The American Joni Reikenmayer and her husband Chris Skyne experienced a real shock.
At 19 weeks pregnant, Joni learned that her little one was at risk of becoming disabled due to a serious spinal condition.
Future parents had two options for the development of events: either leave everything as it is, or accept a dangerous operation for the little one.
They chose the latter, and it led to unintended consequences.
Before Joni and Chris learned the terrible news, they were planning a party on the reveal of the sex of the unborn child.
Such events are very popular in the United States. After the holidays, the future parents went to the doctor to do an ultrasound.
They were sure that their little one was perfectly healthy. However, at the doctor’s appointment, the unexpected happened.
The doctor told the couple the terrible news – a pathology of the spine was discovered in the kid, due to which the kid’s brain and spinal cord were affected.
Due to the splitting of the vertebrae, the little one developed a “brain herniation” (a part of the brain that protrudes outward and is filled with fluid).
This pathology leads to complete paralysis of the legs, dysfunction of the intestines, kidneys and bladder.
The parents did not want to believe in a terrible diagnosis and turned to other centers.
But even there, doctors confirmed the presence of a dangerous pathology in the crumbs.
A decision had to be made urgently on which the fate of the little one depended.
Joni and Chris didn’t think long – they agreed on a complex operation.
Doctors had to remove the baby from the woman’s womb, remove the hernia, pump the excess fluid from the brain and spinal cord, and then remove the spinal defect.
After these events, the 19-week-old baby had to be placed back in the womb.
The main risk was that the woman had an 80% chance of having a premature delivery.
Moreover, the surgeons had never performed such operations in their center, so they did not have enough experience.
Despite all the risks, the operation took place.
There were 32 specialists in the operating room!
The little one, who weighed only 500 grams, was removed from all pathologies and placed back in the uterus.
Shortly after, the mother-to-be had contractions, which the doctors managed to stop.
The little one “re-roots” itself in the uterus and continues its development.
The baby was born a second time by Caesarean section.
The delivery took place 10 weeks after a complex operation.
All the while, her mother, Joni, was forced to lie in one position – on her back.
But for the sake of her beloved little one, Joni was ready to endure more than that.
