A baby girl who made her arrival into the world early was able to finally go home after spending more than 100 days in the hospital. The preemie faced many challenges after she was born, including sepsis and another infection, but the baby girl was a fighter and overcame all obstacles that came her way.
In June of 2018, Chrissie Fegan, 32, and her husband, Jonny Kirkham, 37, began in vitro fertilization after qualifying for one round through the National Health Service. One month later, Fegan became pregnant and later found out it was a baby boy. Tragically, the baby boy, who they named Ethan, did not make it. About a year later, Fegan became pregnant naturally with their rainbow baby. Before Ethan, the couple had been told due to Fegan’s low egg count and Jonny’s low sperm count, their chances of having a child naturally were slim. According to Manchester Evening News, they were surprised when Fegan became pregnant, and she first knew she was expecting when she noticed a change in her sense of smell. With Ethan, Fegan’s cervix opened, and it happened again with their rainbow baby they would later name Evie. When Fegan was 20 weeks pregnant, they found out they were having a baby girl. But nearly two weeks later, Fegan’s water broke.
When she was 12 weeks pregnant, she had a stitch put in to help her cervix from opening. However, the stitch was opening again, and she was advised to have it removed. She told doctors she wanted to wait, out of fear they would experience another tragic loss. But on December 23, 2019, Fegan was in so much pain from the stitch pulling on her cervix that she had it removed, and 30 minutes later, the couple’s daughter made her entrance into the world. Evie weighed just a little over one pound and was born when Fegan was 22 weeks pregnant. Doctors told the couple they had never seen a baby born that early and under 500 grams survive, but Fegan said their little girl would prove them wrong. That is exactly what baby Evie did. During her stay in the hospital after her birth, she battled sepsis and group B strep bacterial infection. Not to mention, the COVID-19 pandemic just a few short months later. According to PressReader, in May, 141 days after she was born, Evie was finally able to go home.
Fegan and Kirkham say their baby girl is a fighter and now thriving. Fegan believes her daughter is living proof that babies born early can survive and later thrive in life if they are given a chance.
Sources: Manchester Evening News, PressReader