First-time parents living in a nightmare after their daughter is diagnosed with Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy
It is every first-time parent’s worst-nightmare when the cries of their newborn baby does not fill the delivery room.
Townsville
Don't miss out on the headlines from Townsville. Followed categories will be added to My News.
It is every first-time parents’ worst nightmare when the cries of their newborn baby does not fill the delivery room.
For Amie Rootsey, she relives her midwife’s words during her emergency C-section screaming out “resus” as her first daughter Rylee was pulled out of her body.
It was 12 hours after Rylee was born on December 15 that a nurse noticed her tongue “flicking”.
After doctors hooked her head up to a brain monitor, the tests revealed that “she was constantly seizing”.
Ms Rootsey said the results were “pretty messy on the monitor”.
RELATED
• Townsville boy only one of 200 Australians with rare condition
• NRL star Josh McGuire and his young family reveal they are expecting a third child
• Living with rare skin condition fails to slow down local Miss Australian International finalist
Three days later, doctors decided to do a MRI on Rylee after which Ms Rootsey and her partner Logan Gardner were told she had Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy.
The condition is a severe brain injury caused by oxygen deprivation to the brain.
It is believed Rylee was deprived of oxygen either in Ms Rootsey’s womb or during the emergency C-section.
Rylee has spent her short life at the Townsville University Hospital while doctors experiment with a cocktail of different medications to control her seizures.
Ms Rootsey said the past two and half months of her life had been a living nightmare.
“You feel helpless. You literally can’t do anything, you just watch her eyes fixate and her body just lock,” she said.
“It looks like she is in pain because she screams halfway through.”
Ms Rootsey said she had come to terms with not being able to take Rylee home.
“This is normal for us but the first couple of days after being discharged from maternity and walking out with my arms empty was upsetting,” she said.
The family are currently waiting for the Royal Flying Doctor Service to transfer them to the Queensland Children’s Hospital in Brisbane when a bed is available.
Doctors are hoping a more precise MRI machine will be able to shed further light on what part of the brain Rylee’s seizures are originating from.
The family have set up a Gofundme page to help with their expenses while they are by Rylee’s side in Brisbane.
Ms Rootsey said she would not waver knowing the long battle the family had ahead of them.
Originally published as First-time parents living in a nightmare after their daughter is diagnosed with Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy