The room was so quiet after a mother gave birth that she couldn’t figure out what was going on. She was terrified of what she might say to break the silence.
In 2018, Eliza Jamkochian Bahneman, who was 36, and her husband, Erik, who was 41, were thrilled to find out they were going to have a child after trying for 9 months.
Bahneman was so excited about being pregnant that she told some of her friends, her sister, and her sister-in-law. They were all pregnant at the same time, and their due dates were close to each other. The mother-to-be couldn’t wait for her baby to be a surprise and come into this beautiful world.
The baby girl did decide to leave the safe place of her mother’s womb, but she did it a month earlier than planned. Isabella, also called “Bella,” was born in October 2018.
This baby was born after 12 hours of hard work, and it weighed 5 1/2 pounds. But what should have been a happy time turned out to be sad.
She was scared when she heard whispers and saw that the room was dark and quiet. She said when she thought back on the time:
“Why aren’t they thanking me? Why does my husband look like he’s lost and scared? Why won’t my mother look at me?”
Bella was then taken to the newborn intensive care unit (NICU). The baby was found to have a rare genetic trait called Treacher Collins after many tests and checks. This makes it hard for the bones in the face to grow the right way.
Because of this, Isabella had a lot of problems when she was born, such as not being able to hear and having a small mouth. So started a hard road full of surgeries and emergency trips to the hospital at the last minute.
Bella needed a lot of different kinds of help. This included help with speech and work, as well as lessons in music because she had trouble listening.
The mother wants to keep telling people about Treacher Collins disorder and teaching them about it. In general, Bahneman wants people to be kind to people who are in this situation. After all, this is the only thing to do when you meet a beautiful and unique person.
