Deema
I had a really tough pregnancy, in a nut shell, bed rested since month 4, hospitalized for 3 months, with several complications (placenta deficiency, IUGR, and eventually Preeclampsia), where I ended up delivering at 32 weeks to a 900 gram baby. Due to obvious reasons, he was incubated at the NICU in Sabah Hospital for a total of 3 months.
I met Dalal at AlSabah Hospital while visiting my baby in the NICU. She asked me “Did you hold your baby?” I just started tearing and asked “Am I even allowed to?” she said “of course! Have you heard of skin to skin?” I said I’ve been dreaming to do that, but ever since he was born, I was told I couldn’t, so I never asked.
I later come to find out a few days later, Dalal herself, pulled up my baby’s file, took it to the doctors and requested to get approval to carry the baby for the first time. She messaged me that day saying come tomorrow wearing a blouse with buttons (I will never forget that message). And so I go in the next day, and at this point my baby had been upgraded to Special Care 2 (still no carrying and touching), and there I saw Dalal and the head of the unit where they put a rail around his incubator, took him out so that I could carry him. We cried, we smiled, it was such a big day for me to finally be carrying my baby after a month of him being born, it was surreal.
I honestly didn’t think I was able to breastfeed him because at the time, he had a tube in his mouth, but of course Dalal made it happen. So at the time of his feed, they would remove the tube, and test on me, I remember Dalal saying this is incredible, I’ve never seen a baby this small latch this beautiful. At that time, he had been 1.2Kg, now its tough to imagine, but he was still very tiny. Everyday, doctors would throw the exact same comment “Hes really breasfeeding?? That small?? How many kgs is he now?? First time I see a baby this small breasfeeding” - and all I kept thinking was THANK YOU Dalal.
From only touching him though the incubator every day, to carrying him, to eventually breastfeeding him was exactly what was getting me through one of the toughest periods in my life. Forever grateful for everything she has done for me in these three months. God bless her and wish her nothing but the best in everything that she does.