| Acknowledgments |
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xv | |
| Foreword |
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xvii | |
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| Introduction |
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xxiii | |
| Prologue |
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xxv | |
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| 23 WEEKS' GESTATION |
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Infertility: A Nine-Year Journey for Samuel |
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1 | (10) |
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Susan-Adelle Wilshire Warren |
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Samuel was born at 1 pound 8 ounces when his mother went into preterm labor |
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His parents had endured infertility treatments and miscarriages for more than nine years |
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While Samuel has some speech delays and swallowing problems, he is rapidly improving and is a happy two and-a-half-year-old |
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11 | (14) |
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At 1 pound 5 ounces Anna entered the world early due to fetal growth retardation |
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While it is still too early to tell if Anna will have longterm developmental obstacles, at two and a half years old she appreciates life more than most |
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No one who knows Anna's story would bet against her |
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| 24 WEEKS' GESTATION |
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Austin and Ashli's Story: The World of Prematurity |
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25 | (15) |
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Now four years old, Austin and Ashli beat the odds to survive premature labor, surgeries, and low birth weight |
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Austin was 1 pound 8 ounces and Ashli was 1 pound 4 ounces at birth |
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Both children were less than 13 inches long. They taught their parents that ``prematurity is a world you never know exists unless life takes you there.'' |
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40 | (17) |
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After a miscarriage, Bo was conceived |
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He frightened his mother when she began to abort him spontaneously due to an antibody disorder |
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Bo proved he was a miracle by growing from 1 pound 3 ounces and 8 inches long to being the light of his parents' life at one year old |
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| 25 WEEKS' GESTATION |
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Baby Boy King: Tommy's Story |
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57 | (17) |
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Tommy was born early due to his mother's placental abruption |
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While only 1 pound 6 ounces at birth, he is now a four-and-a-half-year-old success story who inspired his father to start the first Internet preemie Web site |
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| 26 WEEKS' GESTATION |
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A 1977 Miracle: Sara's Will to Live |
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74 | (17) |
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Now a twenty-one-year-old college student, no one would know Sara was only 1 pound 15 ounces at birth due to her mother's incompetent cervix |
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Sara truly is a miracle, for she was born before advances in neonatalogy and thus was given no chance of life |
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Marilyn's Diary: Fifty-Nine Days in the NICU |
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91 | (17) |
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Many parents find chronicling their NICU experience in a diary to be cathartic |
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Marilyn's NICU stay is the story of a 2-pound 3-ounce baby who survives preterm labor, apneas, and feeding challenges to finally go home six weeks before her due date |
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The Little Battler: Trace's Story |
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108 | (13) |
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Entering the world at 1 pound 7 ounces due to his mother's serious battle with HELLP syndrome, Trace has continuously beaten the odds |
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He is now one year old and has some minor delays in grossmotor skills, speech, and fine-motor skills |
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Trace's parents can't believe they have been so blessed and cannot imagine their lives without him |
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| 27 WEEKS' GESTATION |
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Guarded by Angels . . . Forever an Angel |
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121 | (2) |
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Orvin Bakken entered this world in 1921 weighing 1 pound 4 ounces |
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Relying on instinct and prayer, his mother nurtured and cared for him at home in rural Iowa without the assistance of an NICU |
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Megan: Our Sweet Baby Girl |
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123 | (10) |
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After preterm labor and sixty-three days in the Special Care Nursery, Megan is a very lucky preemie who did not suffer any of the serious problems that preemies are prone to |
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She was 2 pounds 8 ounces at birth |
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133 | (1) |
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| 28 WEEKS' GESTATION |
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Feelings of a Preemie Parent |
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134 | (3) |
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The father of a preemie born three months early expresses the shock, disappointment, and anger often experienced by parents of preemies |
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Her Grandfather Angel Was Watching: Senia's Story |
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137 | (9) |
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When a seemingly perfect pregnancy came to an abrupt end due to HELLP syndrome, Senia had to fight for her life |
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Starting at 1 pound 15 ounces, Senia came home on the one-year anniversary of her late grandfather's death-a sign that life is precious |
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At two years old, Senia continues to be proof of the value of life |
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Our Lives Are Changed Forever: Sarah's Lessons |
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146 | (7) |
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One miscarriage, an autoimmune disorder, HELLP syndrome, and intrauterine growth retardation made Sarah's chances at life bleak |
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Once a 1 pound 12 ounce baby, she is now a healthy two-year-old who has given her parents an experience that has changed them forever |
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| 29 WEEKS' GESTATION |
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Brayden: The Story of a Fighter |
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153 | (7) |
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Only 2 pounds 15 ounces at birth, Brayden continues every day to fight for a quality life |
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At ten months old his cerebral palsy, cortical blindness, bradycardias, and oral defensiveness don't hinder his perseverance and strength |
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Ryan's Story: A Life Full of Miracles |
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160 | (10) |
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The stress of losing her father to cancer took its toll on Robin, and preterm labor brought Ryan into the world early |
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During the last two and a half years he has been through mulitple surgeries and pneumonia, but he has made it and is doing well |
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Ryan is proof that one should never give up hope |
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| 31 WEEKS' GESTATION |
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Our Little Pickle: Griffin's Story |
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170 | (8) |
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Griffin surprised everyone when he weighed in at 5 pounds, although nine weeks premature due to placenta previa |
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He surprised everyone again by going home after only twenty days in the hospital-a short stay for such an early baby |
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At two years old Griffin is still full of surprises and has his parents wrapped around his tiny finger |
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Lessons from a Child: Noah's Story |
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178 | (22) |
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At four years old Noah is truly a miracle |
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After his mother developed HELLP syndrome, Noah entered the world early at 3 pounds 10 ounces |
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Many of Noah's challenges stemmed from VACTERLS syndrome, birth defects not related to prematurity but exacerbated by it Noah's mother was told many times that he would die, but she never gave up on him and learned how precious life is and what a blessing children are |
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| 32 WEEKS' GESTATION |
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200 | (14) |
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PROM (premature rupture of membranes) is the cause for Dustin entering this world on a wing and a prayer |
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He amazed everyone by weighing in at 5 pounds 7.5 ounces |
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His serious battle for life began when he was thirteen days old and quit breathing in his grandmother's arms |
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After several bouts of apnea, bradycardia, and respiratory syncytial virus, he is now a cheerful, healthy six-year-old |
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214 | (12) |
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Due to a placental abruption brought on by pregnancy-induced hypertension, Mitchie entered the world eight weeks early, screaming his lungs out at 3 pounds 2.5 ounces |
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Mitchie survived one of the most dreaded preemie complications, necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), and is now a happy, healthy four-year-old |
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| 33 WEEKS' GESTATION |
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Fight for Life: Brayden's Story |
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226 | (8) |
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Rh incompatibility was thought to be the primary cause of Brayden's early arrival until the doctors performed a C-section and discovered the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck |
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After fighting and winning two life-threatening battles, Brayden is now an energetic, healthy eighteen-month-old |
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| 35 WEEKS' GESTATION |
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234 | (11) |
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Gestational diabetes contributed to the premature delivery of Aidan at 4 pounds 9 ounces |
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Once he learned to eat well, he went home and has no lasting evidence of his prematurity |
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| 36 WEEKS' GESTATION |
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Unconditional Love: Zak's Story |
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245 | (16) |
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When an amniocentesis revealed a rare chromosomal disorder, the Edenses were advised by numerous doctors to terminate the pregnancy |
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They refused, knowing they would love their child regardless of the outcome |
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A miracle in every way possible, Zak (Chigger) is now five years old and excited about starting kindergarten |
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| Glossary of Common Terms of Prematurity |
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261 | (11) |
| Resources on Prematurity |
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272 | (10) |
| About the Editors |
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282 | (2) |
| About the Contributors |
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284 | |
Other versions by this Author