Meet Henry!

Our friend Henry is busy growing and playing- and is about to celebrate his second birthday! But Henry spent the first 137 days of his life in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at The Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital. His mom, Toni, shares their story:

Henry was born at 27 weeks due to pregnancy complications affecting both him and mom. Weighing only 500 grams at birth, doctors estimated that he stopped growing around 22/24 weeks. Hours before he was born, we were making arrangements with the priest and meeting with Palliative Care team. We were preparing for the worst. Odds were against him before he was born. By a miracle, Henry was born breathing on his own and not needing to be immediately intubated. Minutes turn to hours, hours turned to days, days to weeks, and now forever. 

Henry has had quite the journey. Every step of the way he keeps defying odds and proving everyone wrong. He came home from almost a 5-month NICU stay on oxygen 24/7 and with a gtube for feedings. Today, he is eating on his own, not requiring the use of his button (feeding tube), and has successfully been weaned off oxygen! His success is attributed to his fighting drive and the support from family, the incredible team at BBCH NICU, MaineHealth home services, and the Maine Medical Partners Pediatric Specialty Care Team. We are so incredibly thankful to his amazing care team. Without them, he wouldn’t be here today.