Chad Steven Duerfeldt
(29 weeks 4 days)
I had a premature baby at 29 weeks 4 days. He weighed 1 pound 10.6 ounces at birth and was 12.25 inches long. He was delivered by c-section because he was not growing. The doctor had discovered that the bloodflow the umbilical cord was restricted and my baby was essentially starving in the womb. On July 19, 2001 I went in for my regular weekly ultrasound at 8:30am and at 10:30am I was told that I was having a baby at 1:00pm. Chad Steven Duerfeldt was born at 1:58pm and spent the next 52 days in the NICU. He was never on the ventilator but he did have nasal CPAP and high flow air. Within 2 weeks, he was off all respiratory assistance and in another week, all the IV's were gone. He had a feeding tube in for the next several weeks, and he used a nipple shield to nurse for a couple months. Pumping breastmilk for him every 3 hours was difficult, but I knew it would be the best for him. He came home weighing 4 pounds. Now he is a happy, healthy 7-1/2 month old. He weighs about 11 pounds now. He does everything and a little more than his corrected age. I am so grateful he is home and healthy! I have attached some pictures for you to see. One is from August 15, 2001 and the others are from January 21, 2002.
Please contact me with any questions. I am willing to offer advice, support, etc. to others that are experiencing what I have gone through. My personal e-mail address is wduerfeldt@hotmail.com