When Steven Bowman and Louise began their IVF journey, they could never have imagined the family they would eventually have - or the extraordinary story their three daughters would share.
Their eldest daughter, Daisy, was born following their first round of IVF. Three embryos remained and were frozen, waiting until Steven and Louise felt the time was right to try again.
Three and a half years later, those remaining embryos would lead to something they never expected: Daisy would become a big sister to twins, Scarlett and Connie.
It is a story that has previously attracted attention as that of “triplets” born four-and-a-half years apart. But for Steven, it is simply the story of how his family came to be.
“We had Daisy through our first round of IVF and then had our three remaining embryos frozen until we felt the time was right to try again,” he says.
When the time came, Steven and Louise were thrilled to discover they were expecting another baby. But at around seven weeks, Louise experienced an early bleed. They went for a scan, unsure what they would find.
Instead, they discovered there were two babies.
Finding out they were expecting twins was a huge moment for the family. They already had a three-year-old daughter and suddenly had to prepare for life with not one, but two more babies.
The pregnancy was not easy. Louise was sick every day throughout, making it a physically demanding time while the couple were also trying to prepare for the realities of having twins and caring for Daisy.
It was during their 12-week scan that they first came across Twins Trust.
“At that point we had so many questions about what having twins would mean for us,” says Steven. “Having information specifically designed for families expecting more than one baby really helped us understand what was ahead.”
Steven and Louise took part in a Twins Trust course and used Twins Trust resources. For them, having practical information from people who understood the particular challenges of a multiple pregnancy made a real difference.
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But nothing could fully prepare them for what happened when the twins were born.
One of the babies became distressed during the birth, and the family came frighteningly close to losing one of their daughters.
It is the part of their story that has stayed with Steven and Louise most.
“Knowing how close we came to potentially losing one of our babies is something that has never really left us,” Steven says.
That experience has given Steven a particularly personal understanding of the importance of specialist support for families of multiples.
Pregnancy and birth do not always go to plan. For some families, the outcome is devastating, and Steven knows how quickly a family’s experience can change. It is why Twins Trust’s bereavement work is particularly close to his heart.
Thankfully, Scarlett and Connie came home with their parents. Now 12, they have grown up alongside Daisy, who is 16, and the three girls have shaped their family life in ways Steven and Louise could never have imagined.
Twins Trust has remained part of that journey, too.
Louise has worked for Twins Trust since the twins were one, meaning Steven’s family has experienced the charity from two different perspectives - as a family who needed support and information, and through Louise’s work supporting other families of multiples (she is now Head of Family Services).
Over the years, Steven has also become increasingly aware of how important that support can be for families who do not have the same network around them.
“We were lucky to have fantastic support from our own family and friends,” he says. “But not every family has that. Services such as In-Home Support, the helpline and other specialist services can be a real lifeline when families are struggling.”
It is this understanding that has kept Steven fundraising for Twins Trust.
Support Steven’s half marathon
Steven is taking on the Royal Parks Half Marathon to raise money for Twins Trust and help support families with twins, triplets or more.
His latest challenge is a half marathon, but the run itself is only one small part of a much bigger journey. Once completed, Steven will have taken on the full set of Twins Trust running challenges — a 5K, 10K, half marathon and full marathon.
For Steven, the significance is not in the distances he has covered. It is in what motivates him to keep putting one foot in front of the other. His connection to Twins Trust is rooted in the memory of just how different their family’s story could have been.
His family’s story began with three frozen embryos, a little girl called Daisy and a dream of expanding their family. It became a remarkable story of three sisters born three-and-a-half years apart - and a lasting connection to a charity that has been there throughout.
For Steven, supporting Twins Trust is his way of giving something back.
“Knowing first-hand what it is like to prepare for and raise twins, as well as how frightening things can become when pregnancy or birth does not go to plan, is what keeps motivating me to support the charity.”
And while his four runs may soon be complete, his connection to Twins Trust is very much ongoing.
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