When a couple finds out they are having twins, it can come as a genuine surprise. There is no one right way to respond to the news of having twins and it can take time to process this news. This is why it helps to just aim for an easy life for the first few weeks after having a twin pregnancy confirmed and to avoid being so busy that you don’t have a chance to process the reality.

First-time parents Shaheen and husband Sohail had been told they were expecting twins. But when the baby was born, they discovered they were conjoined. The unfortunate mother thought she was expecting twins. But she was stunned after giving birth to a baby with two heads. The miracle youngster was also found to have two hearts and three hands when he was examined. The condition is known as dicephalic parapagus. It means two infants are joined by one torso and often results in a stillbirth.

But the miracle baby has been admitted to a hospital in the nearby city of Indore to be monitored by doctors. Mum Shaheen remains in the district hospital. One of the doctors, Dr. Lahoti, said: “These kinds of cases are rare and the condition of babies remains uncertain, especially in the initial days. Due to this, we have kept them under observation. We have not planned for any surgery on the patient.”

Dicephalic parapagus is a rare form of partial twinning with two heads side by side on one torso. The condition is also called parapagus dicephalus. If carried to term, most dicephalic twins are stillborn, or die soon after birth. A small number are known to have survived to adulthood.