Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Preemie Adventures

Matt, owner of Red Sparks is starting a new preemie segment on The Playpen entitled “The Preemie Adventure – Then and Now.” The series will feature a picture of premature infants at birth, along with a photo of the child at present day and a brief story from the parents describing their personal experiences with preterm birth.



He has chosen our story to kick-off the series. Here is the article and pictures that I submitted:


During a family vacation to Disney World, I was diagnosed with Preterm Premature Rupture of the Membranes (PPROM)...which is a fancy way of saying that my water broke VERY early. I was 22 weeks pregnant and was told that there was very little chance that the baby would survive.

We were devastated as they went over the statistics. My due date was still 121 days away. We had a 90% chance that the baby would die in the delivery room. If he beat the odds and survived, it would almost surely be with severe disabilities and a very poor quality of life. We were even offered medication to speed up the “inevitable”.

Thankfully, I lasted almost two weeks on bed-rest, which gave the baby some much needed time to develop further. At 24 weeks and 5 days, Kyle was born weighing 1 pound 6 ounces. Again we were warned that his chances of surviving, let alone leading a quality life, were not good.

We were devastated when we saw how small he was. And it was not a tiny, cute little baby kind of small. He obviously was very sick. Despite all the problems on the inside - things like his lungs and heart not being developed - we were struck by how different he looked on the outside. One of his eyes was still fused shut. His skin was transparent and covered with hair. Even his ear lobes had not yet developed cartilage and just hung there.




You will hear many parents of preemie’s state that their NICU stay was a rollercoaster ride and this description is so true.





During Kyle’s 119 days in Florida Hospital South’s NICU, while he had some good days, he also endured heart surgery, 69 days on life support/ventilator, Cytomegalovirus (CMV), anemia, bilateral hernias, Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia (BPD), Chronic Lung Disease, bilateral renal calculi (small kidney stones), jaundice, aspirations, Respiratory Distress Syndrome, 3 bouts with pneumonia, hyperglycemia, 11 blood transfusions, high blood pressure, numerous infections and Stage 3 Retinopathy of Prematurity requiring Eye Surgery.

Thanks to many answered prayers, today Kyle is a happy and healthy 18 month old (14 months adjusted age). He is the happiest baby and loves to be the center of attention. He is close to walking on his own and is adding new words to his vocabulary weekly.




If there is one remnant of Kyle’s extreme prematurity, it is the slow rate in which he has grown. Although it is finally starting to get better, since the day we left the hospital we have received comments on Kyle’s small size. An automatic question of strangers seems to be, “How old is your baby?” When he weighed 7 pounds and I would answer that he is six months old, people would look at me like I am crazy. Kyle is now almost 19 pounds, which considering his start in life, is amazing to me. Still, I feel like I always have to defend his small size and am looking forward to the day that he is actually on the growth chart!

We had a great appreciation for Kyle even before his prematurity because I had such a difficult time getting pregnant (he is an IVF baby), so even his conception was nothing short of miraculous to us. But everything now is even more precious to us and we take nothing for granted. We have learned some valuable lessons through this trial and we’ll never be the same. When I look at Kyle now, it is hard for me to imagine that he once weighed just 18 ounces. I am amazed by the accomplishments he has made, he truly is our miracle baby. "This is the Lord's doing, it is marvelous in our eyes." Psalm 118:23


I think this series is an excellent idea! When Kyle was in the hospital, I would scour the Internet for information on preemies. While I was able to find a lot of medical based information, there was nothing like this "Now and Then" series. This may seem callous, but as parent looking at Kyle when he was just one pound, I wondered if he would ever look "normal".

Anyways, if anyone is interested, The Play Pen is looking for other preemie parents to submit stories.



41 comments:

Mandy said...

Congratulations on having your story published and on getting into the calendar!!

What a month for you!

:)
mandy

Miss Lisa said...

Oh wow---that's so great you can share your story with the world. I know it will help someone somewhere!

Anonymous said...

Congratulations on having your story published. Kyle truly is a miracle! My niece was an IVF miracle (27 weeker) as well!

Rachel said...

Oh my stars.
What a post to read for my first visit over here.
Absolutely amazing. What a blessing that darling little boy is. God has given you something truly miraculous and I thank you for sharing that with all of us.

I will definitely be back!

careysue said...

Congratulations on a beautiful article about your precious baby boy! It's truly a miracle after everything he's been through.

Love the idea from mom's like yourself that are going through what you did, such great support.

You are in the Calendar? Awesome! I voted for you!!!!

Matt Pfingsten said...

Thank you Jennifer for your personal and honest story. Kyle's story is absolutely amazing, and I KNOW that people who happen to stumble upon this series will draw a ton of inspiration from it. Plus, its clear form the "now" picture that Kyle is already quite the little lady killer! Go get em, Kyle!

Thanks again!

Anonymous said...

Congrats on making it into the calendar. That is so cool!

Although my kids were not preemies, I can relate a little to your story. I had PPROM too. It was at 33 weeks, so not as scary. But I was still in the hospital for 2 1/2 weeks. I couldn't even get up to use the bathroom. Now that I read your story, I consider myself very lucky to have been so much further along. Your little baby went through so much just to survive. I can't even imagine. I'm so glad it all turned out ok for you and your family.

Anonymous said...

Tricia sent your video to all of us at Roadway. There are like 500 of us so Roadway deserves a shout out. He-he. It was very cute and I am glad you won.

We used to pray for Kyle last year when he was in the hospital. I am glad that he is doing so good now.

Anonymous said...

Wow what an amazing story - isn't God SO good. Thanks for sharing this heartfelt story.

Wendi said...

Congratulations on getting your story published.
It is a really great story.
Miracles really do come true!

OHmommy said...

Wow.

He was so little.

Congrats for you guys. It is so nice for you to share you story.

CC said...

WOW! What a story! I am so glad that your son is doing so well right now!

congrats on getting published!

Fire Hunt said...

I would love to do this. Thank you for posting about it.

GypsiAdventure said...

oh my gosh..I had followed DiscoveringDad's story as it unfolded and it was heart wrenching (he too is going to be apart of the premie series). I remember when I went into labor at 20 weeks and the doctors couldn't stop it, I was told there was nothing I or they could do if she was born. After 2 weeks in the hospital they let me go home to bed rest where I spent the next 14 weeks. My daughter was born at 36 weeks...all the while I was in labor, they just kept me on medication to slow the contractions. It gets me every time I hear a premie story. You have a blessing from above - he is adorable. Congratulations ...

~K
Thanks for stopping by, it's always a pleasure to see your comments.

Breenette said...

Wow! What a story! Congrats on having the story published. Kyle is an inspiration and a miracle!
Thanks for reading my blog and for the prayers for my friends daughter Sarah Avery. No word yet on how the surgery went. We continue to pray.

Jackie said...

Even though I know your story, I still love hearing it again...he is truly a miracle.

Rachel said...

oh my goodness, your story brought tears to my eyes! I am so happy everything worked out - God gives us miracles all the time. Thanks for sharing your story!

Kat said...

Thank you so much for sharing your story. What an amazing miracle you were able to witness. And what a beautiful boy you have!

Thank you for stopping at my blog. I am so glad you did so that I could read this wonderful post! :)

The Wades said...

He is just beautiful! I enjoyed reading about your miracle baby. :) Happy growing to your little one!

BacktoBarnwell said...

This just goes to show that man never knows the path of our lives 100%, and God works in crazy great ways! What a humbling story!

Ryann said...

Our story is very similar. Addy was born at 25 weeks weighing 1 lb, 7oz. She is 17 months now (13 adjusted) and is starting to walk. She weighs 18 pounds and we defend her weight constantly.

Our good friends delivered a 27 weeker today weighing only 1 lb, 4 oz. Please keep Ethan in your thoughts.

www.caringbridge.org/visit/addysonwroblewski is our daughter's webpage.

Ryann said...

Jen-
You tried to follow me on twitter, but I at first didn't know who you were so I rejected it. SORRY! I don't know how to get you back. I'm new to twitter. Can you help?

Sue Wilkey said...

That's so incredible- I can't believe those pictures. And look at him now!!! Congrats,

Anonymous said...

Are you sure you really have a husband? You hardly ever talk about him, and there are very few pictures of him...and honestly, if I were your husband, I'd be pretty mad if I saw my wife making videos to put online of herself trying to be "sexy" It's inappropriate and I feel very sorry for your husband. And if he doesn't mind it, then that's even worse. You're a mother, not a sex goddess

krissy said...

Golly, that is terrific.

I have to say that every time I see your sweet baby before and after, i get teary eyed.

You are are a powerful lady. Love it.

Insane Mama said...

Wow what a story, and thank god for medicine. My daughter was preemie too! Maybe I will submit a story as well.

Anonymous said...

a woman your age should not be going around dressed in skanky clothes. I'm surprised your husband let you post that video. "Sexy" contest? wow. That means a lot of men will be looking at the calender, lusting after your hott body, wishing they could get a piece of you, while you just act like that's totally okay to do. Making men lust is no big deal, right? ANd I'm sure your "husband" is okay with this.

Elise said...

Kyle's story is the perfect story to kick off this series. Kyle's battles he has endured and won will give hope to others. What an inspiration Kyle is. He certainly is one amazing little boy.

Lots of love
Elise

Tiffany said...

That's an awesome story! And you WERE lucky just to conceive him. And look at how beautiful that little boy is now. God was definatley looking over you. I adopted my son after years of not being able to conceive and I feel so lucky to have him.

the slackmistress said...

I don't know if you know this, but my husband was a preemie 33 years ago. He's had some physical issues (he's colorblind, fr'instance) but nothing life-changing or an issue in the big picture.

And of course, I think he's perfect. :)

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Heather of the EO said...

Yes, such a good time for me to run into you-just in time for this story. Such a touching story. Yes, truly a miracle!
Congrats on your story being shared and the calendar nomination.

Anonymous said...

This made me cry! What a survivor, and such a beautiful child!

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...

Thanks for stopping by my blog - I hope you and your family are doing well.

tracey.becker1@gmail.com said...

My girlfriend had twins at about 25 weeks... They looked very similar to Kyle's pictures. I'll never forget holding them in the NICU...

Congrats on his incredible growth! He's adorable.

Anonymous said...

Your story is amazing. He's such an adorable little guy, and we're so glad he's growing so well now!

Anonymous said...

Oh I enjoyed reading your story! I feel the same way with my son about the weight, it annoys me sometimes. Jacob is 5 and 1/2 months old and only 8lbs 4oz...people are always asking me why he's so skinny and I've even had problems with doctors. Having a preemie in or out of the NICU is a constant everyday roller coaster ride. We go through so many triumphs yet we also have our bad days. We continue to push through them though. We know without a doubt how lucky we are just to spend a day with our child, we're blessed to have years.

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