Child's Birth Year
1981

State/Province/Territory
New York

NICU Hospital for my journey
Wilson Memorial Hospital

My NICU Graduate's Journey
At 8 months pregnant, I started bleeding and called the hospital. I was told to call an ambulance and I called my husband to come home. I was taken to the hospital and examined and it was determined that my placenta had moved and that caused the bleeding. An emergency C-Section
was performed and the doctor found the baby to be transverse lie and her legs were scrunched up and crossed. She was rushed to the NICU and I was taken to ICU. I got the first look at my beautiful baby girl Jessica 24 hours later in the NICU. They had shaved half her head to insert an IV, had a needle in her heel and monitors on her heart. She was under an oxyhood as her lungs were under developed. She was so tiny! She only weighed five and a half pounds. My husband and I couldn't even hold her. We had to slip our arms into massive gloves attached to portals in the NICU crib to feed her and touch her tiny hands. She stayed in the NICU for six out of our seven day stay. We found out a couple years later the oxyhood caused her to be blind in her left eye. Because of her legs being scrunched and crossed, at 3 months old she had to wear a double leg brace that was attached to her feet for 6 months while she slept. She was a fighter though and she made it through!

What makes you proud of you NICU graduate?
Our daughter Jessica has accomplished much over the years. Because of the blindness in her left eye at birth, she has had to work harder at things but said it wasn't going to stand in her way and it didn't. She participated in soccer and softball and joined the swim team in high school. She has made a successful managerial career for herself and as a single mother has provided a good life for herself and our granddaughter. Her dad and I couldn't be prouder!

Weight at Birth (lbs. or Grams)
5 lbs 8 oz

Weeks Gestation
36 Weeks

Time spent in the NICU (Specify Day, Month, or Year)
6 Days