Parents-of-five Syman and Lindsay Hay make caring for multiples look like a walk in the park.
The two share son Carson, 4 years old, along with their quadruplets — Caiden Michael, Madison Grace, Lucas William, and Grayson James — who are each 7 months old.
But getting to this part of the story was no undertaking. Before having her quadruplets, Lindsay was put on an injectable hormone called Follitstim after being informed she had poor egg quality.
“The theory behind the drugs was that if I produced more than one egg each cycle, I’d ‘catch’ a good one faster. We were to try this, plus timed intercourse six times, before moving on to IVF. I conceived the quads on Cycle 3 of this treatment,” she said.
And when she and her husband first found they were having quadruplets, they were in shock.
“I was in a lot of denial because I was told I had poor egg quality, and I just couldn’t believe it. My husband was silent and white as a ghost,” she continued, saying: “I honestly didn’t think the pregnancy would progress, and prepared myself for miscarriage. There was just a lot of uncertainty, fear, and surprise.”
After several miscarriages, Lindsay conceived the quadruplets. She explained how she had a “miscarriage mindset,” explaining how even after conceiving again was not fully convinced she was going to be able to meet her babies.
RELATED: This Triplet Had Triplets of Her Own, and Her Story Proves It Does Indeed Take a Village
“You carry the pain of miscarriage with you wherever you go, and even after being on the other side with my rainbow babies here, it still hurts. I don’t think I’ll ever fully heal. It’s definitely made me stronger, though, and given me new perspective and appreciation for just how big of a miracle these babies and all babies really are.”
Lindsay began to share photos of her arduous pregnancy journey with the quads on Instagram.
“I’m grateful that I’m a person who genuinely loves pregnancy. Otherwise, it would have been a lot harder to cope with. During the first trimester, I was so sick I couldn’t function. With four babies and four placentas, my hormones, fatigue, and nausea were quadrupled. I was extremely anxious and would wait until midnight every night to celebrate making it through another day,” she said.
At around 20 weeks, Lindsay said her cervix began thinning.
“I was terrified and convinced I was going to lose them. But I didn’t. I kept pressing on and eventually made it to 30 weeks and four days!” Lindsay said.
“The day my doctor said it was time was probably the first time I truly believed they’d be mine. There’s really no comparing it to my singleton pregnancy. With Carson, I was blissfully unaware of all that could go wrong and enjoyed every moment.”
Both Lindsay and Syman’s quads were in the NICU for about seven weeks and were able to go home happy and healthy. In addition, she also breastfed each and every one.
She then decided to share a before-and-after quads on Instagram where it has generated over 75,000 likes.
When You’re Pregnant with Quadruplets: A Before and After Photo Set
RELATED: Seeing Double: 12 Pairs of Twins Were Born in a Kansas City Hospital Over Just One Week
Needless to say, her life is “constantly in motion.”
“I rarely get a minute to myself. I’m constantly in motion and have learned how to move quickly and multitask. I sleep less. I worry more. But I will say this: The expression ‘full hands, fuller hearts’ has never resonated with me more. I am so overjoyed with happiness and fulfillment, and every day I wake up wondering how I got so lucky. I have everything I prayed for and more. We are so blessed.”
What an amazing story! We’re so happy for this family!