Naya, 38 weeks

Naya was born at 38 weeks + 1 day after a straightforward pregnancy, aside from gestational diabetes. She was conceived through single-person IVF with a donor, making her arrival even more special.

Labour was progressing smoothly and quickly until the very end, when Naya became briefly stuck during delivery. When she was born, I only had a short moment to hold her while her cord was cut before she was taken away for urgent care.

Naya had stopped breathing, and the medical team immediately began working on her. I was being prepared for surgery when Naya was transferred to the Special Care Nursery at Maitland Hospital. During this time, she stopped breathing a few more times, and decisions were made to transfer her to a NICU at either Sydney Children’s Hospital or John Hunter Hospital. Thankfully, John Hunter Hospital was able to accept her, and we were transferred there overnight.

Once at John Hunter, Naya was placed on cooling therapy for 72 hours, which meant she was sedated during that time. She was then slowly rewarmed over 15 hours. While I unfortunately didn’t get to experience kangaroo cuddles with her during those early days, I am incredibly grateful for the care, support and expertise we both received throughout our journey.

Naya came home exactly one week after she was born, and we couldn’t have been happier to bring her home.

Naya will turn one on 23 July and continues to amaze us, meeting all her milestones either early or right on track. We are so proud of how far she has come and grateful for every person who supported us during those first uncertain days.