A doctor couple's journey of love

Josephine and Andreas Dissing Bagge, both 32, live in a lovely apartment in Frederiksberg with their two children, 8-month-old Bille and 4-year-old Karen Marie. They are both trained doctors. Josephine is a doctor in the cardiovascular department at Rigshospitalet, and Andreas is a doctor in the Danish Defence.

Sometimes you meet people who simply captivate you. That was how we felt about the doctor couple Josephine and Andreas. And we weren't entirely wrong. When we asked about their lives, we were immediately drawn into a beautiful story of endless journeys, postings, dreams, children, longing, and four moves in four years. But always with family and love as their first and foremost priority. Read along in our third Love Story and let yourself be swept away on Josephine and Andreas's journey of love.

Right now, things are quiet for the doctor couple Josephine and Andreas Dissing Bagge. At least as quiet as life with two children aged four and eight months allows. 

The couple lives in an apartment in Frederiksberg that contains countless reminders of the life the two doctors have shared since they first started kissing at medical school in Odense many, many years ago. 

Travel has been the focal point from the very beginning, and therefore their home is full of memories from many of the places the two have visited. 

For Josephine, who comes from Odense, and Andreas, who grew up on a country estate in Southern Jutland, recent years have also brought several different addresses in Denmark, because their education and their path to becoming doctors required it.

Although Josephine and Andreas' love has resulted in their daughter Karen Marie and later little Bille, parenthood has not changed the couple's desire to continue experiencing the world.

“We were both raised traveling, and it is a natural part of our lives. It is also something we would love to pass on to our children,” says Josephine, who is currently on maternity leave with Bille but will be a surgeon when she returns to work.

Andreas' proposal to Josephine also took place on a trip. The couple had gone to the Faroe Islands for a hike and had Karen Marie with them, who was just under two years old at the time. Andreas knew in advance that he would propose on the trip, and therefore, in addition to practical footwear and warm knitted sweaters, he also had a Shooting Star in 18-karat gold in his backpack.

The slightly rustic yet elegant ring, designed organically with clear stones in different sizes, thus became one of the symbols of the couple's love for each other. 

“It really shouldn't have been too classic,” says Andreas, who asked perhaps the biggest question of his life during a coffee break in the wild outdoors, about his choice of engagement ring.

On the hike on the small island in the North Atlantic, Josephine was both very happy and overwhelmed.

“It was a beautiful experience to be proposed to. Of course I said yes, and I was really happy, even though it wasn't the biggest surprise,” she says.

Although the family tries to travel as much as possible, trips beyond Denmark's borders do not always offer experiences for the whole family together.

Over the past year and a half, Andreas has been deployed several times as a doctor in conflict zones and has been part of the team on the Danish rescue helicopters. Most recently, he went to Iraq, where he took part in a mission.

Josephine was pregnant with Bille when Andreas last left, and the job in the Danish Defence has had a major impact on the couple in recent years.

“If I had been in doubt about whether I would come home, I wouldn't have done it,” says Andreas, who after medical school completed training in the Danish Defence, which is the reason for the various deployments.

The engagement ring is not the only one on Josephine's fingers. Before Andreas left for Iraq, he gave her a Petit Shooting Star Ring.

The ring is yet another reminder of the two's love for each other. It was a ring she received as a symbol of their youngest son Bille, whom she would be on maternity leave with while Andreas was deployed. 

There is plenty to consider when you voluntarily travel to critical hotspots in the world. “You have to write a will, among other things. And Andreas also had to write letters to us if anything should happen while he was away,” says Josephine. 

Although Andreas is probably not an obvious candidate for what he himself calls a “military man,” the sacrifice of being away from the family makes perfect sense when he can make a difference for people who live a completely different existence than at home in safe Denmark.

“Being able to pick up a patient and fly them to safety is a fantastic feeling,” he says.

The job as a doctor does not always allow you to wear jewelry on your fingers. Therefore, Andreas puts his wedding ring on his watch strap when his medical duties do not allow otherwise. 

“That way it is with me everywhere,” says Andreas about the ring, which always reminds him of the family back home. 

Andreas got his ring for the couple's wedding, which was held at his parents' barn in Southern Jutland. Josephine got one just like it, but in a more petit version. 

The most important thing was that the wedding was completely down-to-earth.

“And both we and our friends were to have a lovely evening,” says Josephine about the big celebration of love, where 80 friends came for red wine and pizza and witnessed Andreas and Josephine say 'yes' to each other outdoors on a bathing pier in Southern Jutland, which means a great deal to both of them. 

Despite the couple's slightly quieter everyday life than in recent years, which have brought an engagement, a wedding, travels, postings, and the arrival of another child, Andreas and Josephine have not had enough of exploring the world's many corners.

Their next dream destination is Japan. But an even greater wish is about something else entirely. Namely, the dream of a house that can provide a safe base back home in Denmark. 

When the couple is at home, they love to immerse themselves in creative projects, such as embroidery, linocut printing, and reading books to each other, both children and adults alike.  

“We want to give our children a childhood home. And although travel is one of our biggest priorities, it is at least as important to have a base here,” says Josephine.

Text: Line Rossau & Freya Juul 

Photo: Sannie Nielsen