Mother in Dong Nai gave birth to 5 children in 13 months

"When I found out I was pregnant, I was surprised and burst into tears because my first two children were still lying face up," said Do Thi Tuyen, 32 years old, in Binh Minh commune, Trang Bom district, about her journey of welcoming and raising five boys born 13 months apart in 2021.

Ms. Tuyen and Mr. Nguyen Van Toan, 34 years old, got married in 2016. The wife was diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome and had to undergo ovulation stimulation to increase the chance of pregnancy. The couple was satisfied with their natural pregnancy and welcomed their first set of twin boys in October 2020.

Because she was 5 years late in having a child, she subjectively did not use any contraceptive measures. Four months after giving birth, Tuyen had signs of morning sickness. When the ultrasound revealed "triplets", "the world was spinning, I could not think of anything else".

The wound from the previous birth had not yet healed, and now being pregnant with three more children was "like playing with my life". "If something happens to me, these three children and their two older brothers will no longer have a mother, so who will take care of and raise them?", she thought.

However, the woman had no thoughts of "abandoning or keeping the baby". The encouragement of her family and the comfort of her husband helped Tuyen feel more at ease and reassure herself to have a healthy and safe pregnancy.

Not many acquaintances or neighbors knew that Ms. Tuyen was pregnant for the second time right after giving birth, so one time when she was out on the street, someone asked: "Why have you been pregnant for so long and haven't given birth yet?"

Four months pregnant, her belly was already big as if she was about to give birth. Mr. Toan said that at that time, seeing the two children clinging and kicking was very dangerous for his wife. Because of taking care of the children, Tuyen could not sleep at night. However, the mother did not feel heavy or tired, or "because she loved her two children so much, she tried to take care of them without feeling tired anymore".

But she only managed to hold on until the fourth month. The couple was forced to send their two eldest children to their maternal grandparents' house, 20 km away. On the day she took them to the nursery, the mother hid behind the door, covering her mouth, not daring to cry out loud. The two children were weaned and separated from their mother at just over 7 months old.

From this point on, Tuyen had time to take care of her pregnancy. But the pregnancy could only last until 28 weeks, when there was a risk of miscarriage, so she had to be hospitalized. At 32 weeks, this pregnant woman had to have a cesarean section because of the high risk of premature birth.

That was the most difficult time for the family. Tuyen left the operating room but could not see her children because they had been transferred to Dong Nai Children's Hospital and were in incubators. On the third day, she planned to visit her children but collapsed from the pain of the surgery wound before getting out of bed. Tuyen could not go to her parents' house to see her two older children because of the Covid-19 epidemic at that time.

After a week of recuperation at home, the woman braved the pain to go to the hospital to see her children. The three babies weighed between 1.8 and 1.9 kg and were kept in an incubator for 10 days and looked rosy. During those days, the family had to arrange for three people to be on duty at the hospital. After half a month, the babies were allowed to go home.

Toan became the only one who took care of the family's finances. Every month, the cost of diapers and milk for the five children was already a considerable amount, and he had to go to work all the time. His grandparents were old and weak, and they also sold groceries, so they could only help with daily meals. Tuyen was left alone to take care of the children.

Because she was afraid that her baby would get suffocated, she limited the amount of time she held her baby. Even when feeding her baby, she let her lie down. Every night, she had to get up at least twice to feed her baby and change her diaper. For a normal person, taking care of a baby in the first few months is already stressful, but for Tuyen, everything had to be done three times as much.

"The three babies sleep in the same bed, so if one baby cries or wets his diaper, the others will wake up at the same time. I don't know if there is some force helping me, but I always wake up in time to change diapers and feed the other babies without affecting them," Tuyen said.

Although there were times when she felt weak, thinking about her two eldest children being away from their parents and the three youngest children not being able to be held, Tuyen became even stronger because "her fatigue was nothing compared to the children's hardships". Just like that, the four of them took care of each other for 3.5 months. From then on, Tuyen took care of her children and did housework, without needing the grandparents' help anymore.

After the triplets’ first birthday, the twins were welcomed home. At this time, the Dong Nai woman experienced other difficulties that tested her motherhood. The five boys reached the age of fighting and playing, and every day, the mother had to act as the arbitrator.

Luckily, the five children are all around the same age, so they always have someone to play with and they know their place. If one of them gets scolded by their mother, the other four will know to be good. Now, they know how to remind each other to clean up their toys when their mother is about to come home.

Currently, the older pair Minh Khoi and Minh Khang are three years old; the triplets Minh Anh, Minh An and Minh Chau also just had their second birthday, all around 17 kg. Because of their similar height, weight and appearance, wherever they go, people around them think they are quintuplets.

The mother said that it was hard to tell the children apart just by looking at them. She often had to point out to people that the first two children were bigger, had darker hair, were taller, and one was chubby and the other was skinny. The last three children had two chubby children, one had single eyelids and the other had double eyelids; the last child was skinny so it was easy to tell them apart.

"When the three children were learning to walk, they fell, causing one to break two front teeth, one to break one tooth, and one to remain intact," Ms. Tuyen said sadly, but added that it could also be a "distinguishing feature."

However, when the boys sleep, their appearance still sometimes confuses their mother. To avoid confusion, Tuyen always dresses her children differently when they go to bed. "Now I can tell which one is which just by looking at their sulking faces," the mother said.

The family has many children, so as soon as the husband receives his salary, he has to buy enough diapers and milk for the whole month, and then only spends on food and drink. Even in daily activities, he has to be flexible, sometimes ignoring the usual rules. For example, the children can now feed themselves, but at mealtimes, Tuyen gathers the children together and feeds each one in turn. Many people do not understand and blame, but the mother says that if she lets them feed themselves, all five children will be dirty from head to toe, and the whole house will be dirty. Instead of spending only 20-30 minutes feeding, she spends hours changing clothes and cleaning the house.

Tuyen and her husband have not sent their children to kindergarten because their income is not enough to pay tuition. "Moreover, who will take them to and from school? And what if they get sick?" Tuyen said, and plans to quit her job and stay home to take care of them until they are 5 years old.

The couple said that because their children are growing up, they sometimes lack things, but every holiday, they always try to give them outings, new clothes, and better food than usual.

"When we get to dress up and go out, the kids love it. Seeing all five of our children grow up and become healthy and strong makes my husband and I so proud," said the mother of five.