Credit: Frank Rosenstein
Roommates, it looks like conjoined twin Abby Hensel from TLC’s ‘Abby & Brittany’ has been a married woman since 2021!
The ‘Today Show’ made the discovery after securing marriage documents for Abby and her former U.S. Army vet.
Sis has been keeping this life update on the low! According to the outlet, she and her husband, Josh Bowling, now reside in Minnesota — the twins’ home state.
For context, Abby and her sister Brittany are still conjoined and reportedly work as fifth-grade educators.
According to photos posted on Facebook, per TODAY, Abby, her husband and his conjoined sister-in-law enjoy outings like “nature hikes, ice cream, and snow tubing.”
However, additional details about Abby’s lifestyle as a married woman while physically attached to Brittany are unknown. Husband Josh reportedly told TMZ that they wish to “keep everything private” and won’t “be doing any interviews.”
The 34-year-old twins first rose to fame after appearing on ‘The Oprah Winfrey Show’ in 1996.
In the documentary ‘Joined for Life’ released in 2003, their mother Patty Hensel said Brittany and Abby did want to become mothers one day. She confirmed the twins were capable of conceiving.
She stated, “That is probably something that could work because those organs do work for them.”
As teen Brittany shared, “Yeah we’re going to be moms. We haven’t thought about how being moms is going to work yet. But we’re just 16 — we don’t need to think about that right now.”
Abby and Brittany are dicephalus-conjoined twins. They have two spines, which join at the pelvis, meaning they share all organs below the waist. They also share a bloodstream. Abby reportedly controls their right arm and leg, while Brittany controls the left limbs.
Their health diagnosis is reportedly the rarest of its kind. It occurs after a fertilized egg doesn’t completely separate in the womb. According to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, 70 percent of conjoined twins are female. However, this only occurs once in every 50,000 to 60,000 births and most conjoined twins are typically stillborn.
Their parents, Patty, a registered nurse, and Mike, a carpenter, decided not to separate them after their birth in 1990. At the time, the procedure was deemed incredibly risky. The doctors stated that there was a slim chance both girls would survive the surgery.
Years after their Oprah stint, the Hensels secured a reality show in 2012 with TLC that depicted their daily lives. The series showed the girls driving, riding a moped, and traveling. Additionally, the twins graduated college together, per The Today Show.
Abby and Brittany have been lowkey since their show ended, which is why the news of Abby being married has gripped social media this week.
The twins seemingly responded to backlash and questions about Abby’s married status in several TikTok videos shared on Thursday and Friday.
Congratulations to the newlyweds!
