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“My twins were separated at birth. We had no other choice. They were born just a few seconds apart, and now they are both in the NICU in different hospitals. Our baby girl was just 580 grams at birth! I didn’t realise that babies could be so small…so fragile. When we used to come to the hospital for scans, we would see some parents eagerly waiting outside the NICU to see their babies. We are those parents now…” – Anithashree
Anithashree hasn’t slept in days. 45 days to be precise. She hasn’t even gone home once since her delivery. She refuses to leave her babies alone, even if it means travelling 26 kms back and forth every single day. But Anithashree’s baby girl is critical.
23rd September - the fateful day
Anithashree’s husband, Padmanabha is in the Indian Army. He drives vehicles and is usually posted in different cities for work. Luckily, when Anithashree went for her 6th month scan, he was there right beside her. That day, their lives changed.“He was with me throughout, holding my hand. The doctors told us that the amniotic fluid is very less, my BP was fluctuating. Our babies were in danger…and I had to deliver our babies that day. We had to move our baby boy to another hospital as the expense was too much to handle. But our baby girl was too critical, too underweight. She had to stay.”
Their baby girl was severely underweight. She also had sepsis, her stomach was bloating because of fluid collection, and her feet were turning blue. A few days after birth her condition deteriorated so much that her weight was only 440 grams. But she fought. Her weight is now slowly increasing, but their baby girl needs to stay in the NICU for 4 more weeks to recover.
Their lives, their jobs – everything is on hold
Padmanabha now shuffles between hospitals, too. And the couple rarely gets to stay together. At a time when they need each other the most, circumstances have torn this family apart. Their jobs, their lives – now on hold. The pain they’re in, however, isn’t new to them.“This is my third pregnancy. Our babies didn’t make it the first two times…I really can’t explain what that feels like. When I got pregnant this time, we didn’t tell anyone for a long time…we couldn’t even celebrate or even be happy.. we just waited till the 5th month. We thought everything would be fine after that…”
Anithashree worked as a lab technician in a hospital in Bangalore, but she hasn’t been to work since the pregnancy. Padmanabha has also taken leave. They are struggling to afford their baby girl’s treatment. She is just over a month old. They want to take her home, they want to hold her…they want her to be safe and healthy. You can help them.
