For two months the woman carried this inhumanly heavy load under her heart.
The young couple from Alabama were shocked when they learned that they were expecting four children.
“I have not taken any fertility drugs. I thought the doctor was joking. I didn’t believe until I looked at the ultrasound images, ”says 23-year-old Tori Keller.
There was no special money in the family. The future father, 24-year-old Tyler Hallman, worked as an ordinary bartender. However, young people quickly got used to the idea that it would not be easy, and were looking forward to becoming a big family. But fate decreed otherwise: out of four babies, only one was born alive.
At the very first ultrasound, it became clear: one fetus grows in a separate placenta, and three others share the placenta among themselves. In the first trimester, Tory suffered from severe toxicosis, and her pregnancy was at high risk.
At 15 weeks, the couple came to screening to find out the gender of the children. All four were girls. However, the sad news awaited Tori and Tyler: the heart of one of the babies stopped.
And then the grief-stricken parents learned that Tory would have to bear all four children, including the dead fetus, until the end of the term.
“I was carrying a dead child – this is a very eerie feeling. But I couldn’t give up for my other children, ”says Tory.
At 18 weeks, the woman stopped feeling any movement in her abdomen. Instead, there were pains in the side, but the doctor assured: these are ligament pains due to the growing uterus.
“I was very scared. I confess that I am not particularly religious, but then I began to pray. I prayed every day until the next doctor’s appointment, ”says the young mother.
Tories were not deceived by apprehensions. At the 19th week, the doctor reported: the hearts of two more children froze. Only one baby survived – the one that lived in its separate placenta. Again, the woman was told that she must carry all four fetuses before delivery.
Tory was admitted to the hospital and prescribed strict bed rest. And at 23 weeks, she began to have contractions, and the woman underwent an emergency caesarean section.
“When the waters receded, I realized that there was no turning back. I was so afraid that I would lose the remaining child, ”the woman recalls.
But the baby survived. Athena – as the girl was named – was born weighing 590 g and growing 30 cm. 590 g is less than a pack of cereals, extremely low weight. The child’s eyes have not yet erupted, and the ears have not had time to fully develop.
“I had no idea that a baby could be so tiny,” says Tory. – Of course, it was scary and sad that she had to be connected to pipes and wires, instead of being put on my stomach. But I felt that I loved my daughter very much, and that helped me. “
The young parents waited almost three weeks before they could hug their tiny baby. And they were able to bring Athena home only four months later – all this time she remained in the intensive care unit.
Athena recently turned three. She runs, jumps and is capricious, like any normal child.
“Athena is a little behind in the development of speech, but we are working on it. A year ago, she could say three to five words. Now she only does what she talks, even if you don’t understand her, – a happy mother shares her daughter’s achievements. – Athena taught me to appreciate every little thing, to be strong and patient. She saved me. She’s my hero, even if she doesn’t know about it. “
A year ago, Athena had a brother. The boy was named Zachariah.
“Athena is the perfect big sister,” says Tory. – She loves Zachariah very much, hugs him constantly. They spend all their time together. “
The parents told Athena about the three sisters they had lost.
“I know she still hasn’t quite figured out what happened. But she saw their photos and knows that now her sisters are angels who follow us every day, ”says the girl’s mother.