Previous Challenge Entry (Level 1 – Beginner)
Topic: Inner Strength (04/20/06)
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TITLE: Extra Blessing | Previous Challenge Entry
By Beth Bullington
04/25/06 -
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Ten days earlier Kylie had been born. The birth had not been celebrated for long before our joy turned to uncertainty. She was moved to NICU as her breathing was shallow. There they began to various tests. One of the first things they discovered was that she had duodenal atresia; she was lacking a hole between the stomach and small intestine.
She was just three days old. She was still so tiny, but she needed this surgery. We sat and waited and waited. We did not want to go too far from the waiting room for fear that they would call us while we were gone. Finally, the surgeon came out; in Chinese he told us she was fine and then explained what he had done.
We continued to wait. Now we were waiting to feed her. We had to wait a week to make sure that she had healed. Wednesday was six days. We were excited we were just hours away from being able to feed her. That morning when we went to the hospital for visiting hours, the doctor told us he needed to talk with us. He felt that Kylie had heart problems. We talked with the pediatric cardiologist and signed the paperwork for a heart catheterization to be done the next day.
After a long day in the waiting room, we were heading home. We were tired and wanted to rest. Within a few minutes of leaving the hospital, however, we received a call. The hospital wanted us to come back. My husband went while I rested at home.
After resting, I went back to the hospital. There he sat in the same waiting room. The look on his face told me that things were not good.
We went up to the NICU. There we stood looking at the tiny baby in the incubator with tubes going in and out. She had no color. I couldn’t bear to look at her. This was not the same baby that I had held the night before. What was happening? How could we go on?
As we were ready to leave that evening, Dr. Mu looked me in the eyes and said in English, “go home, prepare yourself.” I looked at her and replied, “she is in God’s hands”. My husband and I held onto each other as we left the NICU. We collapsed into each other’s arms crying. We had been in touch with my parents since Kylie was born. A phone call to my dad started them in a rush to get tickets. The next phone call was between tears as I called our friend, Elinda. All I had to say was, “please come” and within 45 minutes she and her husband were there. They cried with us, held us and prayed with us.
We left the hospital, unsure of what would happen that night, but knowing that God was in control. Early the next morning we found out Kylie had made it through the night.
We went to the hospital that morning and met with the surgeon. He was aware of the problems and he was willing to do surgery on Monday.
It was a long weekend with much of the time spent in the hospital. At times I would just breakdown and cry and wonder what God was doing. At those times my husband would have the strength to remind me of who God is and that he is still in control. At times my husband would be the one crying and I would be the one reminding him.
My parents traveled halfway around the world unsure of what would happen. Monday morning found us again in that same waiting room. There we sat, waiting while Dr. Lu operated on her heart. Her aorta was so constricted that the blood flow to her legs was almost cut off. We waited. Finally, Dr. Lu said “everything is okay.”
God, who gave us the strength in the NICU, is the same God who continues to give us strength to face each day of raising a child with Down Syndrome.
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