Bubble Note #87

Theo Walker Galster, Born Nov 23, 2016 View this email in your browser Welcome Theo If you don't have Facebook, you probably don't know that I'm no longer pregnant. It's a long story and I will try my best to summarize.  Around November 11 we discovered that I had pregnancy-induced high blood pressure. This can be dangerous both for mom and baby as it can destroy mom's organs but also cause fewer nutrients and oxygen to be transferred to the baby. Little did we know that both of these would happen. I was put on medication and transferred to OB's care.  4 weeks between photos  A week later my blood pressure spiked again and we returned to the hospital once again. This time I did not leave. We managed to mostly get my blood pressure under control but found out that our little boy Theo was not growing, most likely due to the blood pressure issues. It would only be a matter of time before he was delivered. Though we had the incredibly difficult decisions of choosing to wait so he could grow bigger (and possibly die in utero because of the lack of oxygen) or deliver now and he may not live because he was to small and to early. We decided to wait. This was a time of incredible prayer and support.  On November 22, after a weekend pass which we spent at my parents place, we returned to the hospital. I was not feeling well at all, and we soon learned that I had developed pre-eclampsia and HELLP syndrome. My kidneys and liver were beginning to fail and my platelets were dropping quickly. It was a matter of time before I would go into kidney or liver failure. We had to deliver Theo as this is the only treatment of HELLP syndrome. So on November 23, 2015 at 26 weeks gestation (14 weeks early) weighing in at 1lb2oz (515g) Theo Walker Galster was born.  Teeny Tiny Theo The first several weeks of his life were very difficult, both for us and for him. We learned that he had had a brain bleed in utero which has an 85-100% chance of manifesting as cerebral palsy. He also had a heart murmur which was fixed through medication and required brain surgery all within the first 4 weeks of his life. The first couple of days were very touch and go- but we are so thankful that God has allowed our little boy to not only live, but thrive.    Now at just over 8 weeks old Theo is 3.5lbs and growing daily. He has progressed so far and is now able to breathe on his own, regulate his own temperate, and is beginning to feed orally instead of via a tube. His original due date was Feb 26, and we are hoping he will be able to come home from the hospital around that time.    We have had a crazy last 10 weeks, and I have wanted to write an update for so long, but have been to busy and tired to do so. We have felt incredibly blessed by so many surrounding us and prayers have kept us afloat.    It will still be a long road with Theo, but we feel so prepared to do so.  Copyright © 2016 Beth Galster, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you LOVE reading about Beth+Andrew and what they are doing in life. And because anything to do with bubbles makes anyone happy. Our mailing address is: Beth Galster Box 540 Bragg Creek, AB T0L0K0 Canada Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list