By NATALIE GALLENTI
WHEN Terri Ellis’ waters broke at home she never imagined what would come next.
The Caroline Springs mother had already given birth to three healthy babies and there was no reason to think that baby number four would be any different.
But panic struck Terri and her husband when their baby’s foot appeared first, instead of his head.
When the ambulance arrived their precious baby had no pulse and by the time the couple had reached the doors of Sunshine Hospital’s emergency room little Isaac had been almost completely delivered.
“Once the first foot came out, I knew we were in trouble. I just went numb,” Terri said.
“Everything was normal during the pregnancy, there were no alarm bells. So when it happened I was in shock. I didn’t know what to feel because I wasn’t expecting it.
“It was just a blur.”
When he was born Isaac’s tiny body shut down and he was rushed to the Mercy Hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit where he and his parents spent the next week.
On day five an MRI showed Isaac had severe brain damage.
Terri admits if it wasn’t for the support of staff in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit she would “have fallen in a heap”.
“You don’t sleep, you don’t eat. I was just functioning on adrenaline.”
The Ellis’ aren’t the only parents to experience this nightmare and that’s why the Miracle Babies Foundation has launched its book, Nurture, to guide families through the emotional journey.
The foundation is Australia’s leading not-for-profit organisation that supports premature and sick newborns, their families and the hospital’s that care for them.
Terri said the book will help parents to think clearer and make hard decisions a little easier.
Now two, Isaac has cerebral palsy, is tube fed and does not speak, but with the help of compassionate doctors, nurses, specialists and counsellors, the Ellis family continues to work through the tough times.
“He’s such a happy easy going child, but we’re in and out of hospital.
“It’s hard trying to juggle that and three other children, but with all the support we have we manage.”
