The Miracle of Aaron

For five and half years, my husband and I tried to get pregnant. Finally, in June of 2010, we received the good news that we were expecting a baby on February 20, 2011. The pregnancy was picture perfect and I felt great. On November 29, 2010, I started experiencing some bleeding and paid a visit to my doctor. Apparently, I was starting to show signs of labor and was immediately admitted to the hospital and was put on bed rest and instructed to be “boring” for the next 12 weeks. The doctor administered the steroid shots to assist in the baby’s lung development, just in case.

Four days later on December 3, I began having what felt like gas pains. My doctor told me to keep an eye on them and let her know if anything changed. We even put the monitor on me to check for contractions with no results, so I settled in for an evening of TV with my husband. A few hours later the pains became worse and after a quick check by a nurse, it was discovered that I was indeed in labor with no chance of stopping it. The doctors and nurses moved very quickly to prepare me for a cesarean section since we knew the baby was in a breech position. At 1:13 am on December 4, 2010, our son Aaron was delivered at a gestational age of 28 weeks and 5 days, weighing 3 pounds and 2 ounces. We were so blessed that he was able to breathe on his own and never required a ventilator. The doctors worked on him for a while in the delivery room making sure that he was stable. Two amazing things happened during that time. I heard him cry, so I knew he was a fighter and when the doctor carried him over to see me, he gripped my finger with an amazing strength for such a tiny baby. My husband and I knew we had a long road ahead of us and no idea what was going to happen.



Over the next 48 hours, we tried to quickly become very educated in Aaron’s condition and care. We asked every question and spent as much time as possible with him. It was difficult because he was hooked up to so many machines and we couldn’t even pick him up and get him out of the isolette by ourselves. My maternal instinct was to hold my baby constantly and comfort him, but I knew rest was the best thing I could give him. I treasured the moments when I could “kangaroo” with him. This involved laying him on my chest, providing skin-to-skin contact. It has been shown that a mother’s body will keep her baby warm enough and the contact provided an amazing bond. We would lay there for 1-2 hours at a time, usually at night. Nighttime in the NICU is much calmer and quieter than the day. We kangarooed every day for 7 weeks while Aaron was in the NICU. My husband and I even fought over who would get to change diapers just to have the opportunity to help him. Those first few weeks were exhausting. I was recovering from surgery and trying to provide breastmilk to this little being. We made 4-5 trips to the hospital every day to take milk and just to spend time with him. It never felt right being at home without him. The nurses and doctors encourage parents to go home and get rest, but every time I went home all I wanted to do was turn around and go right back to Aaron.



After 4 weeks, Aaron was stable enough to move out of the isolette and move into his own room where we could stay with him 24 hours a day and provide the majority of his care. We immediately moved in with him. For the next 3 weeks I lived at the hospital. I learned how to give Aaron baths and dress him and administer medicines. Our biggest hurdle was getting him to take bottles instead of relying on the feeding tube. One day, he pulled his feeding tube out and thankfully his nurse refused to put another one in. Over the next week he became very good at eating and telling us when he was hungry. Once we got over that hurdle, we were finally able to take him home on January 26, 2010. Aaron did have to have an apnea monitor for the first month at home and he was on medication for reflux. Other than that, he was extremely healthy and growing. He was around 6 pounds when we left the hospital.



Our NICU is a special place. Luckily, in our case it was a place for miracles. We had more good days than bad days. We had an amazing team of doctors and nurses and I still miss some of those nurses. They not only take wonderful care of the babies, but they take care of the parents too. Having a baby in the NICU is extremely emotional. I was happy to finally meet Aaron, but in constant concern about his health and his future. I wanted to be able to walk into his room at home and see him laying in his crib, but I had to drive 20 minutes to see him and then walk down a long hallway and ride up an elevator. I was trying to pump breastmilk, but my body was not responding. Every time the doctors increased Aaron’s feeding, I was happy for him, but concerned that I wouldn’t be able to produce enough. When he started taking bottles, it hurt because I was not at the hospital for his first bottle, a nurse gave it to him. For 4 weeks, I had to walk out of that hospital every night and leave my baby behind. On Christmas Day, my husband and I spent the entire day sitting by Aaron’s bed in the NICU. Our experience changed our lives and our priorities. Aaron is our miracle baby and we appreciate every moment we have with him.

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Stephanie Allison lives in Fairview, NC with her best friend and husband of 10 years, Nathan. They have one son, Aaron, and two cats. She is staying busy as a full-time mom and working part-time for a real estate firm. She enjoys taking Aaron for long walks outside and reading.

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