Navigating Intimacy as a Conjoined Twin: How One Twin Finds Privacy Despite Constant Presence

Conjoined twins • Lori and George Schappell: Lori and George Schappell, the world's oldest living conjoined twins, have shared their experiences of intimacy despite their unique physical connection. As twins joined at the head, the 61-year-olds have found ways to lead separate lives.

Around 30 percent of their frontal lobe brain tissue and crucial blood tissue are shared between the siblings. Lori, expressing her desire for a partner and children, disclosed that she lost her virginity at the age of 23 with her second boyfriend. George, being supportive of Lori's dating life, has devised a method to provide her with privacy during intimate moments with her partners. He brings books to read during their dates, allowing Lori to have personal space without their faces being in proximity.

Lori emphasizes that being a conjoined twin should not prevent her from having a love life and feeling like a woman. However, her engagement was cut short when her fiancé tragically died in a car accident caused by a drunk driver, leaving her heartbroken. George played a vital role in supporting Lori through this difficult time, and she credits him for helping her cope with the heartbreak.

In a documentary interview from 1997, Lori expressed her desire to have a family of her own. George expressed his willingness to accept Lori's future husband as a brother-in-law and stated that he would give them privacy, mentally blocking himself out of their intimate moments.

Born on September 18, 1961, as Lori and Dori, the twins underwent changes in their lives. George transitioned to a trans man named George, inspired by Reba McEntire, and they became the first same-sex conjoined twins to identify as different genders.

Despite doctors' initial predictions that they wouldn't live beyond 30, the twins surpassed expectations and reached the age of 61 in September of the previous year, astonishing the medical community.