Mother's good-bye saves her baby! (absolutely amazing story - with photos)

Salesians ^ | August 27, 2009 | Padre Steve

[NYer]

This is a miracle and an amazing story! Thanks to the milk of human kindness on this one:

When Carolyn Isbister put her 20oz baby on her chest for a cuddle, she thought that it would be the only chance she would ever have to hold her.

Doctors had told the parents that baby Rachel only had only minutes to live because her heart was beating once every ten seconds and she was not breathing.

Isbister remembers:

I didn’t want her to die being cold. So I lifted her out of her blanket and put her against my skin to warm her up. Her feet were so cold.

It was the only cuddle I was going to have with her, so I wanted to remember the moment.” Then something remarkable happened. The warmth of her mother’s skin kick started Rachael’s heart into beating properly, which allowed her to take little breaths of her own.

We couldn’t believe it – and neither could the doctors. She let out a tiny cry.

The doctors came in and said there was still no hope – but I wasn’t letting go of her. We had her blessed by the hospital chaplain, and waited for her to slip away. But she still hung on.

And then amazingly the pink color began to return to her cheeks. She literally was turning from gray to pink before our eyes, and she began to warm up too.

The sad part is that when the baby was born, doctors took one look at her and said ‘no’.

They didn’t even try to help her with her breathing as they said it would just prolong her dying. Everyone just gave up on her,” her mom remembered.

At 24 weeks a womb infection had led to her premature labor and birth and Isbister (who also has two children Samuel, 10, and Kirsten, 8 ) said, “We were terrified we were going to lose her. I had suffered three miscarriages before, so we didn’t think there was much hope.” When Rachael was born she was grey and lifeless.

Ian Laing, a consultant neonatologist at the hospital, said: “All the signs were that the little one was not going to make it and we took the decision to let mum have a cuddle as it was all we could do.

Two hours later the wee thing was crying. This is indeed a miracle baby and I have seen nothing like it in my 27 years of practice. I have not the slightest doubt that mother’s love saved her daughter.”

Rachael was moved onto a ventilator where she continued to make steady progress and was tube and syringe fed her mother’s pumped breastmilk.

Isbister said, “The doctors said that she had proved she was a fighter and that she now deserved some intensive care as there was some hope. She had done it all on her own – without any medical intervention or drugs. She had clung on to life – and it was all because of that cuddle. It had warmed up her body and regulated her heart and breathing enough for her to start fighting.

At 5 weeks she was taken off the ventilator and began breastfeeding on her own. At four months Rachel went home with her parents, weighing 8lbs – the same as any other healthy newborn. Because Rachel had suffered from a lack of oxygen doctors said there was a high risk of damage to her brain. But a scan showed no evidence of any problems and today Rachel is on par with her peers.

Rachel’s mom tells us, “She is doing so well. When we brought her home, the doctors told us that she was a remarkable little girl. And most of all, she just loves her cuddles. She will sleep for hours, just curled into my chest. It was that first cuddle which saved her life – and I’m just so glad I trusted my instinct and picked her up when I did. Otherwise she wouldn’t be here today.”

When a parent holds their baby on their chest, skin-to-skin, it is referred to as Kangaroo Mother Care.

The benefits for all babies of KMC are that they stabilize faster with skin-to-skin care than in an incubator (very few stabilize in an incubator well during the first six hours of life). KMC babies also have stable oxygen rates and breathing thanks to the steady regulation of Mother’s respiration. The heart rate is stable (mother’s heartbeat regulates baby’s heartbeat). The temperature is most stable on the mother – in skin-to-skin care mothers chest automatically warms to warm a cold baby, and mothers core temperature drops if her baby has a temperature.

Sleeping within an arm’s reach of baby (as long as a parent does not smoke) also regulates all of his physiological needs in the same way ~ they are kept steady thanks to Mom’s warm, even-paced body. We lose far fewer babies to prematurity, irregularity of breathing or heartbeat after birth, and SIDS all with the natural help of skin-to-skin holding, or Kangaroo Care.

Read More About skin-to-skin benefits for ALL babies (full term and premature) here: kangaroomothercare.com

[bvw]

That makes sense.

[whiterhino]

Instincts are the best, I am the father of two girls and until 6 months of age, I would rock them in a bassinet by my bed and/or hold them until they went asleep. Both children slept soundly at 1 month of age.

Now they are teens and I spend all the time I can doing the things they want to do with them but not spoiling them with things.

They will be grown and gone soon enough...

[TASMANIANRED]

Neonates have a problem with thermo-regulation.

A premi even more so.

God’s plan is marvelous.

[pillut48]

Kudos from a fellow ‘Sarah’s Mom’! :*)

[married21]

It’s a very new occurrence in society to dump your newborn in another room. To me it was terrifying and no way would I let it happen.
_____________
Yeah. Welcome to the world. Now, go lie there alone for a couple hours.

I was so upset by that when I saw it on the hospital tour that I made my husband promise to stay with the baby wherever they took her, until they brought her back to my room. He did that with both our kids, bringing a magazine, stroking the baby in the crib during that “observation period” or whatever it was, and reading to the baby.

I also appreciate the attachment parenting comments by other people on this thread.

[tiki]

My babies slept either on my chest or my husband’s until they were about 6 months old.

[STARWISE]

PING!

[STARWISE]

~Ding!

[DollyCali]

wow.. what an upper in the already world of downers lately.

Thanks for the ping STARWISE - a remarkable story of love

[netmilsmom]

I don’t understand why the concept of keeping your baby with you is so hard.

I saw moms who have the babies in another room, put the child in a carrier and a stroller whenever possible. They would then tick at me because I couldn’t breastfeed. It was “bonding time” and so lovely.

Well the only time I didn’t have a baby on me WAS feeding time! They were constantly on my hip.

[fatima]

Thanks STARWISE.

[snugs]

Thanks for the ping Star

[pollywog]

But the doctor was thinking, "This preemie was going to cost us a whole lot of money, but now a lawsuit might cost a whole lot more..."

You are SO right!! This is a heartwarming story of a couragous mom, but a very DISTURBING story of a heartless, thug of a doctor!!!!!!!

[fortunecookie]

A beautiful heartwarming story, thanks for posting. All new moms should be encouraged to do this.

[fortunecookie]

Have you seen this one? Heartwarming.

[tnlibertarian]

Thanks for the ping. With our 30 ouncer, the NICU encouraged the kangaroo care. They didn't want us to do it for long stretches, but it was wonderful being able to get him out of the incubator. I never did it myself, letting Mom have the bonding time, but the nurses said that in places with limited incubators, they used kangaroo care in place of incubators.

For weeks after we brought him home, he would only sleep on someone's chest. I suppose he had had enough alone time, not that we minded. We still often take naps that way, although at 20+ lbs. he doesn't fit as well as he used to.

[fortunecookie]

It's wonderful when the NICU encourages kangaroo care. How special for him, bonding and warming with mom. And now both of you.

For weeks after we brought him home, he would only sleep on someone's chest. I suppose he had had enough alone time, not that we minded.

I'm smiling thinking of him nestled like that. They grow so quickly!

[wagglebee]

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[wagglebee]

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[Albion Wilde]

beautiful baby bump!