Meet Our Mom: Kayley A

My name is Kayley A. and I gave birth to my daughter in September at AdventHealth Celebration. My pregnancy was scary and nerve-wracking but also filled with faith and love.

From 12 weeks to 21 weeks I had a complete placenta previa which was diagnosed after a heavy bleeding episode at 12 weeks. I was followed by a maternal-fetal medicine doctor who at my 20-week ultrasound had a gut feeling that she should recheck my cervical length again a couple of weeks later to make sure everything remained stable. At 22 weeks, I went in for a recheck and my cervical length was drastically shorter. I was sent directly to AdventHealth Celebration for an emergency cerclage. This was a scary moment – having surgery to try and prevent our baby from being born early while also facing the risk of delivering early if there were any complications from the surgery. I spent 13 weeks on bedrest before delivering our beautiful baby girl. The OB/GYN who delivered our daughter was absolutely incredible throughout my entire pregnancy making sure our entire family was informed and loved through the precious weeks of our eventful pregnancy. Thanks to the incredible care my family and I received every step of our pregnancy journey, we were able to deliver our second daughter, a happy healthy baby girl at 35 weeks gestation weighing 5lbs 10oz. Our first daughter is 5 years old and was born at 33 weeks which required a 1 month stay in the NICU. We have experienced the emotional roller coaster of the NICU journey, but we were surrounded by truly skilled and caring nurses and doctors, so our newest addition did not need to enter the NICU world! Delivering at a baby-friendly hospital sounded like a wonderful idea on paper but being able to experience having our little baby skin-to-skin immediately after birth and to have her remain there until she breastfed for the first time was an experience like no other. This bonding time was such a reward after weeks of worry during the pregnancy. Being blessed with being able to take our new baby home from the hospital with us at the same time I was discharged will always be one of the most emotional days of my life.

I give all credit to God, and the incredible doctors and nurses at Celebration, for our baby girl being here today. They are truly angels on Earth. They loved and prayed for our family for months and are true examples of extending the healing ministry of Christ. We didn’t just receive medical care – we received love, compassion and prayers that I will be forever grateful for!

I wish I could just shout my gratitude from the rooftops and wish every woman expecting a baby could experience the amazing love that the team has to offer.