Megan Heulen lives in the United States with her spouse. The couple already had two sons, ages 7 and 2, when they chose to add another daughter to their family.

Megan had polycystic ovarian condition and had previously relied on medication to help her conceive. When it came time to welcome a third child, they chose a more relaxed approach.

The couple went for an ultrasound around the 6-week mark of their pregnancy and received unexpected news: five eggs had been fertilized.

Megan couldn’t bring herself to leave the ultrasound room right away since the emotional impact was so strong. She went to work instead, where she sat quietly in a corner for an hour.

“The difference between having one child and expecting quintuplets was monumental,” Megan said. I couldn’t even stand for 30 minutes.”

Despite the difficulties of the pregnancy, the delivery went off without a hitch. One boy and four girls were born via cesarean section 32 weeks into the pregnancy.

The premature babies were in the neonatal critical care unit for three weeks.

Megan noted that at first, she and her husband were on their feet virtually the whole day because breastfeeding the infants alone took up to three hours.

They have adjusted to their new pace of life as parents of seven children. “Our life is far from easy,” Megan said, “but we are happy.”