What I Had in my Belly Has Never Been Seen Before in The History of The Hospital

“The one thing we know for sure in life is that things don’t always turn out the way we think they will. Sometimes we get surprises. Courtney and her husband Derek were in for a surprise when the doctor told them what she had in her belly; she had never seen it before. So let’s see what happened.

Courtney and Eric Waldrop are a lovely couple from Alabama. They’ve been together since high school, and when they married in 2004, it was clear they wanted to have a large family. Courtney soon fell pregnant, and nine months later, they welcomed their son Sailor into the world. Their journey as parents had officially begun.

Within a year, they began trying for their second child. But now they faced obstacles, and unfortunately, Courtney suffered a few miscarriages. ‘It was devastating because I can get pregnant very easily, but I can’t keep them,’ Courtney said in an interview. Of course, she and her husband went for medical checkups, but were told it was difficult to determine why she was losing the babies. However, fertility treatments eventually worked, and Courtney became pregnant again, this time with twin boys they named Wells and Branch.

So far so good, and they were both very happy with their family. They could have left it at that, but they thought maybe a fourth child would be nice. Once again, she had a hard time getting pregnant, and treatments were administered again.

This time, Courtney was put on a lower dose to minimize the chances of multiple fetuses. However, this did not work. When she became pregnant, she went to the hospital for a checkup at Huntsville Hospital in Alabama. An ultrasound revealed an astonishing sight: there appeared to be no less than six fetuses in her belly.

It was very unusual for something like that to happen without the help of IVF. It was basically a medical miracle and quite a curiosity. No sextuplets had been born at Huntsville Hospital since 2011, let alone such unique ones. The news came as a huge shock to Courtney and her husband. Quite simply, she wanted a fourth child, not to suddenly turn their family of five into a family of eleven. How were they going to manage?

Now they needed six of everything, from car seats to baby beds, clothing sets, baby bottles, and diapers. And then there were the medical consequences. Carrying so many babies at once poses risks to both mother and children. It’s likely to result in a cesarean delivery or worse, premature labor. They also greatly increased the chances of complications such as strokes, blood pressure surges, urinary tract infections, gestational diabetes, and placental problems. They were afraid and found it difficult to get excited about the pregnancy.

The young couple was offered the option of selective reduction, meaning that some of the fetuses would be removed to give the remaining ones a better chance of survival. It was a bitter pill for Courtney and Derek to swallow, and something they never thought they would have to consider. Being people of strong faith, they ended up letting faith decide and guide them through the process.

When they returned for a follow-up ultrasound, all six babies were still in her belly and apparently doing very well. But still, risks existed, and the doctors were worried. Their goal was to keep the babies in their womb until 30 weeks when they would have developed enough to survive outside it. Courtney’s belly was already huge, but she still managed to smile most of the time and carry them with love and pride.

In the 25th week of her pregnancy, Courtney was told to stay in bed until the babies were born to ensure their proper development. Her belly was massive, but she still managed to smile most of the time and carry them with love and pride. Due to her situation, she was very limited in her movements. ‘The hardest part wasn’t really the physical discomfort but the fact that she now couldn’t give her three older children the attention she wanted to give them,’ she stated.

Then, in just under 30 weeks, Courtney’s body began to contract, and her water broke. It was time. The c-section was scheduled, and it took a team of 40 medical professionals to deliver all six babies. There was a special team for each one. Eric was by Courtney’s side, holding her hand and supporting her through the entire process. Everything was lightning-fast. From the first baby to the last, it only took four minutes. To everyone’s relief, all six – three girls and three boys – came out healthy, whole, and silky smooth.

They would still spend a couple of weeks in the hospital to be monitored and allowed to develop, giving them the best chance at life. Even though the all-important 30-week mark hadn’t been reached, they were still born prematurely. How did they come up with six names at once? After Sailor, Wells, and Bridge, Courtney and Eric continued the outdoorsy theme and named the three girls Rawlings, Reign, and Rivers, and the three boys Tagged, Lake, and Blue.

Now, the Waldrop family’s life had changed overnight. They had nine children, and that was certainly a challenge. Six newborn babies all needing care at the same time, plus three other children in the house. Sailor, Wells, and Bridge were already in school, so during the day, it was just Courtney and Eric and the six little ones. But it still seemed impossible, so they asked for help and soon had a whole team of friends and family assisting on a rotating 24-hour schedule.

The Waldrops soon realized that their home was not capable of holding so much love. There wasn’t even enough room for Courtney and Eric to have a room of their own. So they planned a major renovation and moved into a trailer in their backyard for a while. Little did they know that a pandemic would break out, and they were stuck in that little trailer for even longer. But they were fixed up, and soon the construction workers returned, and the renovation could be finished.

The TV show kept running, and the Waldrops became more and more famous. Most people found it amazing to see how the couple managed everything. So many children to take care of, a family of nine, simply a monumental task. Just putting them all in their car seats was a challenge. But not once did Courtney and Eric raise their voices or get visibly upset. They simply accepted that it was going to be hard, and they were going to be tired most of the time. And those diapers needed to be changed.

The years ahead were going to be exciting, exhausting, challenging, but most of all blessed. Courtney and Eric seemed like the right people to handle them. A friend of Courtney’s related that she’s unlike anyone he’s ever known. ‘Courtney’s literally the most positive person you could ever meet.

She has a heart of gold, and she’s definitely the perfect mom.’ Can you imagine having so many children? Nowadays, it’s unusual to see such large families, let alone such unique ones with historically unique sextuplets. Let us know what you think in the comments and hit the like button if you wish the Waldrop family the best in the world.