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Hope
© 2008 all
rights reserved
My name is Stormi, I am 23 years old and had my first child
when I was 21, a daughter who I named Hope.
At birth, we immediately noticed that something was wrong with her right leg,
the doctor stated that she thought it was clubfoot and that we should have it
checked out by an orthopedic surgeon once we got moved.
Less than 12 hours after Hope was born, a nurse came into my room saying things
like "Why didn't you tell me about this? Did you not feel it was important?" All
the while, my husband at the time was sitting there looking at me as if I'd been
keeping something from him. I finally asked the nurse what she was talking
about, at which point she turned over a piece of paper which was a report from
an ultrasound I had performed August 16th, more than two months before she was
born that revealed she only had one kidney and they weren't sure if she had a
bladder. I was devastated that the doctor I had trusted with my pregnancy, and
my child kept this information from me. The doctor's suggestion was to
mediflight Hope to the children's hospital in Oklahoma City where they were
equipped to care for her.
We opted to go ahead and transfer her. So, at less than 12 hours old my perfect
little princess was in a helicopter on her way to a hospital that was 92 miles
away. While she was in the NICU an orthopedic surgeon came in to evaluate her
leg and, explained that she was missing the Tibia in the right leg, otherwise
known as Tibial Hemimelia and the recommendation would be amputation.
Hope, has not yet had her surgery. She has done wonderful these last 16 months,
she sits up, rolls over, crawls, feeds herself, talks some, and pulls herself up
onto the left leg.
We recently had our first appointment with the Shriners and we are now scheduled
for a Right Knee Disarticulation, and a possible open hip reduction on April
10th, 2008. Hope will spend six weeks in a spica cast following the surgery. I
honestly think my biggest concern is that cast, because she's so active.
I love my little princess and it's encouraging to know that we are not alone.
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