Erin suffered a stroke while pregnant—and thanks to two miracles, she and her baby survived!
It was supposed to be one of the most magical times of her life: Erin Kinniry was welcoming her first child. But instead, the new mom would find herself fighting for her life . . .
Closing her eyes and lying perfectly still, Erin Kinniry prayed her excruciating headache would fade.
It’s probably just pregnancy hormones, she thought, trying to focus on the fact that she and her husband, Bryce, would be parents soon, which always made the Medford, Minnesota, momto-be smile.
Seventeen weeks along, Erin had endured severe morning sickness, but this relentless pounding was unbearable.
“I need to take a sick day,” she called and told her friend and co-worker Katie Conway.
Yet as Erin spoke, Katie grew alarmed. “Erin, you’re slurring your words!” she panicked.
“Please just save my baby!”
Something’s
wrong,” called and blurted to Bryce, who phoned his mom, a nurse.
When she rushed over, Erin heard the knocking, tried to stand up— but fell over. Unable to move her left side, she dragged herself to the door. And seeing that the left side of Erin’s face looked as though it had melted, her mother-in-law rushed her to the ER.
There, a voice over the loudspeaker announced, “Emergency stroke team to room 412!”
“What . . . what room are we in?” Erin mumbled. “412,” came the reply. That’s me! I’m having a stroke? Erin gasped.
An MRI revealed that Erin had bleeding on her brain caused by a ruptured blood vessel. “But . . . my baby. Please, just save my baby!” Erin stammered.
Though the fetal monitor picked up her baby’s strong heartbeat, Erin was far from out of the woods. She was transferred to Mayo Clinic. Bryce refused to leave her side.
I can’t lose you, Erin! We’re just starting our family. This isn’t how it was supposed to be!
But five days after her stroke, Erin stopped breathing.
Blessedly, medical staff were able to resuscitate her.
“But for her and your baby to survive, she needs surgery to relieve the pressure on her brain stat,” doctors explained.
Still, there were no guarantees. And even if Erin made it . . . would the baby? Before she was taken to the OR, Bryce and Erin’s family gathered and, tears falling, hugged and kissed her. For hours, as doctors worked to remove part of the right side of Erin’s skull, they prayed it hadn’t been goodbye. “Thank You, God!” Bryce cried when both Erin and the baby pulled through. And less than two days later, Erin stammered, “My headache is gone!”
She was fitted with a padded helmet to protect her head. And she would need extensive therapy to walk, talk properly, dress and feed herself— all the things she hoped to teach her baby someday.
Two miracles for Erin!
After 25 days in the ICU, Erin was transferred to a rehabilitation unit.
“You got this!” her twin sister, Megan, insisted, using Little Debbie cupcakes to encourage Erin to graduate from wheelchair to cane to walking on her own.
But everyone’s favorite moment of the week was Erin’s ultrasound. “There he is! Or she is!” the family cheered.
“Are you sure you don’t want to know the gender?” the technician would ask, but Erin shook her head.
“There aren’t that many wonderful surprises in life.”
Finally, Erin was strong enough to be discharged home for outpatient therapy. And one week before her due date, the doctors announced, “It’s time!”
When four-pound, 12- ounce Ariana came into the world via C- section, Erin marveled, “You’re here— and you’re perfect!”
At first, family helped feed and bathe Ariana, since Erin’s left side remained weak.
Hearing Ariana’s coos and seeing her tiny grins inspired Erin. But when Ariana was two months old, an MRI revealed Erin needed another surgery to remove the abnormal blood vessels that had caused her stroke. Left untreated, she was at high risk of a second stroke.
Erin’s heart sank. What if I leave my baby girl without a mother? she worried.
And once in surgery, the news grew worse. Neurosurgeons discovered a rare, complicated blood vessel abnormality that had been present since birth.
“There’s a chance she’ll be paralyzed again,” they cautioned.
But in recovery, Erin looked at Bryce, smiled and waved—with her left arm! Doctors were astounded. And just two days later, Erin walked out of the hospital!
Today, the stay-at-home mom has no problem keeping up with two-year- old Ariana.
“I didn’t have good odds, and Ariana didn’t have good odds, but we’ re here and fine !” Erin beams. “Before Ariana was even born, we both proved we’re survivors. And now, every day is filled with new joy !”
“Life is a precious gift in which anything possible.” is DENA DI IACONI