Former Little Mix singer jesy nelson8-month-old daughters, twins Story and Ocean, have been diagnosed with a “severe muscle disease”.
“A few months ago, my mom noticed that the girls weren’t showing as much movement in their legs as they should,” Nelson, 34, said in a video shared on Sunday, Jan. 4, via Instagram. “(At the time) I wasn’t really worried because from the moment I left the NICU, they told me, ‘Your babies are premature, so don’t compare your babies to other babies.’ They will not reach the same milestones. Take them as they are.”
Nelson and his fiance, Zion Foster, they took in their daughters in early May 2025 after a high-risk pregnancy.
“When the health care visit came, they said, ‘They look great, they’re healthy and everything’s fine,'” she recalled. “A few signs started to show a little later that they were having difficulty feeding properly. Little by little, it was getting less and less.”
Little Mix alum Jesy Nelson brought her twin daughters Ocean and Story home after almost a month in hospital. The “Bad Thing” singer shared a photo of the twins via Instagram on Saturday, June 14, to mark her 34th birthday. She announced, “My babies came home for my birthday.” The adorable picture shows (…)
Nelson continued, “Long story short, after the most grueling three (or) four months and endless dating, the girls have been diagnosed with a serious muscle disease called SMA type 1.”
Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), according to the Cleveland Clinicis a genetic condition that causes worsening muscle weakness. There are five types of SMA, which vary in severity.
“Type 1 is the most severe type that a baby can have. It means spinal muscular atrophy, which can affect every muscle in the body down to the legs, arms, breathing, swallowing and … over time it kills the muscles in the body,” Nelson explained. “If not treated in time, your baby’s life expectancy will not exceed 2 years.”
Nelson and Foster, 27, later underwent a “fast-track process” to treat their daughters for Type 1 SMA.
Jesy Nelson and Zion Foster with their twins.
Courtesy of Jesy Nelson/Instagram“When (doctors) evaluated the girls, they told us they probably would never be able to walk,” Nelson said through tears. “They’ll probably never get their strength back, so they’ll be disabled. The best we can do right now is get them treated and hope for the best.”
Story and Ocean have since completed their treatments.
“I’m very grateful because if they don’t have it, they’re going to die,” the musician said. “It’s been endless and endless hospital appointments. I practically feel like the hospital has become my second home.”
There is still some lingering bad blood between Jesy Nelson and the other members of Little Mix. “We don’t talk, and we haven’t for a long time,” Perrie Edwards told Cosmopolitan UK in an interview published on Thursday (July 11). “It’s very sad, it’s heartbreaking. But sometimes these things happen and people decide they want (…)
He added: “The last few months have been the most heartbreaking time of my life. I literally feel like my whole life has done a 360. I almost feel like I’m I mourn the life I will not have with my children I have to be thankful because at the end of the day, they’re still here and that’s the most important thing. They’ve had their treatment and I really believe that my girls will defy all odds and with the right help they’ll fight through it and go on to do things that have never been done before.”
Nelson received plenty of support in the comments section from other famous parents and friends, including her ex-boyfriend Chris Hughes.
“A warrior Jess. Be easy on yourself,” Hughes, 33, wrote via an Instagram comment. “Sending prayers to all of you, to all behind you 🤍.”