Abby and Brittany Hensel - wikipedia Abby and Brittany Hensel This is the latest accepted revision, reviewed on 9 September 2017. Abby and Brittany Hensel Abigail Loraine Hensel Brittany Lee Hensel ( 1990 - 03 - 07 ) March 7, 1990 ( age 27 ) New Germany, Minnesota Education Lutheran High School Bethel University Parent ( s ) Patty and Mike Hensel Relatives Dakota ( brother ) Morgan ( sister ) Abigail Loraine `` Abby '' Hensel and Brittany Lee Hensel ( born March 7, 1990 ) are American dicephalic parapagus twins ; in other words, they are conjoined twins, each of whom has a separate head, but whose bodies are joined. They are highly symmetric for conjoined twins, giving the appearance of having a single body without marked variation from normal proportions. In fact, several vital organs are doubled ; each twin has a separate heart, stomach, spine, pair of lungs, and spinal cord. Each twin controls her half of their body, operating one arm and one leg. As infants, the initial learning of physical processes that required bodily coordination, such as clapping, crawling, and walking, required the cooperation of both twins. While they can eat and write separately and simultaneously, activities such as running and swimming require them to coordinate and alternate their actions symmetrically. Other activities as diverse as brushing hair and driving a car require each twin to perform separate actions that coordinate with the other 's. Due to the curiosity that their condition generated, the twins ' progress as they were growing up was covered in a number of popular media, including Life magazine and The Oprah Winfrey Show. At the age of 16, they gave an interview on The Learning Channel on December 17, 2006, in which they discussed aspects of their daily lives and plans for the future. They starred in their own reality series, Abby & Brittany, on TLC in 2012. Contents 1 Background 2 Physiology 2.1 Organ distribution 2.2 Separation 3 Adulthood 4 Media appearances 5 Filmography 6 References 7 External links Background The twins were born in Carver County, Minnesota, to Patty, a registered nurse, and Mike Hensel, a carpenter and landscaper. They have a younger brother and sister. They were raised in New Germany, Minnesota, attended Lutheran High School in Mayer, and graduated from Bethel University in St. Paul in 2012. Physiology The twins have a single body with separate heads and necks, a chest that is wider than normal, two arms, and two legs. At birth, they had a rudimentary arm between the bases of their necks attached to a shoulder blade at the back, being combined parts of Abby 's left arm and Brittany 's right arm. It was removed, leaving the shoulder blade. Abby 's head tilts laterally outward about 5 degrees to the right, while Brittany 's tilts laterally at about 15 degrees to the left, causing her to appear shorter even when seated. Brittany 's leg is in fact nearly two inches shorter than Abby 's and Brittany tends to stand and walk on tip - toe which has made her calf muscle significantly larger than Abby 's. The continued growth of Abby 's spine was surgically halted after Brittany prematurely stopped growing. At age 12, they underwent surgery at Gillette Children 's Specialty Healthcare to correct scoliosis and to expand their chest cavity to prevent future difficulties with breathing. Each twin manages one side of their conjoined body. The sense of touch of each is restricted to her body half ; this shades off at the midsagittal plane such that there is a small amount of overlap at the midline. Stomach aches, however, are felt only by the twin on the opposite side. They are effective in cooperatively using their limbs when both hands or both legs are required. By coordinating their efforts, they are able to walk, run, swim, and ride a bicycle normally -- all tasks that they learned at a normal speed. Together, they can type on a computer keyboard at a normal speed and drive a car. However, their disparate heights ( Abby, 5 ft 2 in ( 1.57 m ), is taller and longer of leg than Brittany, 4 ft 10 in ( 1.47 m ) ) led to difficulty in balancing a Segway, as shown in their 2012 reality series. Organ distribution The twins have individual organs in the upper part of their body, while most located at or below the level of the navel are shared, the exception being the spinal cord. 2 heads 2 spines merging at the coccyx and joined at the thorax by sections of ribs. Surgery was employed to correct scoliosis. 2 completely separate spinal cords 2 arms ( originally 3, but rudimentary central arm was surgically removed, leaving central shoulder blade in place ) 1 broad ribcage with 2 highly fused sternums and traces of bridging ribs. Surgery was employed to expand the pleural cavities. 2 breasts 2 hearts in a shared circulatory system ( nutrition, respiration, medicine taken by either affects both ) 4 lungs with the medial lungs moderately fused, not involving Brittany 's upper right lobe ; three pleural cavities 1 diaphragm with well - coordinated involuntary breathing, slight central defect 2 stomachs 2 gallbladders 1 liver, enlarged and elongated right lobe Y - shaped small intestine, which experiences a slightly spastic double peristalsis at the juncture 1 large intestine ( one colon ) 3 kidneys : 2 left, 1 right 1 bladder 1 set of reproductive organs 2 separate half - sacrums, which converge distally 1 slightly broad pelvis 2 legs Separation Upon their birth, the twins ' parents decided not to attempt surgical separation after hearing from doctors that it was not likely that both would survive the operation. As they grew and learned to walk and develop other skills, their parents confirmed their decision against separation, arguing that the quality of life for the surviving twin or twins living separately would be less than their quality of life as conjoined beings. Adulthood The twins both successfully passed their driver 's license exams, both the written and driving tests. They had to take the tests twice, once for each twin. Abby controls the devices located to the right of the driver 's seat ; Brittany, those on the left. Together they control the steering wheel. They both graduated from high school in 2008. They began college at Bethel University in Arden Hills, Minnesota, majoring in education. They had considered pursuing different concentrations within that major, but the volume of extra coursework was prohibitive. They graduated with Bachelor of Arts degrees in 2012. In conversation, the twins are clearly distinct persons, with distinct likes and dislikes. Their preferences in food, clothing color, etc., differ. Some of their clothes are altered by their seamstress so that they have two separate necklines in order to emphasize their individuality. They usually have separate meals, but sometimes share a single meal for the sake of convenience ( e.g., each taking a bite of the same hamburger ). Abby is better at mathematics, and Brittany at writing. For tasks such as responding to email, they type and respond as one, anticipating each other 's feelings with little verbal communication between them. In such cases as the latter, their choice of grammatical person is to use the first person singular out of habit when they agree, but when their responses do differ, they use their names in the third person singular. There is some concern about the twins ' continued good health, because only four known sets of conjoined twins who share an undivided torso and two legs have ever survived into adulthood, and most have congenital heart defects or other organ anomalies. None have shown up in their case. They intensely dislike being stared at or photographed by strangers while going about their private lives. In interviews for the Discovery Channel in 2006, they, then 16, said that they hoped to date, get married, and have children. They also stated that they hoped that by providing some information about themselves, they would be able to lead otherwise fairly typical social lives. Media appearances The twins appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show on April 8 and April 29, 1996. In April 1996, they were featured on the cover of Life under the caption `` One Body, Two Souls '', and their daily lifestyle was depicted in the corresponding article entitled `` The Hensels ' Summer ''. Life followed up with another story in September 1998. In 2002, they appeared in Joined for Life, a TV documentary by Advanced Medical Productions, distributed on the Discovery Health Channel and a 2003 follow - up, Joined at Birth. In 2003, an updated story of them at age 11 ( filmed in 2001 ) was published in Time and again in Life. ABC TV also did a documentary called `` Joined For Life ''. In 2006, Advanced Medical made another documentary, Joined for Life : Abby & Brittany turn 16, that discusses their adolescence, school, social life, and activities such as getting their driver 's licenses. A UK television special followed in 2005 as part of the series Extraordinary People. They starred in the reality TV show Abby & Brittany that started in August 2012. Abby and Brittany : Joined for Life was shown by the BBC in the UK in May 2013, and covers the period from their finishing college to starting a part - time teaching job. Filmography Documentaries and other television appearances include : First aired Title Distributor Produced by April 8, 1996 The Oprah Winfrey Show King World Productions Harpo Productions March 27, 2003 Joined for Life Discovery Channel Advanced Medical Productions, American Broadcasting Company December 17, 2006 Joined for Life : Abby and Brittany Turn 16 TLC Advanced Medical Productions February 19, 2007 Extraordinary People : The Twins Who Share a Body Five ( UK ) One North August 28, 2012 Abby & Brittany TLC References ^ Jump up to : `` Conjoined twins ' Abby & Brittany ' get their own reality show ''. Yahoo ! TV. Archived from the original on 2012 - 08 - 09. Retrieved 2012 - 08 - 09. Jump up ^ Abby Hensel, Brittany Hensel Reality Show : Conjoined Twins Star In TLC 's ' Abby And Brittany ' ^ Jump up to : Discussed in episode 3 of their reality series. Jump up ^ Discussed in episode 3 of their reality series Jump up ^ `` The Twins Who Share a Body ''. Mymultiplesclerosis.co.uk. Retrieved 2011 - 12 - 23. Jump up ^ Wallis, Lucy. `` Living a conjoined life '', BBC News, 24 April 2013 Jump up ^ Documented and discussed in episode 3 of their reality series. Jump up ^ `` Abigail and Brittany Hensel : an extraordinary bond Mail Online ''. London : Dailymail.co.uk. 2006 - 12 - 31. Retrieved 2011 - 12 - 23. ^ Jump up to : Wallis, Claudia ( 1996 - 03 - 25 ). `` The Most Intimate Bond ''. TIME. Retrieved 2011 - 12 - 23. Jump up ^ Discussed in episode 4 of their reality series. Jump up ^ Documented in episode 4 of their reality series. ^ Jump up to : Hoffman, Kevin ( 2008 - 02 - 28 ). `` Minnesota 's Abby and Brittany Hensel, conjoined twins, make Newsweek - Minneapolis News - The Blotter ''. Blogs.citypages.com. Archived from the original on 2012 - 01 - 03. Retrieved 2011 - 12 - 23. Jump up ^ Susanna Schrobsdorff ( 2008 - 02 - 23 ). `` Reality 's Believe It or Not ''. Newsweek.com. Retrieved May 4, 2014. Jump up ^ `` Joined for life - co-joined six - year - old Hensel twins share many body parts : includes a related article on a set of sextuplets - Cover Story Science World ''. Find Articles. 1996 - 10 - 04. Jump up ^ `` Joined For Life '', Advanced Medical Productions, 2002, accessed November 11, 2012 Jump up ^ Joined at Birth, Advanced Medical Productions, 2003, accessed November 11, 2012 Jump up ^ `` ABC TV Documentaries : Joined For Life ''. Abc.net.au. 2003 - 03 - 27. Retrieved 2011 - 12 - 23. Jump up ^ Piccolo, Cynthia M. ( August 22, 2004 ). `` Article : Shared Lives : From the types of joining to separation surgeries, the issues around ( sic ) conjoined twins are varied and complex. - MedHunters ''. Medhunters.com. Archived from the original on August 25, 2004. Retrieved 2011 - 12 - 23. Jump up ^ Hutchison, Rob. Joined for Life : Abby & Brittany turn 16, Advanced Medical Productions, 2006, accessed November 11, 2012 Jump up ^ Channel 5 ( UK TV ) television program Extraordinary People, 9 - 10 pm Wednesday 21 November 2007 Jump up ^ Abby and Brittany : Joined for Life, accessed 21 May 2013 Jump up ^ Joined for Life : Abby and Brittany Turn 16 Archived July 12, 2007, at the Wayback Machine. from Figure8Films.tv Jump up ^ Extraordinary People : The Twins Who Share a Body from YouTube External links Abby Hensel on IMDb Brittany Hensel on IMDb Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Abby_and_Brittany_Hensel&oldid=799738518 '' Categories : Bethel University ( Minnesota ) alumni Conjoined twins Living people People from Carver County, Minnesota Sibling duos Twin people from the United States 1990 births Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links Wikipedia pending changes protected pages ( level 1 ) Articles with hCards Talk Contents About Wikipedia Čeština Dansk Deutsch Español Français Hrvatski Italiano עברית Nederlands 日本 語 Português Русский Simple English Slovenčina Slovenščina Suomi Svenska Türkçe 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 9 September 2017, at 15 : 20. 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Question: girl with two heads who controls the body
Answer: Abigail Loraine "Abby" Hensel and Brittany Lee Hensel