blog the word "peoople"should read as "people".Sorry for the typo error.

20. Brian
    February 21st, 2008 at 6:53 am

    Please also note that the word "seperated" should read "separated".

21. Charlie
    March 21st, 2008 at 8:19 pm

    The moral thing would be never to marry. It would be perverted and immoral to be the husband of one and not the other, and to have relations with the lower half, which belongs to both. Would a husband kiss the one and not the other. Would the husband of the left girl only touch the left breast? The one girl could just say, "Oh, I'll pretend I'm not here." C'mon... for anyone to entertain the idea is absurd. This is a tragedy (though they have handled it well), and so, because of the strange circumstances, the only right thing to do would be to never think about physical love with a man.

22. Friar
    April 7th, 2008 at 11:48 pm

    @ Charlie:

    I call shenanigans on you. It wouldn't be "perverted and immoral" to have 2 husbands. They are 2 SEPARATE people! They have 2 separate minds. Each thinks for her own.

    Perverted and immoral in the J.C. way? Sure. What isn't though?

    I mean think about it, you could have 2 girls, 1 guy kind of stuff if you married them both. That'd be great. Fill both their mouths up and then make them both simultaneously cum.

    /hot

23. TB
    May 18th, 2008 at 3:52 am

    First of all, I've just seen these girls for the first time, and I love how well they're doing. I'm fascinated by how well they work together, and wish them all the best.

    I think the best thing as far as marriage would be if they could find 1 guy to marry both. I'm sure if they appealed for special legal permission for a polygamous marriage it would be granted. To my knowledge, they are more conjoined than any other twins that have made it to adulthood, and I don't know if having 2 spouses would work as well as it has for other conjoined twins.

    Also, since their reproductive organs are shared, do they each have 1 ovary each, or genetically do the ovaries belong to just 1 girl, or are they genetically blended? If they had 2 separate husbands, you wouldn't know who's sperm would mix with who's egg and could have 4 sets of 1/2 siblings.

24. ripper
    May 29th, 2008 at 6:15 pm

    I wonder if one can sleep while the other is awake. That would mean one could be using the body while the other is asleep.

25. thalia
    June 2nd, 2008 at 1:50 pm

    To answer the other poster's question: Well, I don't think they can have two majors in college unless they spend more than 4 years in college because they both have to be in the same classes, obviously. I bet they will compromise and find a major they both like. They will need to have the same job too. As far as credit cards are concerned, I don't see why one should be liable for the other's debt. They can have separate credit cards.

    Marriage is a tricky question because their female parts are shared. But if they choose to have 1 husband, I think that's fine. If they have 2 husbands, I think that's great as well. Whatever works in their lives. But obviously, they're identical twins and have the same DNA so they don't have to worry about whose egg it belongs to.

    No, it would be stupid to separate these girls. You're basically taking two fine ladies by killing 1 and making the other one a vegetable.

26. Scott Limkeman
    June 2nd, 2008 at 8:16 pm

    I think it would be best to have 1 husband. And i dont think it would be immoral in any way, including Christian morals.

27. steve
    June 15th, 2008 at 8:04 pm

    To Whom It May Concern,
    I am a photo researcher working on a McGraw-Hill Higher Education textbook on Human Anatomy. The author wants to use a recent photo of the Hensel twins.
    Do you hold the copyright to the image that appears on your site? If not, do you know who does and how I could contact them?
    Any help is appreciated.
    Thank you very much.
    Steve

28. Chris
    October 15th, 2008 at 9:59 am

    I have the best idea of all, in regards to these girls getting married - having jobs, etc.

    How 'bout, since they have enough things to figure out on their own, we leave them to do it...and NOT pass judgements based on our own personal beliefs - moral or otherwise!

    I'm pretty sure dating and marriage are difficult enough for "normal" teens, without having a bunch of internet nosebags passing judgements.

    Go Twins! You guys rock, truly!

    I know "normal" people that can't walk and chew gum...YOU GO GIRLS!

29. Stunned
    November 8th, 2008 at 12:41 am

    Im stunned by this. I think it was the wrong decision to have the gilrs in the first place, I really do. That sounds cruel, especially in light of the fact that they seem to have adjusted astonishingly well. But its a tragedy, and an inspiration, all at once.

    This sounds really cruel too, but Im just being honest - one of the girls appears as if she could have a normal life, if the other werent there - her head is straight on, while the other's isnt. Sadly, this must have crossed her mind. Also, I know they dont want to exist as freaks to be experimented on - but what we could learn from them, in science, medicine, psychology...they can give so much to our understanding of these studies.

30. Whit
    November 13th, 2008 at 3:03 am

    To Stunned: neither the parents nor the doctors knew of their situation until after their birth (I'm not sure why- ultrasounds existed 18 years ago, even though the picture wasn't as good as it is today), but in the documentary the parents mention that they thought they were having one normal baby until after the birth. So abortion wasn't an option, and I am sure you aren't saying that we should have killed them.

31. Joe
    November 15th, 2008 at 10:58 am

    They should seriously do porn. That would be awesome.

32. Lolapol
    November 26th, 2008 at 4:21 am

    Ha do porn. Well they're creepy christian children arent they? Disallusions like religion from a barrier between them and depression I suppose

33. Belinda
    November 29th, 2008 at 12:47 am

    How can the parents and doctor not know that there were two heads in the womb? Ultra sound existed back when they where born and the Doc couldnt see the obvious? Come on how dumb? Im sorry but either the doctor had other motives or the parents and the doc were just stupid. I would have aborted the pregnancy without a second thought. I wouldnt want my child to be a freak show and to be talked about and be made fun of her/their entire live. The fact is they will never get married, will never find love, and will never move out of that tiny little hickville town they live in. They're secure in the town they live in and are protected by everyone that lives in that town. Im sure they act and behave normally for the most part, but the reality is they dont look the part. I feel sorry for them....its just freakin weird.

34. Patricia
    December 14th, 2008 at 10:49 pm

    Well they are much, much stronger than I could ever be. I doubt I could deal with what they have to deal with. I feel bad they they will never ever know what it is like to be alone. Alone to do what they want when they want. Some would say they are lucky knowing they will never be alone.
    I'd want to be the first one to die under those circumstances as they aren't like the Asian men who if anyone had had half a brain they could have simply tied off the extended flesh between them and then severed it and the other would have survived. But instead he laid there in mortal terror and knew he would die. Best thing would have been to give him a fast acting poison without his knowledge. I can't imagine what these young women think when they consider things like that. I do hope they get to go to the UK like they want.
    If they want one or two husbands more power to them. But what if one doesn't want kids and the other does? Can't force one to have a kid. Maybe they have already made these decisions.
    Life is grand isn't it?

35. Crystal
    December 16th, 2008 at 9:06 pm

    This is one of the many reasons I am pro-choice. No, I would never give birth to conjoined twins. There is nothing greater than our sense of autonomy.

36. x
    January 9th, 2009 at 10:12 pm

    whateva u guys say but ive a lil crush on them
    and i do have some questions
    what if one of them stops breathing.that wont kill her coz of one shared lung. kewl.
    what if one heart starts beating faster i mean if one of them is doing something which makes heart beat faster then what about the other one? will it go along the first one?

37. big lou
    January 20th, 2009 at 5:27 pm

    I heard that they wish to be married, I wonder how long it will be when one accuses the other of sleeping with her husband!

38. Vic
    April 20th, 2009 at 5:48 pm

    Hey Crystal, Autonomy this.

    Who made you Lord and Master as to who should Live and Die?
    Who was it that said, 2 Heads are better than One?
    Humans did.
    These two girls are absolutely Amazing.
    They've beaten ALL of the odds that were and are against them.
    Every parent should have kids as wonderful as these two are.
    I suppose if you were in their condition you would Commit Suicide?
    Each girl runs half of the body, that's quite Amazing, if you think about it.
    Do this, Go get a friend, have her use her Left hand and you use your Right and try Tieing your shoe.

    The way i see it, you would rather of had them Killed off at Birth or if you are Religious, had them stuck in some Asylum behind closed doors away from view.
    Cus that's what Religion did to those who were born different.
    How do you know that they weren't born Normal and you are the one who is Different.

    To those saying that they should've taken and whacked Brittanys head off so that Abby could've had a more normal life, there are two reasons that that couldn't and thankfully shouldn't have been done.
    Remember this, each girl controls her side of their body.
    So 1, it would have Killed Brittany and 2, it would have left Abby Paralized on her left side.
    There's a reason why, GOD in his Infinate Wisdom-If he exists- created them the way he did. The 2 girls obviously Believe in him and they've excepted his mold. Or Nature just said it's time for some Normal people to populate this Pathetic planet.

    These are 2 Beautiful young women, who have More going on in their lives than any 10 people.
    What they do or whoever they do it with is Their business and no-one elses.
    I bet you, Crystal, think that you're GODs gift.
    Guess again.

    To Abigale and Brittany

    Live your lives as you want to and don't let other people bring you down. Most people who Criticize others, usually don't have a life of their own.

    Way to go on the DMV Test.

    Vic

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