Child's Birth Year
2023

State/Province/Territory
North Carolina

NICU Hospital for my journey
Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center

My NICU Graduate's Journey
Lylah was born at 33 weeks due to her placenta working in reverse. As well as my body failing to be able to care for her due to HELP Syndrome. She spent about a month in the NICU. She struggled with her feeds. It took a while before she was able to come off the feeding tube. While in there the doctors notice a strange mark on her face and neck. They originally thought it was buising however it never started to fade. Lylah also had a lot of holes in her heart. The nurses would always talk about how at the time Lylah was one of the smallest babies but she was also the loudest in the whole NICU. They were so impressed by her voice. And the fact that she barely cried. She was such a happy baby. My girl's NICU journey was short to compared to others but it has left a lastly impact on our family.

What makes you proud of you NICU graduate?
Lylah is extremely strong and resilient! She has a genetic condition that cause the veins in her neck and face to never stop growing, venous malformation! They even wrap around her trachea. Lylah has to take a chemotherapy drug daily as well as an appetite stimulate because she doesn't like to eat. Lylah has also failed her hearing test recently. But regardless of all this, Lylah pushes through. She has such a big personality and nothing seems to slow her down. I am so proud to be her mom!

Weight at Birth (lbs. or Grams)
3 lbs

Weeks Gestation
33 Weeks

Time spent in the NICU (Specify Number of Days, Months, or Years)
29 Days