Little did I know, a year ago, that February was Congenital Heart Defects Awareness Month. I always thought it was about the commercial holiday-Valentines Day. I will never look at this month the same again.
- CHDs are the most common birth defects. CHDs occur in almost 1% of births.
- An approximate 100-200 deaths are due to unrecognized heart disease in newborns each year.These numbers exclude those dying before diagnosis.
- Nearly 40,000 infants in the U.S. are born each year with CHDs.
- CHDs are as common as autism and about twenty-five times more common than cystic fibrosis.
- Approximately two to three million individuals are thought to be living in the United States withCHDs. Because there is no U.S. system to track CHDs beyond early childhood, more preciseestimates are not available.
- Thanks to improvements in survival, the number of adults living with CHDs is increasing. It is nowbelieved that the number of adults living with CHDs is at least equal to, if not greater than, the number of children living with CHDs.
I don’t believe I have shared this on my blog, but a dear friend of mine who has been there for all the ups and downs of Silas’ journey donated her wedding dress in honor of him to an organization called Tayllor’s Angel Gowns. They are an organization who take donated wedding dresses, bridal gowns, and any formal dresses and turn them into gowns, hats, and booties for children who are ill or who have passed away. They donate to the Kentucky and Cincinnati area hospitals. I received something similar to this when I delivered Silas and that keepsake is something I will always cherish. She continues to bless me with finding ways to remember him and to show me she cares. Thank you so much dear friend! For the month of February I am going to collect as many dresses as possible to donate to Tayllor’s Angel Gowns to help as many families as possible who have to deal with the loss of their little one. If you have any dresses you would like to donate please contact me. Also, you can read all about their organization on Facebook.
Today was a great way to start off heart Month. A day we have been waiting for since we found out we were expecting again after Silas. Words can not describe the relief we felt after this anatomy scan and fetal echo! Baby boy Gentry has a four chamber heart and totally healthy all the way down to five perfect toes on each foot
❤. God even provided a caring ultrasound tech who explained every detail to ease our minds and a very thorough specialist who will scan his heart every four weeks as it continues to grow, which gives me such peace. We feel we can finally dream about his future and be excited with what God has in store for him and our life with him.
In the CHD community the question is asked everyday “How many of you have gone on to have a heart healthy child after your child with a CHD?” We have so many fears of reliving this again. I am here to give hope that it can and does happen. Here is my heart healthy rainbow baby.
strongsilas 