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“I thought my baby was gone… more than once.”
Apia, 30, will never forget the day she felt water trickle unexpectedly at just 25 weeks pregnant. Alarmed, she rushed to a nearby health facility, where a scan revealed dangerously low amniotic fluid. She was referred to the hospital for further management—and that’s where her world almost fell apart.
After being reviewed by several doctors, one advised her to terminate the pregnancy. “The baby is too small,” they said. “It can’t survive.”
But Apia, scared but hopeful, chose to hold on. A cesarean section was performed, and her tiny baby—just 800 grams—was delivered and immediately rushed to the neonatal unit. The following day, Apia joined her baby in the unit. The nurses gently placed the baby on her chest, encouraging her to keep the baby warm with skin-to-skin contact. But then—suddenly—the baby stopped breathing.
“I lost all my strength. I thought, ‘This is it. My baby is gone.’” But the nurse quickly removed the baby from her chest and began resuscitation. “To my joy, the baby started breathing again.”
Yet even with that miracle, hope felt so far away. The baby was too small, too fragile. Apia began to pack her things, convinced the end was near.
“I was tired. I wanted the baby to die peacefully. I felt I was wasting time.” Then, something shifted.
A member of the neonatal team invited her to a mothers’ support group. There, she heard stories of resilience—of mothers who once felt like her, but walked out with their babies in their arms. That session lit a tiny spark.
“I began to care for my baby with a new kind of hope, even though mine was the smallest, always struggling to breathe.”
Even when exhaustion returned and she felt defeated again—wishing her baby would rest for good—there were hands that never gave up. Nurses kept reviving her baby each time it stopped breathing. But her own strength was fading. Her milk dried up. She was overwhelmed.
Then, she met the breastfeeding specialist.
Through gentle support and counseling, Apia was able to restore her milk supply, rediscover love for her baby, and rebuild her belief that this little life could survive.
Today, after weeks of tears, setbacks, and silent prayers, Apia walks out of the neonatal unit with her baby weighing 1445g—more than 600g gained since birth.
“I walked in with fear and an 800g baby. I walk out with hope and a healthy child. I’m so grateful to the neonatal team. They never gave up on us—even when I almost did.”
Your support makes stories like Apia’s possible.
Every donation helps provide life-saving care, equipment, donor milk, and counseling for mothers in crisis. Please help us keep more tiny lives alive.
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