Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
Hayleigh: We found out on New Year's Eve that we were pregnant with Ruby, which was exciting
We had some fertility issues with my first so she was a
surprise and it was really happy
because we didn't think they were going to be able to have any other kids. Pregnancy
was harder than my first. I was sick a lot.
But other than that, totally normal. She was born on September 8.
Totally normal. Normal birth.
Normal weight. Normal everything.
They heard a little bit of a heart murmur at the hospital but
thought that it was just a heart murmur and that they would follow up at
her to two-week appointment.
and when they transferred us, they had put her on IV and wanted her here for
observation just because she was a little bit dehydrated.
Dr. Raff: Within a very short period of time in the ICU, it was clear that there was more
going on than just dehydration.
The main pumping chamber of her heart was really not working very well.
We got her on ventricular support called ECMO very quickly.
She had evidence of multi-system organ dysfunction
early on and we felt
very strongly that if we didn't do something to relieve
the pressure on the left ventricle that she would not
get better.
Hayleigh: First of all, they told us that surgery was going to take six hours and they called us up there
what like
two and a half, and told us it was done and we couldn't believe it.
And then we get really nervous because it was like, "Why is it finished, you know?
LIke did something happen?
And they said, "No, everything had gone really well." I couldn't figure out
how bringing her in for vomiting and
being a little bit lethargic ... what steps there were
to get her on life support 12 hours later.
It was so overwhelming initially and it was terrifying
those first few days because
I mean those were some dark days for us and really
tested us because we didn't know if she was going to make it to the next day and
she didn't even look like a baby. She was so swollen from all the fluids
they had to give her and she's hooked up
to just a million machines. When we got here, there's were all these pumps
and lines and lines and lines that are hooked up to her and just looks unreal
It looked like something out of a sci-fi movie.
Aaron: The after the surgery was just amazing
We knew that we still had a long road to go and this was just the first hurdle
on the road to recovery and the doctors really believed, "Hey, if she made it through this, she can get better."
Hayleigh: Now to see her acting like a real baby. She's
eating like a real baby and making eye contact and laughing. She laughed for the first time two nights ago.
Aaron: They have been amazing people. I really appreciate the fact that the doctors
not only take care of our child but they ask, "Do you have any questions?"
They encourage us to listen in on rounds and ask any questions that we have.
They explain everything in
layman's terms and tell us what's going on
so we're with them every step of the way, which is fantastic.
And they give us the rationale behind why they're doing something
So it's not, "We're doing this" and they're walking away.
They tell us what's going on and they communicate so well
with the nurses and with us.
The nursing staff here have been outstanding. I don't think we would be this
together if it wasn't for them, to be honest. And if it wasn't
for everybody here. They're so outstanding.
I have not met a person that I didn't
love immediately. They've taken care of us
every single step of the way. We could not have asked for a better place.