A tiny, premature baby boy, born at only 25 weeks and weighing less than 2lbs, has finally left the hospital after 135 days.
Baby Levi was born at only 25 weeks and six days’ gestation after his mother, Taytum, was diagnosed with a subchorionic haemorrhage, which occurs when blood collects between the uterine wall and the fetus’s amniotic sac.
While doctors initially expected this haemorrhage to resolve itself by the second trimester, it continued to grow and a second haemorrhage developed, increasing the likelihood that Taytum would experience a preterm labour.
Taytum went into early labour, but her placenta abruptly separated from the uterus, requiring an emergency caesarean section.
Nick, Levi’s father, could not believe how quickly the baby was born after Taytum went into labour, saying, “I just saw a baby and had no idea. I couldn’t imagine that they got him out that fast”.
Taytum was taken into surgery to stop the bleeding, while her newborn baby was brought to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and intubated.
“I was in shock from seeing my wife go under and meeting my son for the first time all within 30 minutes”, Nick said.
Baby Levi would remain in the NICU for the next 135 days, with both parents visiting their son separately and together at various times throughout each day.
“The first day we left the hospital and left him there was a really weird empty feeling”, Levi’s father revealed, adding, “You feel guilty for leaving him. He’s so innocent, you wanna help him, but there’s nothing you can really do”.
After spending such a long time in the NICU, Taytum recalled that the doctors and nurses now “know us better than our family and friends”.
“They’ve seen us at this level that no one else ever has”, she said.
Life in the NICU is “a rollercoaster”, baby’s family says
The first months of baby Levi’s life were not plain sailing. He experienced several complications while in the NICU, including bradycardia, a slower-than-normal heartbeat, which required additional monitoring periods.
Nick said “The NICU, you’ll hear, it’s kind of cliché at this point, but everyone says there’s ups and downs, it’s a roller coaster”.
“We found […] it’s even more of a rollercoaster. It can change hour to hour”, he said.
Taytum’s goal was for her baby boy to be home with her for Mother’s Day, revealing that she felt like the family “missed out on so many holidays and just spent them in the walls of the hospital”.
Eventually, after over four months in hospital, Levi was able to go home, and it was Mother’s Day the very next day; Taytum described the day as “amazing”.
Now, baby Levi is growing well at home, marking a distinct milestone in his development. Previously, the baby boy was barely registering on the growth chart, but has recently reached the third percentile.
Spokesperson for Right To Life UK, Catherine Robinson, said “Baby Levi’s story shows the true strength of all premature infants, and his development is a testament to the dedication of his family, and all the doctors and nurses who cared for him”.
“We hope the family continues to enjoy their time together at home”.
