Surprise, it's baby Isaac!
“Honestly, we thought it was COVID — turns out I was pregnant,” said Dianne Collins.
After months of lingering COVID-19 symptoms — fatigue, foggy brained, nothing tasted right — a friend suggested that Dianne take a pregnancy test. What a surprise the test result brought, and once doctor appointments began, the surprises kept rolling in.
“Within 48 hours we learned I was not 7 weeks along but 15 weeks along, and at the same time, we found out we were having a boy,” Dianne said. “We were shocked.”
With the first trimester completed, Dianne's pregnancy flew by smoothly, and soon it was time to meet their little one at Alaska Regional Hospital.
“Once Bryce cut the cord, the nurses put the baby on me for maybe two seconds. He wasn't making any noise, and to be honest, I didn't know anything was wrong as he was my first baby. The nurses quickly swooped him from my chest and took him to a little station, where they began working on him. Finally, he made a noise,” Dianne said. “I didn't realize it at the time, but he hadn't been breathing and needed to be resuscitated.”
Isaac went to the NICU for a breathing boost; he ended up needing significant help. Isaac couldn't breathe correctly when laying on his back, and the NICU doctors and nurses noticed his underdeveloped and recessed chin, difficulty swallowing and inability to latch or eat — all signs of Pierre Robin Sequence.
Pierre Robin Sequence forms during a sequence of events in the womb. The rare, congenital condition requires special care and attention, as infants struggle breathing and have higher chance of liquids going into the airway during feedings.
Isaac spent 30 days in the NICU at Alaska Regional Hospital, trying to strengthen his sucking, swallowing and breathing patterns. He received care from respiratory therapists, speech therapists and cardiologists, doctors and nurses. During that month, Dianne rarely left the hospital.
“The NICU is a rollercoaster. Some days feel great, and the next day may feel horrific. Thankfully, the nurses are there. Those NICU nurses are angels,” Dianne said. “They can tell when you need a break. They know what they're doing, and they give one-on-one care as they're doing it. Most importantly, they truly love your baby!”
After Isaac's month in the NICU, he received a feeding tube to allow him to go home with his family. Now, at 11 months old, Isaac continues to grow, get stronger, and Dianne & Bryce recently started introducing solid foods into his diet.
“Isaac is my cute, happy, rarely fussy baby. I think he's so tough because he's been through so much,” Dianne said. “We still have a ton of appointments with specialists, but that's just the NICU baby life. And though it felt like our time in the NICU was so long, now time is going by too fast. To the NICU parents of today, know this: It gets better. It really does.”