Nicknamed "decumom", a woman from Southern Africa is another case of rare multiple births.
The mother is Gosiame Thamara Sithole, age 37. She already has six-year-old twins from a previous pregnancy. Getting 10 kids was a surprise as the initial expectancy was eight children like Octomom Nadya Suleman, noted the New York Post.
When Suleman from California had her eight kids, it caused a media stir because of the rarity of such births. One outlet in South Africa, the Pretoria News was given a statement by Sithole's husband, Teboho Tsotetsi, who said that all the babies were delivered via C-section at a hospital in Pretoria. It was a surprise when not eight, but 10 babies, emerged. The event got the attention of local media immediately.
Fertility on overdrive
Sithole's husband also told media outlets that his wife gave birth to seven boys and three girls prior. This oarticular pregnancy lasted seven months and seven days, which is shorter than the usual 40 weeks.
During the interview, the new father of 10 said that he was ecstatic, emotional, and was having a hard time expressing himself. He told the media they can resume with the interview the next morning.
The new decumom
Sithole is native of Ekurhuleni. She mentioned that her 'odd' pregnancy was all-natural. Fertility treatment was given to her, which can sometimes result in multiple births. This South African woman has 10 babies and she is the first-ever decuplet mom.
Before her, the delivery a month ago of Halima Cisse from Malia with nine in one birth was the record. According to a spokesman for the records listing, "The Guinness World Records is aware of the report that Gosiame Thamara Sithole had given birth to decuplets, and wish her and her family all the best.", cited Jacaranda FM. "At this time, we are still unable to validate this as a record because the mother and her children's safety is important."
The Guinness Book stated that their team and consultant are investigating it as a possible world record. Sithole showcased her huge baby bump during one photoshoot alongside her husband last month, when they were still anticipating octuplets. Initially, they had scans to see how many children were coming, which showed only six babies as remarked by local media.
When the doctor told her of the coming births, Sithole could not believe what she heard, because of the prior idea she would be having octuplets. Even seeing scans took her by surprise, and it took time to fully realize it. Sleeping at night was difficult as the birth date drew closer.
The South African mother mentioned that it was a miracle nothing happened to affect her pregnancy, which was not easy. Finally, she added that hopefully everyone, including her and her children would be safe. Her husband has no job but he said that he was blessed by his wife Gosiame - a South African woman has 10 babies - and their expanding family.
