5 years ago I gave birth to two baby girls, one that weighed 1Lb 6oz, and the 1Lb 9oz. What I remember most about this experience is that I knew in my heart giving birth at 25 weeks was way too early! I had no signs or symptoms that would have led me to believe that I would be bringing my girls into this world almost 4 1/2 months before they were ready.
I remember going to my 3rd doctors appointment and being told I was going to be admitted into the hospital after my ultra sound was complete. I was in shock, and demanded answers, but my doctor could not give me much, but to tell me my cervix had shrank since my last appointment two weeks ago.
After coming to the realization that I would soon be delivering my twin girls any day, I contacted my husband, and he met me at the hospital. I was set up on a floor that was for at risk pregnant women, all I can remember were the awful pale walls, and a room that was the size of a restroom stall. I was monitored often by the doctors and nurses for the first two days, by the third day I asked my nurse to check me because I was feeling pressure. My nurse hooked up the very unnecessary monitors to track the babies heart beats and movements, I think say that because I was so early the belts rolled completely off of me and the poor little Twinkies were not found.
After convincing the nurse that I was feeling pressure she agreed to send in the doctors, by that night, I was in labor about to give birth to my micro-twins.
When I look back at the experience, I cry, but I cry tears of joy knowing that my sweet baby girls survived after one twin having 3 brain surgeries and heart surgery and the other twin having heart surgery. Having a premature birth is definitely not expected and as a parent who has never experienced this process it can be extremely scary and confusing.
As with any extreme birth emergency, it was explained to my husband and I the risk of children born premature:
- Learning delays.
- Physical delays
- Speech delays
- possible ADHD
Makenzie the smaller of the two went through speech therapy at the age of 3 that lasted about 6 months, Destinee had 6 months of physical development to loosen her gait in her legs at the age of 1. My girls are now 5 years old and have beat the odds of many children born extreme premature.
I decided to look into child development in West Africa. I found that 130 million children are at risk due to malnutrition, AIDS, and lack of medical resources. Although the mortality rate is decreasing, children are dying before the age of 1 from failure to thrive,Socioeconomic status, poverty, over crowding, in adequate food supply, and disease play a huge part.
web.worldbank.org
I am not sure if I can really relate my experience to the severity in Africa, however I do know that children that are born healthy have a right to medical, food, safe environments, and healthy living conditions, as a healthy mother carrying twins I could not choose when my children would be born, nor could I predict their outcome.
Destinee.....
