By Buffie McElwee, Cedartown,GA United States
PROM at 19 weeksDelivery at 29 weeks + 1 days.
Story added: 2002-08-24
I was hesitant to add my story at
first because it doesn't have a happy
ending but I thought I owed it to all
the wonderful prom queens who were
there for me during my hard months of
bed rest.I found out I was pregnant
last year around christmas and we were
tickled.We already had 2 girls and we
were hoping for a boy.I had also had 2
miscarrages at 12 weeks.One before
each of my girls.I was worried to
begin with because it seem I lose one
to have one.Things were okay till 12
weeks and then I started bleeding and
I just knew I was gonna lose this baby
too.But we went to the hospital and I
stopped bleeding and they said the
baby was just fine.We were so happy
but we decided just to be safe I would
stop working so I did.At 17 weeks we
had a ultrasound and evertything
looked great and we were having a
BOY.We were thrilled to say the
least.But a 19 weeks I woke up in the
middle of the night in a puddle of
water.So off to the hospital we
went.They checked me woth a strip and
said it wasn't my water and then they
got some of the fluid on a slide to
check under a microscope and it said
it was not my water either but then
they done another u/s and they saw I
only had a little over 2 cm of
fluid,they sent me home and made me a
doctor appointment for the next day
and told me nothing.So the next day I
go to the OB ad they tell call the
Peri in Atlanta and tell me I have a
10% chance of the baby living to it's
viable.And most women lose there
babies in 24 hours to two weeks.I was
told it would be a miracle if my baby
made it.I was sent home and told to
stay in bed and drink water.So I did.I
went to see the Peri and my water was
at 7 cm went I went there and they
gave the baby a 95% chance so we were
not so worried but then when I went to
my regular OB it would e like at 2 or
3 cm.I was hoping that the machine was
wrong.And my regular ob keep saying if
I made it to when te baby was viable
it woul be a miracle.I stayed in bed
and developed gestational diabetes and
took several shots a day.At 25 weeks I
started bleeding .It was pink because
it was mixed with the fluid I rebuilt
and lost daily.I was but in hospital
for a week and then I was only
spotting and again I was sent
home.That happened 2 times.I finally
went home and decided I was not gonna
go ack to the hospital till I went in
labor.I bled for those 4 weeks before
I went in labor and no one knew why.As
it turned out my placenta was coming
loose but they could not see it on the
ultra sounds.A 29 weeks I went in to
labor and at May 17 at 11:03 my baby
was born.I was rushed in and put too
sleeo and they took him.As soon as I
woke up the doctors came in and told
me my baby was very sick and would
never make it to the hospial that he
needed to go to.It was a hour and half
away .They said they needed to turn
off the machine keeping him alive but
I said no.And he made it to the big
hospital and was put on a osculator
for very sick babies and was not
expected to live 24 hous.We had not
named him yet because we was gonna
name him after his fater and we didn't
want to do that if he was not gonna
make it.When he was 2 days old we
named him TIGER WAYNE.Because he was
such a fighter.If I would have lost
him then I doubt I would have made
it.Tiger stayed on the osculator for 9
days and then was moved to a regular
ventilator.He was making progress
every day.At 2 weeks they heard a
heart murmer and he got really sick
and had to go back on the osculator
and he was put on nitric oxide to
enhance his oxygen.He had to have
surgery to fix a duct in this heart
that should have closed at birth,We
were told he would most likley not
make it.And if he did he would get
worse before he got better.Well he
went thru the surgery great his vitals
remained stable and the surgeons told
me and my husband Tiger was gonna be a
mean one when he grew up because of
how his stats all stayed the
same.Tiger started getting better
immediatly.The was took of the
osculator and put back on a regular
vent that day.No one could believe how
good he done and how quick he got
better.Tiger just got better everyday
and they tod me he would come home
around his due date July 30th.After he
was on the ventfor over 28 dys he got
chronic lung disease as expected but
he coninuted to improve and was put on
a Cpap machine where he had to do all
his own breathing even though he has a
septic infection.He done great that
first day but the second day he got
sick and should have been took off and
put back on the vent but they made him
stay on it knowing he was stuggling
and breathing 110 times a minute (we
breathe 15 times a minute).Actually
our favorite nurse came on and
demanded the doctors remove him and
out him back on the vent.When he as
put back on the vent he had colasped a
lung and requied the max settings.We
were told it would be best to let him
passaway but we said no.He got a
little bit better because he was
paralized and got to rest.We asked the
doctor if they still thought he needed
to be took off and let go and they
said no.After a week he was took off
the paralizing drug and off the
morphine drip and he started looking
around and he would smile.He got off
all IV's and was on just formula.Even
though his setting had not been able
to go down everyone thought he was
getting better.Because he was so alert
and he had a bad leak in his tube so
they thought if they fixed his leak he
would be better.They changed his tube
and his setting did go down a little
and we really believed he was gonna
make it.Every one at the hospital
loved him and were pulling for him.To
look at Tigr all you seen was a
beautiful baby.He looked healthy
except for the tube going in this
mouth.On August 1st we seen him and
then decided to come home.I called to
check on him before I went to sleep
and the nurse said he was okay and he
was just chilling and looking
around,so I went to sleep thinking
Tiger was fine.At 7:30 the next
morning the nurse called and said his
heart had quit beating and they had
worked on him for an hour to get him
back and we needed to cme right then
and hold him.We lived 2 hours away.I
had only got to hold him like 4 times
and that was on his good days so I
knew she was saying he was dying.We
were in shock we thougt he was gonna
be okay.When we got to the hospital
about 3 nurses and 3 doctors were with
him .He was on the highest settings
and his oxygen level was only at
50%.He was gray.He was asleep because
after they brought him back he was
awake and looking around as sick as he
was.The doctors said they could keep
him alive for a little while.They had
some experemintal things thay could
try but it would only prolong his
suffering.The x ray of his lung were
awful.So we decided to let him go be
wih jesus.My husband held him as they
took out the tube because I
couldn't.He only breated a few times
and he was gone.This has been really
hard on me and my husband we loved him
so much and we had been there with him
for this 11 weeks of life.I know he is
in a beter place and I would not bring
him back like he was to watch him
suffer again.I am glad he passed away
with us there instead of in the middle
of the night with someone pounding on
his chest.None of the doctors know why
I started bleeding at 12 weeks but
they thing when it happened it
weakened my membrains and that was why
I lost all my water.I have only one
thing to say to anyone who may go thru
this.If your baby is took off the vent
and put on Cpap and if struggling like
Tiger was make them put the baby back
on the vent.It may take several tries
to get off a vent don't give up.But
don't let them keep your baby on if he
is visably suffering to breathe.I was
so happy he was off that vent and
making progress I didn't realize how
bad he was strugglimg at thetime only
now do I realize.Noone told me he was
not supouse to breath that fast.I
thought it was okay.Don't get me wrong
I do not feel Tiger's death was in any
way my fault.He is in heaven and I
guess that is where heshould be.He got
his miracle just not here.To see Tiger
yo can go to his web page at
www.babiesonline.com/babies/l/littletig
er. If any one has
any quesions or just needs to talk
email me anytime. Buffie