Member Profiles
TONYA
Well, let me tell you Mollie's story....
Mollie Jacalyn Haskins blessed us on Monday, August 8th at 12:18 p.m. I had a
scheduled c-section. She was 6 pounds, 9 ounces and 19 inches long. With a
c-section, I only saw her briefly and did not get to hold her. They were
immediately concerned with her color and her breathing, so they took her to the
ICU. Tom also did not get to hold her. After several tests, and putting her on
oxygen, it was evident they could not help her, not knowing exactly what was
wrong, and decided she needed to go to the Health Park in Ft. Myers. Around
10:00 p.m. the ambulance came for her. Of course, I was unable to go with her,
so I stayed and Tom went. They continued to run more tests, did x-rays, and had
to put her on a ventilator. By 4:00 a.m. the doctors were not discovering what
was wrong and knew she had to be sent to a place that could really help her.
They called Tampa Children's Hospital, but it was full. They did an
echocardiogram that supposedly found nothing wrong with her heart. At 10:00 a.m.
it was decided she would go to Miami Children's Hospital. By that point, my
doctor had come to see me and I asked to be discharged. Tom waited in Fort Myers
until the life flight helicopter came for Mollie. We were on the road by 3:00
p.m. heading over to be with her, still not knowing what was wrong. In route, we
received a call from the hospital stating our daughter would need emergency
heart surgery and they needed our consent over the phone. I completely lost it!
We did make it there in time to see her before she went in for her 6 hour
procedure. Her condition was called Total Anomalous Pulmonary Venous Return. The
veins from the heart to the left lung were not there. They were in a different
location and needed to be redirected. The surgery went very smoothly, and by
2:00 a.m. we were able to see Mollie. Her chest was still open, due to swelling.
Of course, it was covered. Although the surgery itself was a complete success,
it was up to Mollie and her little body if she was going to accept what theyhad
done. By Friday her chest was closed. Up until then her little body showed no
signs of movement. She was completely sedated and was given medication to
paralyze her. Once her chest was closed, they slowly began to wean her off of
everything. The paralyzation medication was the first to go. We slowly saw
little flutters of her hands and feet, and eventually her little eyes were
opening. She was still on complete life support at this point. Each day she made
progress. There were some minor set backs, all due to the surgery she underwent.
But for the most part, each day was a better day. We anticipated being in Miami
about a month. The hospital has housing which we were able to get into after the
first night. It was within 2 blocks of the hospital and security provided
transportation. That first Sunday Tom and I drove home to re-pack and get some
additional things for our stay. We also got to spend a little time with Noah and
Tom’s older boys. We had a harder time leaving Noah than he had letting us go.
Tom’s mom stayed at our house with Noah during the time we were gone. That next
week was amazing. The doctors were surprised by Mollie’s progress. Each day she
improved more than any of us could imagine. Once she was completely off lifer
support and breathing on her own, feeding was the big obstacle to overcome.
Since she had not fed at all since birth, this could have been pretty major. Our
little girl was unbelievable! She began feeding from the bottle, and each
feeding she increased her intake. She was being tube fed also to make sure she
was getting enough. By the next Friday I was breastfeeding! We were so thrilled.
That afternoon there was discussion that we would be going home soon. We thought
by the middle of the next week. To our surprise we were leaving our temporary
Miami home for our home in Naples on Saturday, August 20th. We have been to the
pediatrician and cardiologist since coming home, and they are both very pleased
with Mollie and her progress. She should have a normal life. Her major pulmonary
arteries are very small, and this is something we need to be aware of for the
future. There is a chance of other procedures down the road. But for now, we
just need to watch for changes in feeding, and that she is not working really
hard to feed, and that her breathing does not get really deep and fast. She has
been getting the synagis vaccine every month, which helps to prevent the RSV
virus. She is eight months old now and is happy and healthy. Unless you see her
scars, you would never know what she went through. This has truly been a life
changing experience for all of us. Things like this do not happen to us! Our
daughter is a miracle!
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