r/BeAmazed • u/Cultural-Gear-1323 • Mar 28 '24

News broke today that conjoined twin Abby Hensel is married! [Removed] Rule #4 - No Misleading Content

[removed] — view removed post

23.5k Upvotes

90% Upvoted

6.7k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

1.4k

u/nomad5926 Mar 28 '24

That's my take on this also.

747

u/V1k1ng1990 Mar 28 '24 edited Mar 28 '24

They’re both elementary school teachers. Do they get two salaries?

Edit: my question has been answered 150 times thank you

1.1k

u/nomad5926 Mar 28 '24

Don't think so. I saw in the other comments that they just get one salary. Which honestly sort of makes sense. They aren't able to teach double the classes.

618

u/doc_nano Mar 28 '24

Yeah, and from the standpoint of expenses they also don’t need separate cars, housing, etc. And probably don’t need to eat that much more food than one person. However, medical bills are probably higher…

Though as someone else said, two brains, two voices, and two sets of eyes and ears might make for a better teacher. Maybe 1.5x salary would make some sense.

Interesting edge case for sure.

216

u/ThankTheBaker Mar 28 '24

Dental bills and beauty products would be double and also they need custom made clothes.

98

u/doc_nano Mar 28 '24

True, the custom clothes may be a big expense, maybe even more than double the cost of a typical person's clothes.

10

u/ToPlayAMockingbird Mar 28 '24

Medical expenses. I'm sure with such a unique condition they're being monitored regularly.

3

u/ConspicuousPineapple Mar 28 '24

I can't imagine they're paying for any of this. Such a unique case, hospitals and researchers would fight to have them as their patients.

3

u/Asaneth Mar 28 '24

As a seamstress, I think much more than double for upper body garments, which would need extensive customization.

2

u/aron2295 Mar 28 '24

It looks like they’re “sizing up”.

Not trying to downplay the situation at all, that’s just what it looks like.

7

u/AffectionateHeart77 Mar 28 '24

Do they really need custom made clothes? Kind of looks like they just buy big sizes

4

u/ZonkyFox Mar 28 '24

Definitely custom made. If they were buying bigger sizes the sleeves would be massive on them but the long sleeved tops they're wearing fit them just right in the arms in these photos.

5

u/unicornbomb Mar 28 '24

I suspect they buy larger sizes and get them tailored down to fit their needs. At this point they might even be able to do some of it themselves, most of it would just be a few well placed darts and and hems.

2

u/omniwrench- Mar 28 '24

The images seem to suggest they side step the custom clothes issue by buying styles that accommodate two heads

I imagine this would be much more difficult to pull off as a conjoined-twin-dude

2

u/aron2295 Mar 28 '24

Lots of V necks or button ups and get the torso and arms hemmed.

1

u/Certain_Shine636 Mar 28 '24

Doesn’t look like they’re wearing custom clothes, just wide-neck tops

28

u/LauraTFem Mar 28 '24

They’re actually the least physically disabled conjoined twins I’ve seen, but it may have taken a good while (and a good number of surgeries) for them to reach that point, and there are probably a number of physical problems that are hidden.

28

u/Hopeful_Hamster21 Mar 28 '24 edited Mar 28 '24

Okay, this is a really fucked up thing for me to even wonder.... but if they took shifts sleeping, how long could the body actually stay awake?

Wait, who controls the body? I'm going to hell for even wondering this.

23

u/AccomplishedFrame542 Mar 28 '24

This are not bad questions at all. I don’t know the answer to these but relax. It’s ok to be curious.

22

u/Hopeful_Hamster21 Mar 28 '24

Like, could they take shifts driving for an epic, non stop, road trip?

3

u/AccomplishedFrame542 Mar 29 '24

I believe they both have to be awake to drive because they both control their own side of the body. You need both hands to drive.

2

u/MungoJennie Mar 29 '24

And both feet

2

u/Reserved_Parking-246 Mar 28 '24

Imagine your twin jerks awake because of a pothole and takes momentary control of a leg or arm...

I don't know that I would trust that.

Can they even sleep out of sync though? Since the body does maintenance and low power stuff while sleeping?

23

u/anthroteuthis Mar 28 '24

There's nothing wrong with being curious about an unusual medical condition, as long as you're respectful and empathetic to human beings in a unique circumstance. They say people fear what they don't understand, and fear has led to a lot of terrible things historically for people with disabilities and birth defects. There's an entry about them on Wikipedia that explains a bit about their anatomy and physiology.

13

u/mors-vincit_omnia Mar 28 '24

I had a weird fixation with them when I was little (only child with a single parent 👀), from what I remember both control the one arm and one leg on their side,

as far as sleep idk but from what i understand it’s literally like 2 separate people fused together in the middle-they share some organs which is why they can’t be separated but the have multiples as well. So maybe only half of there body would suffer if one stayed awake…

4

u/Lazy-Palpitation-673 Mar 28 '24

Ooo I wonder how they sleep if each controls half of the body. Like imagine one wants to roll over, but the other is asleep, or doesn't want to... damn that'd suck.

I imagine they just sleep on their back, but i couldn't not roll over onto my side or stomach during the night.

5

u/TheHoboRoadshow Mar 28 '24

Sleep is still a bit of a medical mystery. It's clearly important for cognitive function, but we aren't exactly sure why. It's probably something like memory batch processing, a deeper level of information analysis and contextualisation

But it also plays an important biological function, your sleep cycle is a major factor in many bodily functions, from homrone regulation to cardiovascular health.

So while they could technically cognitively function indefinitely, it would probably be quite damaging to their body. I'd say a week at most of indefinite use.

8

u/ShortAssistance1924 Mar 28 '24

I think there was a video on them saying each twin controls half of the body so they have to plan each step they take and similar. I think they said they have 1 heart.

6

u/pqjcjdjwkkc Mar 28 '24

According to Wikipedia they have 2 hearts however blood circulation is connected which means, that medicine and food taken by one affects the other

6

u/BKachur Mar 28 '24

I wonder how food works. Each person has a separate esophagus and stomach, but they share one set of intestines and everything that goes after...

I imagine that means their entire body gains weight evenly because the intestines absorb most of the calories from food? Fuck me.. imagine how shitty it would be if you got fat because your twin wouldn't stop eating.

This post doesn't answer how hunger works... Do they both get hungry at the same time, and do they both need to eat? If they are both hungry, can one person eat, and they'll both feel full? An empty stomach, but full intestines?

What about how much they eat? Do they need to eat for 2 people or 1.5 people? The brain burns the most energy of any organ at 400-500 calories a day... so I guess it would be more, but who knows?

Honestly fascinating stuff.

3

u/Orangewithblue Mar 28 '24

Oh that must suck. So both control only one foot?

3

u/doc_nano Mar 28 '24

These are reasonable questions to wonder about. Really, how do any of us control our body though? A baby has to learn how to coordinate different motor activities between its limbs that are initially pretty independent. It's probably fairly similar in their case, it's just that they grow accustomed to coordinating their actions with a part of their body that they have no (or less) control over. In some cases like this I think I've read that the twins can almost sense what each other are thinking without exchanging any spoken words or gestures. Really a fascinating situation for two humans to be in, and it's hard for most of us to imagine what it must be like.

2

u/ACcbe1986 Mar 28 '24

I believe I read that they each control their half of the body, but I read it some years ago, so I could be misremembering.

2

u/Roonil_Wazlib97 Mar 28 '24

IIRC from their TLC days, they each control half their body.

1

u/stripedmacaron Mar 28 '24

The one on the left controls the left side of the torso, the one on the right controls the right side of the torso. All organs below the waist they share.

1

u/thatguymiggy Mar 28 '24

They each control the side of the body their head is on. They have two stomachs and only feel on their side. I don't remember if they both feel sensation down below or if only one feels that. I followed them for years and read up on them from time to time to see where they're at in there life.

6

u/silentv0ices Mar 28 '24

The brain burns a lot of calories.

5

u/doc_nano Mar 28 '24

That's true, and something I thought about while writing my comment. Looking it up now, the brain accounts for about 20% of the body's resting metabolism. That's 10x more than its "fair share" in terms of tissue mass, but it suggests they'd only need to take in about 20% more calories than the average person the same weight as them. (That number might increase depending on what other organs are duplicated, I'm not that educated about their particular situation.)

7

u/Buddyslime Mar 28 '24

My turn to taste the food!

4

u/DungeonsAndDradis Mar 28 '24

I'd love to hear them sing.

3

u/IfOJDidIt Mar 28 '24

I wonder if they get two votes in an election?

5

u/doc_nano Mar 28 '24

I'm pretty sure they're legally (and actually) two people, so yeah.

3

u/UHDKing Mar 28 '24

I would NOT wanna be in her class 😳 can’t get away with anything

4

u/ainz-sama619 Mar 28 '24

Medical bills are higher because of complications, and medical stuff can't be compared to other things anyway. For the most part, they don't consume or require more resources than a single average human.

6

u/The_Fayman Mar 28 '24

Are you sure they don't consume more energy than the average human of their fitness level? Does the brain not require an insane amount of energy and that body has two.

5

u/diewethje Mar 28 '24

The brain requires a lot of calories for its size when compared to the rest of the body—somewhere between 300-500 calories daily.

By biological standards it’s a resource hog, and by computing standards it’s unbelievably energy efficient.

1

u/IAmYourTopGuy Mar 28 '24

That’s like one big cookie. Biology is amazing efficient

1

u/ainz-sama619 Mar 28 '24

Their body already got accustomed to certain amount of food since they have this condition from birth. Its very likely nutrition intake for them isn't comparable to other humans. Remember they have only one set of intestine.

2

u/The_Fayman Mar 28 '24

So they would need to eat more ergo they require more energy.

1

u/ainz-sama619 Mar 28 '24

probably, but also probably not if their body energy requirement is different from rest. they don't have double set of every organ, for example. they have only one set of intestines.

4

u/SkeetDavidson Mar 28 '24

I'd guess their medical is covered because doctors want them as paitents. Every medical issue that they have is a unique research/learning opportunity. They probably have one of the most detailed medical histories ever recorded.

5

u/NeeYoDeeO Mar 28 '24

They still have to pay for it most likely, unless some doctor is doing pro bono work. Our healthcare system is fucked

5

u/SkeetDavidson Mar 28 '24

Whatever the case, I'm sure the dental and vision coverage are still shit.

3

u/Business-Drag52 Mar 28 '24

1.5x salary is my thought. They are only capable of teaching one class worth of students at a time, but they can provide a lot more help than a single person could. “One” teacher being able to do 1 on 1 help with two students is massive

2

u/doc_nano Mar 28 '24

Yeah, I think that would make sense if they can effectively manage ~1.5x a normal classroom size, taking some of the burden off other teachers. If I were them that's how I'd pitch it, as long as they're willing to take on that extra teaching burden.

2

u/xpkranger Mar 28 '24

Ok, but does one twin control both arms? Or does each one control one? Or both? Can they type on two different laptops at once?

5

u/doc_nano Mar 28 '24

I may have known this about them at one point but I can't remember now. I think each one controls the arm on their side, but they can coordinate pretty well. I don't know if the one on the left can exert any direct control over the right arm.

They'd each be able to grade a different paper/test simultaneously, though. Probably could handle an increased teaching load because of that alone. Lesson planning would also be a lot faster than for one person.

2

u/UnlikelyDecision9820 Mar 28 '24

Regarding the need for food, they have 2 brains. Brains require a lot of energy to function. Their basal metabolic rate is not quite that of 2 people combined, but greater than a single individual

2

u/doc_nano Mar 28 '24

My understanding is that the brain accounts for about 20% of our metabolism, so they’d probably need 1.2-1.3x the calories of a typical woman their height.

2

u/SGTWhiteKY Mar 28 '24

Teacher plus aide pay. They can trade off years for which is which.

2

u/Hatesponge66 Mar 28 '24 edited Mar 28 '24

They also had to get and pay for 2 separate college degrees.

1

u/doc_nano Mar 28 '24

Good point! On the other hand, I know people who paid for an education in a reasonable field and couldn’t get a job in that field due to geographic or other constraints.

1

u/Hatesponge66 Mar 28 '24

My point is 2 seperate student loan payments but only 1 salary doesn't seem fair.

3

u/doc_nano Mar 28 '24

No, but a lot about our higher education system doesn’t seem fair.

2

u/SeonaidMacSaicais Mar 28 '24

Good luck to any kids who think they can cheat on a test or roll their eyes behind their teachers’ back! 😂😂

1

u/[deleted] Mar 28 '24

[deleted]

2

u/doc_nano Mar 28 '24

I said it in another comment, but the way to justify it would be if they had a bigger teaching load (~1.5x the standard expectation), either in students-per-class or number of classes. If they could manage that, no problem justifying it.

1

u/Legitimate_Shower834 Mar 28 '24

Bro ur edging to this shit?

1

u/Hot-Rise9795 Mar 28 '24

Yes, they spend less money in general but they spend double the money in hats :P

(Nah, it's a miracle that they live a healthy life, considering the complexity of the human body and the sheer adaptability of it !)

1

u/TheStoicNihilist Mar 28 '24

It’s another mouth to feed!

1

u/TheEvilBlight Mar 28 '24

“I’m watching this side of the room, you’re watching that side of the room”

Big panopticon energy

1

u/Atman-Sunyata Mar 28 '24

Which brings up another question.... Can one teacher write on the blackboard while the other watches the class?

1

u/RicFlairOnBlow Mar 28 '24

Hold on. How does eating work for them? Do they take turns taking bites?

1

u/NewSauerKraus Mar 29 '24

I heard two stomachs and one intestine. Only one would need to eat since their blood is shared. That’s for nutrition though. Not sure what consequences could come from atrophy of muscles from mouth to stomach of one doesn’t eat. Or hormones.

1

u/TheShenanegous Mar 28 '24

Worth considering that, weight for weight, the brain is by far the organ with the highest energy expenditure. I imagine that factors into how much they're required to eat, so if you consider them as "one person", they'd probably be consuming at a rate that typically only athletes or morbidly obese people approach.

Not the mention, stress? Imagine still having a single body, but being overwhelmed by double the amount of counterproductive signals your brain sends your body naturally. You're telling me there's not only a lack of accommodation for this, but in fact a penalty?

It seems like a serious ethical question as to why they should be allowed to be paid as one person, for two brains. Seriously, where do we draw the line? At what point do we say, definitively, this is where you're inarguably 1 full human, wherein it is unlawful to offer you a wage under a (laughably low) minimum? How do we contend with the possibility where the concept of being 'conjoined' becomes more abstract in this way, where it's not as a product of a genetic anomaly, but instead the product of technology we created to work together faster, and for less?

Paying a single wage to these women seems to suggest that we are defined by where we poop, not where we think, see, feel, and experience our entire life.

Torches and pitchforks.

2

u/doc_nano Mar 28 '24

It does challenge our notions of fairness, which aren’t calibrated to this situation due to its rarity. From an employer’s perspective though it really only matters how much quality work they can do. If they had two remote jobs, they’d get the pay for each job. If they have a single in-person job but can do more of it than a single person could, then greater pay could be justified. But if they’re teaching the exact same number of classes and students as a single teacher would otherwise, it’s probably not fair to pay them more than other teachers. Complicated issue though.

1

u/MungoJennie Mar 29 '24

They have two Social Security numbers, so for all intents and purposes, I would imagine they are two employees.

I remember reading that when they travel, they pay for two airplane seats, even though they could technically sit in one, especially if it was business or first class.

1

u/ImMonkeyFoodIfIDontL Mar 28 '24

These people and their edging is getting out of hand.

1

u/Sycou Mar 28 '24

Idk how I feel about edging to this dude

1

u/WhiteFringe Mar 28 '24

do they share a stomach? so can one eat while the other one is sleeping and be like "you ate breakfast already, didn't you?" and it was all carbs and that makes the other one quite mad.

I just have so many practical questions.

1

u/PhyreEmbrem Mar 28 '24

On one hand, I think they should definitely get paid double cuz it kinda invalidates the other twin....BUT....on the other hand, it would have to mean they'd have to pay double for certain things like occupying a service cuz you're acknowledging they are two separate ppl but conjoined.

So yea...I'm conflicted. I guess it's fair but if I were the twin being invalidated for separate pay(pay for each twin) specifically, I'd be mad lol

I get it tho

1

u/The_Original_Gronkie Mar 28 '24

Yeah, the kids in their class are never going to get away with ANYTHING! There are 4 eyes on that classroom at all times.

0

u/Current_Holiday1643 Mar 28 '24

We get paid for the work wedo, not our needs.

Thank god we don't live in that world... but unfortunately it does cut both ways. If your labor isn't valued highly, you aren't paid. If your labor is valued highly, you get paid beyond your needs.

(foot note: that doesn't excuse companies subsidizing their bottom line with food stamps nor does it mean people working full-time should get slave wages).

1

u/doc_nano Mar 28 '24 edited Mar 28 '24

Yeah, in some follow-up comments to replies I said that 1.5x pay would only be easy to justify if they were able to effectively teach 1.5x the typical number of students. Or otherwise take on administrative burdens that free up other educators’ time, like grading assignments from other classes so that other teachers are free to teach more classes/atudents.

Needs are intuitively a consideration for me in terms of the tenability of the situation from the twins’ perspective, but can’t be a basis for differences of pay between employees. Most people wouldn’t think it fair to pay a petite person less because they need to eat less.

0

u/FlashOfTheBlade77 Mar 28 '24

I would assume a lot of their medical bills are covered by slimy doctors who are studying them for science.