Lorna Jeremie – Life with triplets |15 May 2018

Caring for a new-born can be an all-consuming task for a new mother. Add singlehood and triplets to this equation and you have the recipe for an overtired, sleep deprived and overwhelmed mother.

On the occasion of the International Day of the Families, today, Seychelles NATION brings you the story of a single man who raised her triplets who are now 24 years old.

Single mother Lorna Jeremie who is a nurse by profession, gave birth to three beautiful baby boys - Rodney, Laurent, and Jude Jeremie - 24 years ago. Before giving birth to the triplets, Lorna had a son Jason Jeremie who is now 28 years old.

While raising three kids is obviously a huge responsibility, Lorna says she loves them a lot. And she was willing to do whatever it takes to keep her family together, despite the many challenges along the way. 

The pregnancy took her by surprise, but nearly as much as the news that she was going to have triplets. It was on June 1, 1993 that Lorna found out that instead of two babies she would give birth to a triplet.

“It was not what I expected, already in pain after delivering two babies I found out that I was having triplets. It was a hard battle but with the help of God and the midwives I was able to deliver my little babies. It took some time for me to embrace such moment, but deep inside I knew that raising triplets would be challenging. I never imagined for a second the reality of actually having to raise three babies simultaneously,” Lorna recounts to Seychelles NATION.

She added that at that moment her life changed completely and she was willing to raise Rodney, Laurent, Jude and the eldest son Jason.

“It was definitely a life-changing time, you never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have. But I had amazing support from my family and from the community in general,” she said.

By having triplets, the experience has brought the family closer and closer to the community around them.

“One of the things I decided at the beginning of the journey was that we were going to accept help, because at that time I was really struggling financially. As a single mother I had to fight for the survival of my three youngest children,” she adds.

After a couple of months, Lorna had to return to work and needed to find other alternative to look after the triplets.

“I was working shift at the hospital and I had to leave my babies at home, it was starting to be a struggle to balance work and my duty as a single mother. So my older sister - Paquerette Jeremie - offered to be the nanny of my triplets. She was always there for them and she’s like a second mother for my kids,” adds Lorna.

Working as a nurse, Lorna had to raise her babies on the small monthly income of R2,500 and had to pay housing loan, feed her kids among others.

“The financial and emotional strain was too much. I cannot begin to describe the exhaustion and the sheer physical grind of caring for three babies, let alone the money worries. It was a struggle to be a single mother, with such a low salary I had to prepare a budget every month for all my expenses. Many people started to notice my struggle, and the community started to provide me the necessary help I needed. I was assisted by the Fock-Heng pharmacy who provided me with a consignment of baby milk for four months, which was a great help,” she said.

Lorna also received a helping hand from former President France Albert René who provided her the sum of R50,000 to build an extra room for her triplets, but she was not able to finalise the project due to personal reasons.

She also received a washing machine from Round Table Seychelles.

With all the turbulences in her life, Lorna has managed to raise her kids and to be successful in raising triplets she had to set firm rules and regulations around the home.

All of her children are currently in employment. Jude is a barman at Trader Vic’s, Laurent works at Le Méridien Fisherman’s Cove, Rodney works at the International Conference Centre (ICCS), and her oldest son Jude is part of the Seychelles People’s Defence Forces (SPDF).

When asked to summarise what motherhood means to her, Lorna stated that being a mum means everything for her.

“I love being a mum to my four kids, it’s challenging, busy, exhausting and sometimes crazy, but I love it. I really was born to be a mum. The biggest advantage of being part of the triplets is that each boy always has the company of his brothers, so they almost never get bored  And if one boy learns something, the other two learn from him very quickly,” she says.

Life with multiple babies involves a lot of planning. It can be hard work, but once you are in a feeding and sleeping routine, things will start to get easier. Take one day at a time, work as a team, accept help and look after yourself.

Lorna has managed to rise from all obstacles to become a successful mother with a wonderful story to tell.