PEYTON FRANCISCO
Born at 33 Weeks
My name is Ted Francisco. I'd like to share a brief story about my experience in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit with my son Peyton at Hoag Hospital.Peyton is our miracle baby. In 2001, my wife Kristin and I discovered we were having twins. like many couples, we needed the support of a fertility specialists to get pregnant. Kristin was underweight with a poor health history. Her pregnancy was fraught with challenges. At 22 weeks, she started to experience Braxton Hicks contractions. We were very worried about extreme premature birth. During our weekly fetal monitoring we discovered that the kids’ renal systems were not developing normally. So, we spent the next weeks scouring the Internet for information to try and calm our nerves. Unfortunately, we were not successful, and we were basket cases.
At 33 three weeks, we had begun daily fetal monitoring. One of the nurses was concerned that the heart beats of the Twins were elevated and had difficulty seeing any amniotic fluid. She called in a specialist. The specialist never arrived. Instead, our OB-GYN who had been on vacation called me to tell me that they would be taking the kids that day. WHAT DID THAT MEAN? We were unprepared. We contacted family and waited. What we did not know at the time was that Kristin had already been in labor. At 5:45 that evening, doctor Gross, our OB-GYN walked by me with a happy wave to me said, “ Hi Ted see you in there.” And the next thing I knew I was sitting beside Kristin who was having an emergency C-section. With two preemie Twins the operating room was filled with doctors and nurses.The first baby to come was Emerson, our daughter. She came out screaming like a cat who is ready for a fight. Two minutes later, our son Peyton came. There were no sounds. One nurse held Emerson up to us, it seemed like any other newborn. The silence from Payton was deafening. We could hear the doctors and nurses speaking with urgency. A doctor waved him by us we didn't have time to look at him. A nurse told me they're taking the kids to the NICU. I told my wife I would check on the kids. And so, I was taken to the waiting room outside the NICU. Where I waited for what seemed to be a lifetime. When I was allowed in the doctor on staff said, “Emerson is what we call a grower. She's doing just fine she'll just need to learn to suck on her own and grow.” Peyton, on the other hand was on a ventilator. I touched his foot and the nurse asked not to touch him. They did not want him to be agitated. Can you imagine what it is like waiting 30 years to have a child, and not be able to touch them?
Over the course of the next week Emerson patiently took to feeding and grew. Peyton got worse and worse with each day. The doctors told us his lungs had not fully developed and that they couldn't tell if he would have permanent damage. He was in very serious condition. We were not able to touch him or hold him. Each day, Kristen and I would go in to feed Emerson and look at Peyton on his respirator.
A woman named nurse Barb was our salvation. She always had an upbeat attitude. She was very compassionate. And we knew that no matter what the day would bring, we would get a hug before we left. I think most people find when they go into a situation like this, there is one person who becomes their anchor. That was Nurse Barb.
We became amateur doctors. Again, we scoured the Internet for answers. And every time we did our heart sank more and more. Each day, when we came into the NICU, an X Ray would be posted above Peyton’s incubator. A daily shot of his lungs. The doctor showed us the dark spots represented fluid which made it difficult for him to breathe and dropped his pulse ox. As the days progressed the dark spots grew.
After six days of his declining condition, the doctor took us aside, and said “I'm not sure how much more we will be able to help him. I want you to prepare yourself.” We left that evening thinking that we would only have one child. We stayed up all night and cried . The next morning, we went to Hoag hospital expecting to say goodbye to our newborn son. I looked at the X-ray above him and the lungs were clear. I asked nurse Barb, “whose are those?”
“They are my little Peyton’s!”
There is no way to put in words the feeling that we had when we heard those simple words. “They are my little Peyton’s.” Unless someone has gone through the experience I don't think they can truly appreciate how important a team in the NICU can be. I think God blessed us that day. 18 years later my son who was a day away from leaving this world, is now an engineering major with a bright bright future.
Our Twins were in the NICU for three weeks. We had an overwhelming joy when one day we came in and the doctors and nurse Barb decided to put the Twins together in one bassinet. She said they feel so much more comfortable being together. After 18 years, nurse Barb continues to send us a Christmas card with a note that says how happy she was to be a part of their lives. I don't know she will ever realize how truly important she was.
Cooper giddy
Born at 35 Weeks
Cooper Giddy was born at 35 weeks to Lauren and Jason Giddy. After her pregnancy got off to a good start, Lauren experienced early contractions at only 26 weeks. Because of the early contractions, Lauren had to have a procedure called Shirodkar Cerclage. In an effort to avoid an extremely premature birth, Lauren remained in the hospital for 7 weeks. At 35 weeks pregnant, her contractions were too severe to sustain her pregnancy. The Doctors rushed into the room, and Lauren was taken to a c-section within 20 minutes. Cooper was born weighing 5 pounds and is currently in the NICU in South Africa. In South Africa, the Doctors refer to the NICU as a 'womb with a view' - where the babies continue to grow in a safe environment, just outside the womb. Cooper has been responding well and is slowly growing and developing every day. Lauren and Jason look forward to bringing their baby boy home as soon as possible!
