Meet Andrea S., Parent Mentor at Akron Children's

Andrea's Story

My husband Thomas and I were excited to be pregnant with three girls but never expected their little ones to come so early. I was given three rounds of magnesium to slow down the contractions and keep the girls in as long as possible. During this time, I also received injections to help with the girls’ lung development. I was sent home but at 26 ½ weeks, I was back in the hospital with high blood pressure and was very swollen. The doctors made a decision to deliver the girls in order to save all four of our lives.

On January 26, 2011, Meredith, Coraline and Elena Wakefield were born weighing each a little over one pound. They were all 12 inches long. All three girls needed the help of a ventilator to breathe. Each girl had a feeding tube that enabled them to still receive nourishment in order to grow stronger and bigger. Coraline was born with a hole in her heart. She received medication that helped close the hole in her heart. It was a difficult time for us.

On February 4, we heard the first cry of our little girls. The triplets were showing progress but their fight was still far from over. Meredith got an inflammation of the intestines and had to start back at square one with eating.

Finally, on March 4, I was able to hold the girls. It wasn’t long until the girls were able to go home one at a time; first on May 7, then May 13 and finally after some reflux issues the last of the girls was able to come home on May 27.

Andrea is a parent mentor for these conditions: Neonatal Respiratory Distress Syndrome.

Andrea is a mentor for these care services: NICU

Contact Andrea