Jesy Nelson opened up about raising twin daughters, Ocean Jade and Story Monroe, in her upcoming Prime Video documentary
Jesy Nelson will share the heartbreaking truth behind her twins’ diagnosis in a new documentary (Image: Instagram/ @jesynelson)
A poignant scene unfolds in a spare bedroom at new mother Jesy Nelson’s home. The room is split between medical supplies essential for feeding her twin girls and toys they can’t enjoy.
The ex-Little Mix member welcomed Ocean Jade and Story Monroe Nelson-Foster last year. The twins were subsequently diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy, a rare condition that causes muscle wastage.
A revealing documentary features Jesy’s mother, Janice, who shows the camera crew around the spare room, saying: “This is actually quite organised, but it is all their stuff they can’t use and all their medical stuff, their feeding tubes and stuff, but it upsets Jesy if she sees it downstairs, so we keep it up here.”
Holding up a brand-new cuddly elephant rocking chair, she continues: “It is all things we bought like toys, and nothing was suitable because everything has to be specialised because of their spines.
“I said, ‘You should donate them to the hospital and things, they need it’. Hopefully, someone else will get the benefit of them,” reports the Mirror.
The programme Jesy Nelson: Life Changing chronicles her mission to secure universal newborn SMA screening across the United Kingdom.
The 35-year-old pop star is urging the public to support a petition that collected enough signatures to warrant Parliamentary discussion. MPs are set to vote on the matter this month.
The documentary captures Jesy travelling to Scotland on March 23 this year, marking the day health officials introduced routine SMA testing for newborns.
Jesy embraces one of the healthcare professionals conducting the screening and is thrilled by the results, though she acknowledges the moment is bittersweet – this straightforward test could have got Ocean and Story diagnosed at birth and treated immediately, rather than months later, when more damage had been done.
She tells the medic: “These babies are going to have a different life to our children, it is amazing what you are doing.”
As Jesy exits the clinic with tears streaming down her cheeks, she says: “I feel like, stupid getting upset, but part of me just feels angry. I know this is amazing, but it is sh** at the same time.
“I feel so much resentment as well. It is just frustrating.”
The documentary shows Jesy’s twins using specialised seating and undergoing therapy in the hope they’ll eventually be able to walk.
However, they currently struggle with bottle-feeding at times, requiring Jesy to resort to tube feeding during meals.
Looking back at the documentary’s conclusion, Jesy reflects: “In the beginning, I felt like I was going to feel that sadness and that heartache for the rest of my life. But the pain does get less. When something like this happens in your life, it puts everything into perspective. There’s a reason that this is, you know, happening.
“There is this whole community that has been fighting for years to be seen and heard, so that no other family has to go through this ever again. That’s the reason. The girls’ diagnosis has become my normal now. They are the reason that I now feel that I have purpose, and they give me strength every day.
“They give me a reason to not be sad. Because I am, like, how can I be sad when you’re going through all of this, and they’re still smiling?”
The documentary draws to a heartwarming close as the twins mark their first birthday, with Story uttering “Mama” for the very first time.
Born in May 2025, Jesy and her partner, Zion, remained a couple throughout the first six months but have since gone their separate ways.
Jesy opened up, saying: “We still get on. There’s no bad feeling. My main priority is them, so, like, I just want to be the best mum I can be.
“I want to have the best energy, and I want to be positive. We were both dealing with this situation completely differently, so I decided we would be better off apart.”
Jesy Nelson: Life Changing will be shown on Prime Video this July.
