She Has So Much Joy - by Alisha Thing

I am a mom of a daughter with Turner syndrome (TS) and this is Delenna’s story. It started when I was pregnant with her. My husband and 3-year-old son came with me to my ultrasound to find out the gender. As the tech got started, she shared there was something wrong. “She’s too small, there’s fluid on her neck, and holes in her heart.”

Our excitement was gone, and confusion and worry replaced it. After weeks of waiting on results from blood work, we finally found out, along with my parents, at a genetics office. Our baby girl had TS. I had never heard of it; what was that? IN the opinion of this doctor, it was a death sentence, and they said I should terminate the pregnancy. I said No and changed Hospitals. My baby deserved to fight as long as she could, and I was going to fight with her.

I was flagged as a high-risk pregnancy and had so many ultrasounds, an MRI, and non-stress tests. My pregnancy and delivery were not easy. I was highly nauseous through the whole thing, but Delenna arrived crying and kicking. As quickly as she arrived, she was taken from the room in her oxygen box. Her heart needed surgery and at 3 days old her coarctation of the aorta was fixed. She also has a bicuspid valve but it has been working just fine.

As the days and months went by, she would end up having surgery on her throat for severe apnea, a G-tube placed because she couldn’t eat, and several surgeries on her eyes for glaucoma. I was told Delenna was a failed pregnancy and wouldn’t live. She is 6 years old now and is so smart. She can make anyone in the room smile because she has so much joy.