Demi Duffin, 17, and Charlie Hayes, 19, had learned during the pregnancy that their baby, Luca, had gastroschisis, a condition in which some organs develop outside the body. In Luca’s case, it affected his bowels, but doctors told the couple the condition was not considered severe.
Everything changed at 30 weeks pregnant when Demi noticed she could no longer feel her baby moving. She went to the hospital, where she was examined before being discharged.
“They said his bowels were fine and nothing was wrong with him,” Demi explained, according to UNILAD. “We were told I would be monitored every few weeks at Medway.”
Less than two weeks later, the same thing happened again. Demi returned to the hospital, and this time, doctors quickly realized the situation was far more serious.
Within an hour, medical staff discovered Luca’s heart rate had flatlined, resulting in an emergency C-section.
“Thank God the hospital brought him back to life”
Born seven weeks early, Luca weighed just 3 pounds, 5 ounces. He had no heartbeat when he was delivered and immediately underwent life-saving surgery.
“Seeing him born dead was so hard. It took the doctors around an hour to work on him. It’s the longest hour I’ve ever been through. But thank God the hospital brought him back to life,” Charlie said.
The couple was later told that if Demi had waited just “a couple of hours” longer before returning to the hospital, Luca would not have survived.
After being stabilized, Luca was transferred to The Royal London Hospital, where surgeons performed another operation to begin placing his bowels back inside his body.
Since then, the newborn has undergone two additional surgeries. He has remained under close medical supervision and spent time on a ventilator to help him breathe. Although he was taken off the ventilator last week, he is still hospitalized as doctors continue to monitor his condition.
A GoFundMe campaign has been launched
The emotional journey has included one milestone that the couple says they’ll never forget.
“Me and Demi got to hold him the other day and got to do skin-to-skin contact for the first time. That was amazing. Demi said how light he was, but when I held him, I thought he was the heaviest thing I’ve ever held. It was quite literally like holding my world in my hands. I’ll never forget that moment,” Charlie said.
Despite that progress, the family says Luca’s condition is still uncertain.
“But the doctors have told us not to keep our hopes up, as at any time his condition could worsen. All we can do is keep praying. We don’t know when he will be able to come home. But doctors said it will be a long time.”
A GoFundMe campaign has since been launched to help support Demi and Charlie as they continue spending time by Luca’s side during his recovery.
