fetomaternal transfusion

[Baby Nyla's mommy]

Assalamwalaikum,

My Husband and I found out in march '09 that we would be expecting our
first child. He had been constantly begging me to have a baby until I
finally gave in and we were able to concieve very soon after
allhamdulliah. My pregnancy was a seemingly normal and healthy one.
The doctor said I was doing well and the baby was growing normally and
was healthy. I was still working throughout my pregnancy and one
night at work (8 months pregnant) I noticed that my baby was not
kicking at all. In the morning when I was done work I went to see my
doctor early as my husband and I were concerned that our once hyper
baby did not move at all. Even up until that point the doctor told me
I was gaining weight on track, and the baby was measuring well.

Once I told the doctor that the baby didn't move I was sent for a non-
stress test at the hospital. The result showed that the baby's
heartrate was non-reassuring and I was then sent for an ultrasound.
They did the ultrasound for what seemed like an hour as they could not
get the baby to move, but the heartbeat was still there. They had me
drink and eat sugary things but nothing worked. I was then sent back
to the L & D unit and was given an emergency c-section to get the baby
out.


Our baby Nyla was born Oct 5th '09. She was pale white as she had
lost almost all of her blood. The doctor told us that her blood had
been flowing back into my bloodstream (called fetomaternal
transfusion). Even the doctors did not know how this happend. She had
a hemoglobin of 22 (normal 140-160) was given blood transfusions and
had to be rushed to Sick Kids Hospital. I was left to recover at the
hospital with my husband at my side while our baby was at a completely
different hospital and we had no idea what would happen to our little
Nyla.

After my discharge from the hospital, we went over to the hospital to
see her. She was in the NICU and was on life support. She could not
move, cry, or even swallow. She was a beautiful baby and you wouldn't
believe there was anything wrong with her to look at her. We were so
happy just to see her, and would cry not knowing what would happen to
her. We prayed to Allah and hoped for the best as we knew Allah would
do what is best for all of us. The baby's organs were damaged due to
her massive amount of blood loss but the doctors said those would
improve but the question remained as to the condition of her brain.

We had family and friends praying for her and we all hoped to hear
that her little brain was ok. However, the MRI results showed that
she had the worst possible brain injury because of the massive amount
of blood she lost while she was in the womb. My husband and I then
had to decide to take her off the respirator as she would not be able
to do anything for herself if she were to live. We did not want our
baby to suffer and on a Friday afternoon we removed the breathing tube
and Nyla managed to live allhamdullilah for 2 days longer. She lived
for 6 days, passed away on Oct 11th '09. We are blessed that we got
to hold her and take many pictures of her while she was alive and were
even able to let our family and friends meet her for the short time
she was here.

We still miss her as it was so sudden and unexpected but Allah knows
best and we are happy that she is in Jannah and inshallah will bring
us there too. We still hold on to the hope that one day inshallah we
will be blessed with another child.

May Allah swt bless all those who have lost a child with the strength
to move forward and have more children in the future inshallah.

[Suehila Smith]

wa alaikumu salaam wa rahmatullah,

Jazakumallahu khayran sister for sharing your story with us, you loss is so recent.. What a brave and difficult decision you made when you decided to take baby Nyla off of respitory support. I remember when doctors told us that they could intubate our daughter Ruqiya, and "turn the numbers around" (numbers related to impending respiratory failure). Little Ruqiya's heart had enlarged so much that it stretched across her rib cage (so I like to tell people she had a big heart :) We had a very difficult decision to make. Ruqiya, when she was ill was always pink and fighting. This time, the last time, she was pale, and limp. She wasn't fighting anymore. When I lifted her head, on her bed with her, next to her, she had no tone. It was as if her body was there, but she was headed somewhere else and leaving this world behind.

We decided not to intubate her, but the most difficult decision was to remove the oxygen. The pulmonologist told us that he would stand by in case she became agitated, which occurs sometimes when oxygen is removed from a person even when they are dying. I held her in my arms, and put my trust in Allaah and realized that if she were meant to  live, a couple liters of oxygen would not make the difference between life and death. Her time had been decided. I held her and I rocked her and talked to her until she took her last breath. I told her I would never ever forget her. 

I am happy to hear that you feel blessed; I pray that your knowing this to be true will carry you through the difficult times ahead.

Please keep us posted, let us know how you are doing. Your loss is so recent, and as you said, very sudden. Inna lillaahi wa inna ilayhi raaji'oon. May Allaah swt give you comfort in His promise of Jannah for continuing to worship and praise Him in spite of your loss.

Alhamdulillah for baby Nyla :)

[Baby Nyla's mommy]

Walaikum assalam,

Thank you for sharing your story also. You and your husband are very
strong mashallah. It was the hardest decision my husband and I had to
make, especially after seeing our beautiful baby. I remember I felt
like I was in a dream after the Drs told me Nyla's condition and that
I would be losing my baby. I am just beginning to come to terms with
everything that has happend. I too was able to hold Nyla as she took
her last breaths. It is something that I will never forget. I was
always scared to leave her alone in the hospital because I did not
want her to die without my husband and I by her side. Going home
without Nyla was very hard as we spent the whole pregnancy imagining
the day she would come home and be with us. My husband and I are
coping well so far allhamdullilah. I do not think we would be coping
as well if we did not have all the support from family and friends as
well as our belief in Allah swt. We still miss Nyla a lot and it is
very difficult at times when we think of her or look at her pictures,
but in time it will become easier inshallah.

Jazakallah for your kind words :)

> > to move forward and have more children in the future inshallah.- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -