Maeve was just a few hours old when a paediatrician noticed something unusual — a discovery that would change her family’s world forever.

A mum has shared how her twin daughter is “thriving” despite a rare condition that meant she was born without eyes.

Darrah O’Sullivan, 28, and her fiancé, Vince Greenaway, 30, welcomed their twin girls, Maeve and Orla, in April last year. The following day, they learned that Maeve had bilateral anophthalmia — a rare condition affecting approximately one in 100,000 babies.

After receiving reassurance that Maeve had no other identified health issues, Darrah has opened up about how the family has adapted to their new life with their “beautiful, happy, thriving little girl”.

Darrah, from Watford, told PA Real Life: “Maeve is 10 months old now, and I look back and think, ‘What on earth were we worried about?’

“Maeve is the most beautiful, happy, thriving little girl… so what if she can’t see?”

Maeve was given plastic shells, known as conformers, to help her eye sockets develop to the appropriate shape and size. When she is older, she will be able to have prosthetic eyes in a shade of blue that matches her twin sister Orla’s.

Darrah said: “We don’t want her to ever feel like her condition will stop her doing anything.

“She experiences the world in a different way, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a bad thing.

“Maeve being blind, or her condition, will never, ever be a taboo subject in our house. We will all learn Braille, and it will simply become a normal part of our lives.”

After delivering the twins by C-section at 36 weeks, Darrah described the experience as a “whirlwind”. Just a few hours later, a paediatrician remarked that it was unusual that Maeve had not opened her eyes.

“We hadn’t even noticed because she was so tiny, and we were completely unaware,” Darrah said. “We knew from the word ‘strange’ and the tone of their voices that something wasn’t right.”

The following day, an ophthalmologist confirmed that Maeve had bilateral anophthalmia and that her eyes had not developed.

Darrah, who works in management alongside Vince, said: “It was the best and the worst week of our lives wrapped up into one.

“We didn’t really believe it, and we thought there had to be a treatment that could fix it, but that wasn’t possible.

“The first few days were filled with worries about her future.”

Since then, the family has received support from the charities Guide Dogs and MACS, which specialises in helping people born without eyes or with underdeveloped eyes. Maeve is also supported by three specialists who advise the family on her mobility and tactile play.

Darrah added: “Teaching her how to crawl and all those little things that most babies learn through vision means we have to find different ways to help her.

“But as she gets older, our understanding of blindness will grow, and we’ll keep learning along the way.”

To raise awareness of the condition and support other families, Vince will run the London Marathon for MACS on April 27 alongside Darrah’s sisters, Maddie and Chloe. The family has already raised £12,000 for the charity.

Vince said: “It’ll be such a huge achievement, and we all just want to raise awareness and money for the charity and the condition.”