Love, Cam

“Dear NICU Mama, When I look back on 2021, I see a woman who defines perseverance. Your journey wasn’t what you planned or prepared for - how could you? Being pregnant is such an exciting time, you didn’t imagine in your wildest dreams that your experience would end any other way than bringing your baby home full-term with no exceptions. Until you find yourself staring at your baby… the cords… the monitors. It feels unusual. It feels uncomfortable. It feels unfair... I get it.

The start of your journey may have been traumatic and painful and you may not have had time to process it. Suddenly you found yourself surrounded by loud machines and unfamiliar faces, all using medical terminology you had never heard before. And yet, you showed up. You sat at your baby’s bedside, asked questions, and trusted each new face to help you become your baby’s expert. You may have felt overwhelmed, emotional, and exhausted the first few days or weeks in this new world, but you overcame it.

You may have compared your story to those of your NICU neighbors and the many people who reached out to share their experiences. You watched mothers and babies join your family in the NICU after you, and then discharge before you. You bargained with the “if/thens” until you recognized the many inconsistencies in your journeys and accepted that your story is immensely unique. With this new acceptance, you embodied purpose and passion that layers the scars of your journey.

Your outlook changed; you became tenacious and determined. You shaped and shifted until you found yourself thriving in this new world. Suddenly every obstacle you were met with became not a delay, but an important contribution to your baby’s success along their journey to home. The moments that felt like setbacks came with the incredible realization that you were watching your baby do things in the outside world that they were never meant to do.

Through the trauma and uncertainty, you’ve found courage to celebrate every small win. Through this journey, you found fierce strength to accept uniqueness. You are brave. You overcame adversity. You succeeded.”

Love,
Cam

More of Cam + Archer’s NICU Journey:

“Our story began at 19 weeks + 6 days, when I was hospitalized with PPROM. We were given the option to terminate, being told that there was a 50% chance I would start labour within 48 hours and Archer wouldn’t survive. After a couple trips to a Level 3 hospital 2 hours away, Archer & I were passing our tests without anything indicating that my water had broken.

Unfortunately, I began leaking fluid daily and at 23+3 they had confidently diagnosed the premature rupture. I uprooted to the hospital 2 hours away from home, where I was admitted for proximity to care.

At 25+1, I developed chorioamnionitis and (literally) within minutes, was in the operating room listening to Archer take his first breaths! Archer was born on November 2, 2021 by emergency c-section, weighing 1 lb 14 oz. How incredible that my body was able to hold onto him for so many extra weeks! 

We are currently on day 63 of our NICU journey and Archer continues to amaze us. He required heavy respiratory support through a Jet Ventilator his first weeks of life and was extubated at 27+6. At 30 weeks, we were able to safely transfer to a hospital closer to home to ride out the remainder of our NICU journey. We are starting the New Year at 34 weeks with Archer making the move from CPAP to oxygen flow so that he can start feeding orally. We are also new in the process of exploring treatment options for his ROP diagnosis due to the prematurity and amount of oxygen he required. Archer is determined, feisty, and independent - he has come a long way from 19+6! We are so proud of him.”