Meet The Wolniewicz Twins
Natalie and Lauren were born on November 22, 2017 at 24 weeks gestation. They were born 16 weeks premature, as compared to a full term baby. The girls were a part of a natural triplet pregnancy. We lost one of the babies early on, causing a possible disruption in the pregnancy, eventually leading to preterm labor.
When a baby is born before the third trimester there are a multitude of things that can affect them. They were unable to receive the antibodies from me as a mother because they were born before my body was able to transfer them. They were also unable to breath on their own for months as their lungs were not yet developed. They also suffered from ROP, PDA, CLD, RSV, SIP, pneumonia, multiple infections and many other scary issues.
Lauren underwent surgery at five days old and again when she was two months old for a double surgery. While out of the NICU she underwent anesthesia twice more for an MRI as well as surgery to put in a feeding tube as she was aspirating (another complication of preterm birth in conjunction with a complication of a prior surgery).
While we in no way wanted the John R. Oishei Children’s Hospital to become a home, it has in so many ways. Not only did we spend five months in the NICU, but we have spent multiple nights in the hospital on other floors for various reasons. We also visit often for follow-up appointments for both girls. The nurses in the NICU became such essential members of our family that we would not have been able to survive mentally without them, we still keep in touch with them. We also follow many of the same doctors of various specialties that we saw in the NICU. It is incredible to know that each doctor has spent such a significant amount of time with our daughters and can continue to be a part of our story 17 months later!
Today, the girls still struggle with many different problems that were caused by prematurity. Although each day is a learning experience for all of us, we know that prematurity will not define them. They are showing us how strong they are each and every day by the way the laugh, giggle or meet a new milestone. We also know and can attest to the fact that our situation is very lucky compared to many others that were born as early as our girls. We have Oishei Hospital, the nurses, doctors, as well as our families, to thank for that!
– Natalie, Lauren, Julie and Ray Wolniewicz
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