A mom has taken to social media to share that after essentially giving birth to her son last Wednesday, she is due to give birth to him a second time in July.
TikTok user Jaidan Ashlea - who goes by the handle @jaidan.ashlea on the social media platform - documented her experience with her 16.5K followers in a post that has now been viewed 131.5K times and has amassed 14.7K likes.
As reported by The New York Post, the mother had a prenatal anatomy scan at 18 weeks of pregnancy in March, it showed that her son had spina bifida, a congenital defect that adversely affects a fetus’ spinal cord during gestation and can lead to learning and developmental disabilities and paralysis.
Each year, roughly 1,427 babies are born with spina bifida, according to the CDC.
Check out her TikTok below:The 23-year-old shared her son's diagnosis and how she planned to save his life.
She explained: "Our son was diagnosed with spina bifida at 19 weeks. At first, we were told there was no hope, he’s going to be brain dead, he’s going to have no life."
Ashlea told viewers that she asked for second and third opinions from specialists in Orlando who suggested open fetal surgery, which is operating on babies before they're even ready to be born.
She continued: "They repaired the defect in his back to the best of their ability, closed me back up and I stayed pregnant for the rest of the time."
She then highlighted that contractions can happen and that preterm labor is always the biggest effect on the surgery.
The doctors will be monitoring her pregnancy and health for the next two weeks in a Ronald McDonald House, a national nonprofit organization that provides health care for families and children in need.
As Jaidan recovers from her surgery and continues with her pregnancy journey, she looks forward to the day she can tell her son about his life-saving surgery.
"I’m excited for him to realize how many people were rooting for him, and how loved and special he is," she said. "Not everyone gets the chance to have this surgery. And I want him to know that God was on his side."
We wish Jaidan all the best in her journey!
