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“We Beat Infertility”: Woman Recounts Her Near-Death Experience
A year after her daughter was born at 25 weeks gestation, the mama of one Jules Paige recounts how she nearly died when a driver hit her, in a head-on collision while pregnant with her miracle baby, Juliana.
She wrote on Instagram:
“This is us then. 1 year ago tomorrow we were hit in a head on collision by a driver that fell asleep at the wheel. After 10yrs of trying to have a baby Juliana was my miracle. She was born via emergency c-section at 25 weeks. My placenta was abrupted by 70 percent & my uterus was filled with blood. Our doctor said it’s a miracle we both survived. God definitely had us covered. In this photo my husband and I were both headed into surgery at the same time. His whole leg was crushed including his femur. Our nurses brought us together as we prayed and chose a name for our baby girl. We asked the doctors to please give our baby a fighting chance no matter what. We’ve come a long way in a year and we’re so excited to share all the changes in a special family post tomorrow. Thank you to everyone who has prayed for our family, watched Juliana grow and cheered us on. It means more than you guys will ever know. We’re blessed & grateful. 
”
Speaking to pegnancybeyond.com, Jules says holding Juliana for the first time was magical. “I waited 18 days to hold her.. I was nervous because she was so tiny. That feeling quickly went out the window and I couldn’t stop smiling. It felt so good to have my tiny fighter skin to skin. All these feelings quickly turned into tears. I was overwhelmed with happiness.”
Narrating the first moments with her daughter, Jules described how she had to put Juliana back into her isoletter 5 minutes after holding her “She was still critical and fighting for her life. She couldn’t adjust and started having bradycardias and low oxygen. I was sad that she didn’t last longer but I wanted what was best for her. She stabilized better once she was back in her isolette”.
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Jules went on to describe how she felt when she became a mom for the first time. “Thinking about the way I became a mom for the first time makes me overwhelmed. I can’t describe the feeling except for I’ve never been so in love. Things didn’t go the way we planned but I’m glad I’m here to witness my miracle grow up. She is everything to me.”
Thank you for sharing your story and best wishes to you and your family.
SEE ALSO:- PREGNANT WITH CANCER – BEAUTIFUL PHOTO OF MOM BREASTFEEDING AFTER MASTECTOMY
12 Cute And Funny Onesies For Your Baby
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Oh, Dear 3 in 1 year! How I Balance Mommy Duties With 3 Kids, 8 Months Apart?
One real mom gives practical tips on how she juggled mommy duties with three kids under one!
Follow me down the rabbit hole although I am nowhere as cute and spunky as Alice. My name is Sandra and five years ago, I gave birth to three children eight months apart now that bit of information usually brings on an awkward glance or two so I believe a backstory is in order.
How I Met My Husband
My husband and I met in 2010 at our first duty station in the military…we locked eyes from across the room then he came up to me and said. “You’re the expletive with the eyelashes! Do you know you caused everyone in the dinning facility to be smoked?” Now I was quite un-phased by this uncouth little encounter as the dinning facility false lash incident had seemingly ruffled quite a few feathers he wasn’t the first person to greet me with such a scathing reproach.
Now if you know a bit about the military. I am sure you can already see why false lashes in basic training would be a problem. There is more to what went down that fateful day but that’s a story for another time. Thankfully we were able to move past lash gate and soon found ourselves in love.
Our Growing Family
Fast forward to 2012 we had been married for two years and were expecting our first child. Our beautiful raven haired bundle was born on January 30th 2012. So how did I end up with three kids who are not triplets in one year? Well with me being the randy little lass that I am, I could hardly wait for my six week medically imposed celibacy to be up.
So one baby free night and several glasses of wine later we unknowingly convinced our identical twin boys. The twins apparently as impatient as their dear mother made a grand early entrance into the world on October 16th 2012. So I went from one child to three In what seemed like the blink of an eye. The first few months (read still is!) were probably the hardest after taking some time to ingest all the changes and traumas.
The twins arrived at 29wks so that meant NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) time plus a host of other challenges. I realized that the best way to take on the challenges of this new life was to go with the flow. It sounds infinitely easier than it actually was (is). Since I had an emergency c section my milk took some time to come in so the twins were given donor milk. God bless all those who donate because it helped ease the guilt I felt over not being able to provide for them those first few weeks.
Balancing Mommy Duties
About three months after they were born they came home. I began my terminal leave from the military, I began my journey as a stay at home mom and our family life began in earnest. As happy as we were to have the boys home it was a big adjustment. Used to the bright lights of the NICU the twins did not have the best sleep pattern to keep things bearable we went by the kids body clocks our mornings started whenever they woke up and we allowed them to sleep whenever they needed until they were old enough to really give sleep training a go.
Back then upon waking the twins went in their swings while I made breakfast. Then it was time to grab my double breastfeeding pillow latch the boys use my feet to pull my daughters highchair close to me she would get fed as nursed her brothers. When we were out if I wasn’t able to nurse we used bottle holders. I think I read somewhere that the bottle holder things are Ill advised but back then they were life savers. These methods worked pretty awesome even better was when baby girl could finally feed herself! Although the boys enjoyed sticking to the double feeding method even when they began solids. So baby girl would get her food and I would double spoon the twins. It cut back on time everyone was happy and fed.
SEE ALSO : AMAZING STORIES OF LABOR AND BIRTH FROM REAL MOMS
Speaking of time saving that became something of a hobby. It was easier to handle the babies when everything was prepped ahead from bottles to bathes. I gave myself time lines but also let myself just say to hell with it if I didn’t make those timelines. Mothers of multiples and of children close together tend to find all these neat little ways to make it through the day.
On nights where bath time seemed like a personal punishment. We used baby magic no rinse foam to give the bubs a quick wipe down. The prep and assembly line method kept things running somewhat smoothly pretty much in all aspects of life with the exception of poop volcanos or projectile vomit.
Now I can make it seem as if I had it all in the bag or it was all sunshine and unicorn poop. I can pretend that I did it with six inch stilettos on or a sequined ball gown. I could pretend the poop murals, food explosions, omg what did you eat and near are visits never happened but they did. It would make me look so bad-ass if I never cried looking at a category five mess simply because I dared to use the bathroom for more than five minutes but the truth is it was hard a lot more than it was easy.
There were times my sleep deprived sanity was a lone little row boat in an ocean of coughs, feverish, vomiting children. Just hearing a sniffle queued up a 80’s horror soundtrack in the back of my mind. There were times I did whatever worked at the time whatever I could do to get through the day. Whatever would help tire them out for an easy quick bedtime.
To cut on clothing cost, we use a inside/ outside clothes rule. Outside clothes are taken off promptly upon returning home and washed outside in In color safe detergent This kept things in top hand me up condition. We color coded as many things as we could so the children had a sense of ownership/responsibility. It also helped to get them involved in learning to help pick up after themselves.
Even though the kids have flatware, Paper plates were and are still dear friends of ours. Kids seem to drink like fish so we rinse cups after use and set them in the middle of the table (this is where the color code comes in handy too) one cup all day. Less dishes equals more time to use in some other productive way. Finding what works for you and your children no matter how others may think was the best thing having children so close in age taught me.
Loving Your Children Is What Matters
I am sure I am not alone when I say this that parenting thing can come with some unexpected guilt. Self generated guilt or some from the peanut gallery know as society. A source of guilt in my home was feeling that since they were so close that somehow in some way they would feel neglected in some way. As individual attention while available and readily given could never really come in large quantities. But you know what I know all of my children well Trey has a just happy to be alive cuddly personality, Mimi with her larger than life boss lady persona then there’s Ty my stick to the facts protective sweetheart. My little motley crew has taught me so much about myself. They grow me as much as I grow them they know they are loved.
As a mom I learned that you will be judged as a parent no matter if you have one or 100 children. Going out on a limb I am willing to bet many parents of multiples or closely grouped children have heard the likes of ” You guys don’t have a TV huh” or the gawking like the grocery store extraterrestrials who feel privy to invade your personal space to question or worse touch without asking! Friend, strangers and relatives alike it seems there is always that one person. I also learned that there is this strange mommy competition that sometimes takes place and your worth as mother/parent will weighed against another.
I learned that all of the above mentioned should just remain observations. Loving your children is what matters, trying each day to better for them and yourself, what other moms do or don’t and how often they do or don’t do it, if you yell more or less, if you’re not as neat or together. Having and raising three kids under two taught me to to just be mom enough for me and my family. I have since gone on to have a fourth child the kids are alive, well and as precocious as ever.
The older three start kindergarten this year and honestly it’s a bit of a relief. The excitement of change and growth each school year brings. That bit of a break doesn’t hurt either may anyone reading have an amazing year full of smiles and good memories and most of all love and family growth no matter if you have one kid or a dozen.
Follow Sandra on Instagram @ohdear3in1yr
SEE ALSO: Pregnancy Sleep Secret – All that You Need To Know
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En Caul Birth: Baby Born In Amniotic Sac On Way To Hospital
Raelin Scurry was 29 weeks pregnant with her second baby when she started having contractions, which she immediately dismissed as Braxon Hicks. After about 45 minutes of strong contractions which were only few minutes apart, Raelin figured out she was experiencing true labor, so she and her partner wisely decided to head to the hospital for evaluation.
Not long into the ride to the hospital, Raelin felt the urge to push! So she dialed 911 “I called 911 because I was so scared. They couldn’t understand me between the screams with contractions.” she wrote on Instagram.
Raelin realized she was about to give birth when she felt her son crowning “I pulled my pants off and reached down, sure enough his head was right there.”
Photo: Courtsey of Raelin Scurry Via Instagram
With just one push, her baby boy was born ‘en caul’, completely encased in his amniotic sac! “I pushed one time and my miracle baby was here. When I looked down I realized he was still completely wrapped in the amniotic sac.”
Raelin delivered her 3lb 1oz baby boy herself while dad continued to drive to the hospital “The dispatcher told us to pull over. But I knew we would make it to the hospital before they would make it to us. So I told Ean to keep driving.”
“At first the baby was still and all I could do was pray he would be okay. And then I rubbed his face with my thumb and he pulled his little hands and feet up to his face as if he understood my prayers and wanted to reassure us he was okay” the new mom said.
A few minutes later, they arrived at the hospital.` “About 7 minutes passed that I held this miracle baby in my hands until we made it to the hospital. A familiar face came running out and grabbed my baby. “
“I know he’s going to be an awesome little man,” Raelin writes. “He is truly a miracle baby. We are so blessed to be his parents.”
SEE ALSO: Mom Gives Birth To Two Sets Of Twins In One Year
What is En Caul
An en caul birth occurs when a baby is born inside of the entire of his amniotic sac. The amniotic sac is baby’s home during gestation and it is filled with fluid, cushioning the baby from pressure outside the womb. Often, during labor it ruptures and the fluid rushes out, which is where the term ‘breaking water’ comes from.
An en caul birth is extremely rear and only occur in about 1 in every 80,000 births.
Raelin says she and baby are doing well “He is 4lbs now and off the CPAP mask. Doctors still can not believe how amazing he is doing” she told Pregnancybeyond.com
What an amazing story and a big congratulations to the now-family-of-four!
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“Trust Your Maternal Instincts”: Preeclampsia Survivor Advises Moms.
A first-time mom who survived severe preeclampsia is warning expectant mothers of the importance of trusting their own maternal instincts.
23-year-old Sadiyah Hassan had a very smooth pregnancy until her 30 week checkup appointment where her doctor said to her that she had gained 22lbs since her last visit. He advised Sadiyah to watch her calorie intake.
On the 5th of June, a few days after her doctors appointment, Sadiyah started throwing up thick black liquid, unsure of what next to do, Sadiyah decided to head to the hospital despite discouragement from family and friends “everyone around me tried to talk me out of going to the hospital, they all suggested that throwing up was a normal part pregnancy” she told Pregnancybeyond.com .
On her arrival at the hospital, Sadiyah was admitted for severe preeclampsia , her blood pressure measured 180/100mm.Hg. She was immediately transferred to high unit hospital “I came in for throwing up and all of a sudden everything took a turn, my blood pressure would not go down. I was transferred to a high unit level hospital and was put on magnesium for 5 days straight only being able to eat ice chips!” Sadiyah said.
On the 8th of June, her doctor induced labor and Sadiyah welcomed a son.He weighed 3 pounds 4 ounces, and was rushed to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit where he stayed for 5 weeks until he was able to suck a bottle.
Days after the birth of her son, Sadiyah blood pressure remained high and continued to be high for a long time after. Doctors said she was lucky to have survived and that if she had not come to the hospital at the time she did, both she and her she son would have died.
“This is my first child and by far the most scariest thing that has ever happened to me. I would like to advise mothers-to-be to always check with their doctors and healthcare providers whenever they feel something is not right. My team of doctors told me that if I had not come on at the time I did, both me and my son would have died. I am so glad I trusted my instincts and would want expectant mothers to trust their own instincts – no matter what anyone says”.
Thank you Sadiyah for sharing your story.
RECOMMENDED:- Successful VBAC Tips – How To Prepare For VBAC
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Miracle Twins are Born Two Weeks Apart! A Texas woman miraculously gave birth to a set of twins two weeks apart.
On Jan. 17, LaTroya Woolridge was in her 24th week of pregnancy when she started experiencing excruciating labor pains. Her husband Arthur was out of town, so she drove herself to the Hospital “even though it was my first pregnancy, I knew the pain was not normal. I drove myself to the hospital. I was vomiting.” said LaTroya.
At the hospital, she was told she was in active labor, and minutes later, LaTroya gave birth to Daughter Amara who weighed just 1 pound, 3 ounces.
Doctors were not sure if Amara would survive the birth because they couldn’t detect her heartbeat while she was still in the womb. “When I finally delivered her and saw her feet moving I was filled with joy that she was alive but afraid of what would happen next because she was so tiny,” said Latoya. It was a difficult birth followed by intensive care.
“Twenty-four weeks delivery is more than four months early, and it’s really right on the borderline at where babies will survive,” said Dr. David Weisoly, a neonatologist and medical director for the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Memorial Hermann The Woodlands.
Doctors urged LaTroya to remain on bed rest so she could keep her baby boy in-utero for as long as possible to allow him to grow. According to Dr. Amber Samuel, a maternal-fetal medicine specialist, delayed interval twin delivery is very rare, with the incidence occurring in less than 1 in 1,000 twin births.
On Jan. 31, two weeks to the day after Amara was born, LaTroya had a slight fever so doctors delivered Arthur III via C-section. He weighed just 2 pounds, 2 ounces.
“I didn’t even know that was possible,” she said. “I have heard of Miracle Twins being born on different days because they were a few minutes apart, but I had no idea that it was possible for twins to be born with a significantly different date of birth.” The twin mom said they will be celebrating two separate birthdays in the future.
While in intensive care, the twins continued to gain weight and hit growth milestones. Arthur III got discharged on April 30th, 6 days ahead of their original due date while Amara got discharged on May 5th, 2017 – their original due date.
LaTroya told Pregnancy & Beyond that she is elated to have the twins home “I feel wonderful. Amara and Arthur have brought such joy to our lives. It is a blessing to watch them grow and develop. They are our first children, so we didn’t know exactly what to expect. All we had to go by was the experiences and opinions of others. The first few months have truly been a learning process. Being very organized and sticking to a strict schedule has helped us manage the twins at home. Even in the most challenging times, we are just grateful to have them here. We know this could have turned out to be devastating, but instead, it turned out to be a miraculous blessing. I consider it to be a privilege to be their mom” she said.
Amara turned 6 months on July 17th while Arthur III turned 6 months on July 31.
Thank you LaTroya for sharing your story with us! Follow her babies on Instagram @woolridgetwins
RECOMMENDED: Woman Gives Birth To Twins, 26 Days After Baby No 1
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Adorable Photos of Preemies “Graduating” From The NICU.
After several weeks of fighting for life, these babies are finally being able to leave the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). At the CaroMont Medical Center in Gastonia, North Carolina. Finally, in response to this, a group of NICU nurses decides to throw them an adorable “graduation” party!
- Image: Bella Baby Photography
- Image Source: Bella Baby Photography
- The Image: Bella Baby Photography
It was Melissa Jordan, a neonatal nurse. Who first had the idea to celebrate the babies leaving the hospital in this way. In fact, she was inspired to start the program 6 months ago. When she wanted to do something special for a baby. Particularly, who had been with her in the NICU for 62 days. “We had a baby born at 29 weeks gestation so he was in the NICU for over two months. When he was finally ready to discharge, the family came and brought this onesie that said ‘NICU grad’,” Jordan said. After seeing the onesie, Jordan said she wanted to make the day even more special. So she went home and made a personalized graduation cap out of construction paper.
“The day he got discharged, we gathered staff and we went in singing and dancing and gave him his cap. His parents just smiled ear to ear. That’s when we knew it was something we wanted to keep doing for other families,” Jordan said.
- Image: Bella Baby Photography
So when the newborns are discharged, Jordan and her colleagues honor the babies with a graduation cap. Also, with a special photoshoot. Furthermore, the graduation caps are made of foam sheets, come in a variety of colors. Each with the message, “X days behind me, a whole lifetime in front of me,” with the number of days they spent in the ICU. On the contrary, Bella Baby Photography takes graduation photos for happy parents free of charge. Since the program began, 14 babies have graduated from the NICU — including three sets of twins!
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- Image source: Bella Baby Photography
- The Image source: Bella Baby Photography
- Image source: Bella Baby Photography
- Image source: Bella Baby Photography
- The Image source: Bella Baby Photography
- The Image Source: Bella Baby Photography
- Image source: Bella Baby Photography
- The image source: Bella Baby Photography
Also, read: Emotional Letter – Mom of Triplets Pens To Infertility
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Mom Shares Her Experience With Pre-Eclampsia.
Kehinde Adeyemi had an easy pregnancy – If there is such a thing as the perfect pregnancy I experienced it. She said, “I had a wonderful, no-morning sickness/vomiting /spitting first trimester with so much energy and also no cravings”.
She shares the story of her experience with pre-eclampsia. A medical condition that is characterized by an abnormally high amount of protein in the urine of a pregnant woman. Also, the sudden onset of high blood pressure in a pregnant woman. Who prior to pregnancy had normal blood pressure).
My husband and I had just been married a few months when we found out we were pregnant. At 29 weeks gestation, I was gaining a significant amount of weight with swollen feet, swollen face, and palms. I thought nothing of it. My husband kept saying it was pregnancy-related.
My feet would swell at the end of each day. I was told that once I finished work and put my feet up then the swelling would ease. This was not the case, I continued to swell and the weight kept piling on.
My eyesight was constantly blurred, and I also kept seeing flashing lights in front of my eyes. I had constant headaches and my whole body felt swollen. My wedding rings were stuck.
I was experiencing symptoms of pre-eclampsia but didn’t understand that they were symptoms.
At my 30 weeks appointment, ultrasounds revealed that the baby was measuring behind by a couple of weeks. The sonographer said it was nothing to worry about. Silly me, I went to the store and got every available fat yogurt and went about my business. I thought eating fatty food would increase her size. I was so wrong.
One lovely Friday I was in my office, in pain, and my feet literally gave up on me. It was hurting so bad a colleague forced me to A&E. I was really reluctant even though I worked at the hospital.
Eventually, routine checks were carried out. Found out my blood pressure spiked at 184/104 190/116 with spilling protein in my urine.
I saw trouble written in HD on the doctor’s face. He turned to me saying you “You are lucky to be alive. You could have slumped”. I just sat there, staring at her in confusion – trying to make sense of high blood pressure and the Pre-eclampsia I was diagnosed with.
I did a quick mental calculation at all the symptoms: from constant headaches to swollen palms and feet. How did everyone think it was normal?
I was admitted to the hospital. The goal was to keep me on bed rest. Under constant supervision to keep the baby baking as long as possible. To combat the pre-eclampsia, nurses hooked me up to constant fetal monitoring.
Also as a precaution, they gave me steroid injections to prepare the baby’s lungs for early delivery. My blood pressure was skyrocketing. So my medical team was left with no choice but to plan an emergency cesarean.
On the 20th January 2016 at 13:15 pm, Dade, my little fighter was born weighing 1.7kg about 3 pounds at 34weeks+2days. I got to see her for a millisecond before she was whisked away to the Special Care Baby Unit.
She fought her way through 2 weeks in SCBU. God came through for us.
My near-death experience made me realize that a mom’s biggest advocate needs to be herself. My advice would be if your instinct says something isn’t right then trust it. If you aren’t happy with the answers or responses then challenge it.
Frequent consultation with the doctor will go a long way in taking care of a pregnant woman’s pre-eclampsia. Close monitoring could be the most important key in handling the condition.
If you’re pregnant and you’re not feeling well, don’t be afraid to call or consult your doctor. What you think is “normal” may actually already be a symptom of something else.”
Dade at 6 months
Also Read: My Bump Style: Simple and Energetic- Nifesimi
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