Pregnant Covid-19-ill woman delivers baby the same day she was put on ventilator support, meets the baby for the first time weeks later

Pregnant women are strongly encouraged by the health experts to get vaccinated against Covid-19 as multiple studies suggest that Covid-19 vaccines don’t harm the mothers-to-be or their unborn babies, something that seems to be the major reason why pregnant women remain vaccine hesitant. The same studies indicate that Covid-19 vaccines are actually helping the pregnant women and their unborn babies since scientists haven’t found an increased risk for miscarriage among people who received an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine just before and during early pregnancy.

On the opposite, pregnant women who will contract the deadly virus risk miscarriage and potentially developing severe Covid-19 condition which might directly affect the babies. So was the case with the 38-year-old C. Thomas from Texas, who delivered her first baby the day she was placed on ventilator support once she developed severe corona condition.

According to Thomas who revealed her story last week for the first time, she spent five weeks on ventilator support until her condition finally improved and she was removed from ventilator early November last year. Since she doesn’t really remember the day her baby was delivered, the day she finally met her son Briggs is one of the greatest moments of her life.

“I honestly don’t remember anything,” she said. “I do feel an emotional state that at first that I was robbed of that first you know, initial meeting and greeting,” Thomas added.

The doctors at the local hospital were forced to deliver her baby boy a month early because his mother was losing the battle with COVID-19. It was the same the day she was put on ventilator support because her Covid-condition was worsening. Her treatment was expected to last for a few days, but those few days turned into weeks-long treatment until her condition finally started to improve.

Fortunately, everything went well for the baby. The baby was born healthy and spent the upcoming weeks in hospital. In the meanwhile, Thomas’ ICU nurses began keeping a journal for her so that she could read about Briggs’ birth and development once she woke up from her medically induced coma, the hospital said.

They worked with Briggs’ NICU nurses to coordinate care – bringing them both the same sound machine so they could listen to calming music together and even sharing blankets so they could feel close to one another.

“The NICU nurses taught me everything I needed to know. They taught me how to change diapers, mix formula, give Briggs tummy time, and what stretches and exercises I should do with him once he was home,” said Bryan. “They had me squared away, and by the time he was discharged, I was comfortable taking him home.”

“So I got to meet him, I think on November 4, and that was an amazing overwhelming feeling. It was absolutely a little bit happy and gut wrenching,” said Thomas.

The baby was already 5 weeks old when he finally got to meet his mother. Briggs went home with his father, Bryan, while she began a long road to recovery that included therapy just to build up the strength to hold her newborn.