Since 1980, the number of twins born each year in the United States has more than doubled. In 2009, more than 137,000 births were twins.  According to the National Center for Health Statistics, the twin birth rate in the United States rose 76 percent from 1980 to 2009, with only 18.9/1000 births as twins in 1980 and 33.3/1000 in 2009.

With this dramatic increase in the number of twins born across the nation, the likelihood of coming in contact with, or even having twin children of one’s own, has also increased. The lifestyle of twins is becoming increasingly common as well as more children are being born with a twin.

Twins Gabby and Veronica Swapp are very familiar with the lifestyle of being a twin, as they have lived with each other their entire lives. They each have their own perspective on having a sibling their same age.

Gabby has found that being a twin is like having a best friend that you get to live with. “We’re pretty much best friends,” Gabby said. “We tell each other everything, and we talk about most things.”

Veronica also enjoys having a twin. She said, “You get to have someone that is always there for you….It’s pretty great.”

Having a twin does not guarantee a perfect sibling relationship. Like most siblings, Gabby and Veronica still don’t necessarily always get along.

“We get along pretty well, but we do have our disagreements sometimes,” said Veronica Swapp.

“It’s good to have someone to just be there for you and also it’s kind of a sibling thing,” said Gabby Swapp. “You get on each other’s nerves, but you love each other anyway.”

Living with a twin can also present problems, as people sometimes see twins as the same person.

Veronica said, “[People] assume we have the same style and that we like the same food, but that’s not always the case.”

“We each like our individual style and our individual things because we’re both separate people,” Gabby said.

While there may be some difficulties and challenges to overcome with a twin, twins are continuing to become less of a rarity and more of a reality.