Hi, my name is jazzmine im 20 years old. I have a 4 month old daughter, her name in nathaliya and she is my first baby. We found out our baby girl was going to be born with gastroschisis 2 days before i gave birth. We were crushed, how could this be! I had a normal pregnancy with all normal ultrasounds. Not until i went into labor was it detected. My world was upside down. Unlike most parents we didnt have the time to look into it or find out what we had to look forward to and what it would take to fix our baby girl. Intestines and stomach out, she was ready to meet the world. She was a easy labor born feb 17 2012 at 10:47 am just 3 pushes, she was beautiful 4lbs 15oz 18in long. The doctors slipped her lower body in a bag to keep her organs moist and then rushed her to the nicu she was in respatory distress. I didnt see her again until around 3:00 that afternoon. And i never cried more in my life all i kept thinking was why me why my baby? But thats the worst thing i could of done to myself. They had put her stomach back in and placed a silo bag with her intestines hanging from her bed. She looked so hurt with all her ivs and on the ventalator. All she could do was frown. Tubes, wires , machines everywhere! You cant truly be prepered for it until you see it and face it. Our baby had her surgery to close her when was just shy of 4 days old they also put in a broviac a central line to give meds and draw blood without having to poke her. She didnt come off the ventalater until another 2 weeks. I spent that day alone at the hospital with her i will never forget walking in saying hello to my new family the nicu nurses. Then walking over to my angel putting down my jacket and pulling over my chair, i sit and look at my little girl and shes blowing bubbles and enjoying it. I jumped up and said shes off the vent why didnt u say so when i walked in the nurses laugh. Joy filled my heart it was 1 step further. Then it was time to hold her for the first time one the happiest moments i had in that nicu. I sat holding her looking at her and she layed watching me back. She then sortly falls asleep in my arms but i couldnt find it in me to put her down. I couldnt feel my butt at all and my legs were asleep but it felt so right. Our battle continued the next step was eating. She was on TPN (pure nutrition) and lipids (fat) to help her grow and give everything she needed to survive. We tried to feed her for the first time about 3 days later she was a little over 3 weeks old the nurse took out her repogal and put in a feeding tube. Only 5ccs..... but she failed to tolerate it she puked breast milk and green fluids everywhere. One step at a time the doctors said, we will try again when she shows shes ready for now lets just put he repugal back and wait. The next to days they pull back nothing from it instead she starts pooping it out. yes! the doctors are ready to try again. Only 5ccs. it worked her boby did what it was suppose to in one end and out the other i never thought i would be so happy to see and smell poop lol. We slowly go up on her food cc by cc some she was even taking the bottle when we got to 15ccs we had a set back some how she got an infection. The next day she cried for 12 hours in pain and burning up with a fever. We stopped all feeds and began antibiotics to stop the infection. After a week she was all clear and ready to start all over with eating we had to start back at 5 ccs. She took with no problem then all of a sudden she didnt want to take it from the bottle. she had developed really bad reflux. The dotor started her on omeprazol and continued to feed and increase by tube. Over the next month we battle to get her to the amount of food she was supose to take for her size. When we get there she is 2 months old before they tried bottle feeding they wanted to change her fomula from pergestamil a already broken down formula thats easy on the belly to regular infamil 22 cal instead of the regular 20cal to help her grow. They watch her close to make sure she tolerates and give the okay a week later to start trying the bottle she was then 2 and a half months. It was bad she now had a really bad nipple adversion. She didnt want anything in her mouth at all. i had to fight with her to take it she did but not the whole thing. She had to take 90ccs she would only nipple 60ccs and gavosh the rest. i spent the next week making sure i was there for every feed day and night. She ate the best for me. Then one day she takes the whole bottle then again the whole bottle the nurse took out the feeding tube to then give her no choice she kept it up. 3 days later i was told i would be taking her home, mothers day was the may 13th we took our baby girl home may 15th 2 days before she turned 3 months. She spent 87 day in the nicu at Maria Fareri Childrens Hospital in vahalla new york.thanks to the ronald McDonald foundation i was able to stay there with my baby being that i live far from the hospital they gave me a private room with my own bathroom and shower 2 full size bed and a flat screen on the wall, the house also had a kitchen to cook and a laundry room for me to wash mine and my babys clothes it was amazing and all free of charge i was just a short walk through the parking lot away from my daughter. she is now a happy 4 month old who loves to stand and jump shes only 11lb 2oz now small for her age but not to small being everything she went through. Shes happy and healthy with no further medical problems. Her history will awlays be what it is gastroschisis! The only difference between her and me is she has a little scar thats made to look like a belly button she does not have a normal belly button. I hope our story give you some inside as what to look forward to. Every case is diffrent but as long as you stay by your baby side the little fighter will pull through anything with mommys love and support. HELP MAKE A DIFFRENCE IN ANOTHER BABIES LIFE.

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