A miracle baby boy, who was as small as a cookie when he was born prematurely, has now celebrated his first Christmas in intensive care.
Paige Hurd, a 28-year-old Indiana woman, gave birth on November 5th, 2021 to twins Ezra (and Wells) but Ezra tragically died at just 25 weeks.
Wells was also a micropreemie baby – a baby born before 26 weeks of gestation – and spent the first 115 of his days in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, fighting for his life.
Although Wells was born in an ambulance, where emergency workers didn’t have enough resources to care for him, he celebrated his first Christmas one year later and is now happy and healthy.
A boy miraculously survived premature birth, and was once as small a “cookie” when he celebrated his first Christmas after being placed in intensive care.
Paige Hurd, a 28-year-old Indiana woman, gave birth on November 5th, 2021 to twins Ezra (and Wells) but Ezra tragically died at just 25 weeks.
Her second son, Wells (a micro preemie baby – a baby born before 26 weeks of gestation) spent 115 days in NICU.
Wells was just 1 lb 8 oz when he was born. This made him a micropreemie.
A micro preemie is a baby that is born before 26 weeks of pregnancy, or weighs less than 28 ounces.
Paige shared the story of Wells’ birth in an interview with Newsweek.
“Being pregnant with twins meant that I had more scans than usual, all of which were normal,” she explained.
“But, but, I just knew that something was going wrong. I saw two doctors, and both said everything was okay. However, my maternal instincts disagreed.
“On the birth day, I remember feeling good as I rocked my 11-month old daughter Hazel to sleep.
“But then, I felt a random sensation but it wasn’t too severe. I put Hazel in her crib as the pain got worse.
“I quickly recognized it was contractions and within 15 minutes of feeling the pain, I gave birth, Ezra to my baby girl.
She said that she and Zachary, her 28-year-old husband, were ‘prepared for all the worst’ and had feared losing another child within hours of Ezra’s passing.
“The doctors believe Wells may have a brain bleed and could be suffering from cerebral palsy,” Paige said. Paige told Newsweek.
He was not expected to live a normal lifestyle, and doctors advised him that he might have difficulty breathing. His lungs collapsed within the first week.
Paige stated that she was certain he would be okay, even though the odds were not in his favor.
According to Very Well Family – a site that offers guidance on pregnancy and health – there are many short-term and long-term effects that a micro preemie can encounter.
These are the short-term effects:
- Intraventricular hemorhage (IVH: This is when blood is leaking into the brain. The brains of micro preemies are fragile and can burst easily.
- Necrotizing enterocolitis: Because micropreemies have not developed their organs properly, their intestines can become infected. NEC is when the bowel linings become infected and then die.
- Respiratory distress syndrome (RDS), is a condition where micropreemies have trouble breathing after giving birth because they are so small.
- Sepsis is a serious condition that can be fatal due to bacteria entering the body. Because micropreemies are immature, they have weak immune systems. They also face many invasive procedures at the NICU which makes them more vulnerable to infection.
One year later, Wells, one has celebrated his first Christmas with family. He is now happy and healthy.
Paige spoke out about the difficult day Wells was birthed and said that he is doing very well.
She also said that Zachary, her husband of 28 years, and she, have a daughter named Hazel, and they were ‘prepared for all the worst’ and worried about losing another child.
These long-term effects include:
- Cerebral palsy
- Chronic lung disease
- Cognitive problems
- Digestive problems
- Vision and hearing loss
There is only a 75% to 85% chance that a baby born at 25 week gestation will survive.
Paige and Zachary began to worry more about Wells’ health as the days progressed. Paige got COVID, and was unable visit Wells.
Paige explained that her illness meant she couldn’t’see’ him and that she felt a bit ashamed for not being there.
She revealed that Wells was given holiday cheer by nurses, even though she couldn’t bring it into the NICU.
Paige said that Wells fought for his survival in the NICU. Paige also revealed that she felt ‘helpless,’ especially since the nurses had to feed and change Wells.
Paige said that Wells fought for his survival in the NICU. Paige also revealed that she felt ‘helpless,’ especially since the nurses had to feed him.
Paige and Zachary finally were able to bring Wells home after 115 days
Paige and Zachary managed to bring Wells home after 115 consecutive days. This gave the mom a chance to finally feel like she could take deep breaths.
She continued, “I didn’t feel like a mother until he came home on Feb 28, 2022.”
Paige confirmed that Wells is doing well, even though his parents were informed that Wells might have health problems.
Paige shared that she is often surprised by her son’s growth and said that he is so muscular despite once being as big as a Christmas cookie.
She explained that he uses every muscle in the body to accomplish what he wants. He is reaching milestones faster then Hazel.
Paige claimed that Wells was capable of standing on his own in August.
She continued, “I didn’t feel like a mother until he came home on Feb 28, 2022”
Paige shared that Ezra is always a special person in her heart. She reminds her kids that Ezra was their sibling every day.
The family was unable to spend Christmas together last year so they decided to make this year extra special.
She revealed that her family had put up their Christmas tree in November, and she added that they planned to read Christmas-themed books to the children every night.
After being visited by Santa Claus, Paige and Zachary spent Christmas day with their families. They were thrilled to finally be able to see everyone in the same room.
Paige said that Ezra is always in her thoughts and that she even reads to her children about the loss of a twin, and then has them wave at the urn containing Ezra’s ashes.
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