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COLSON — CANADA
Born December 8, 2021 Late-onset Mother's GBS Status: Tested negative Gestational Age: 37 weeks Age Harmed: 13 days old |
Colson was born in December 2021 via vaginal delivery. I was induced due to hypertension & diabetes. I tested negative for GBS so the labour process was smooth and we welcomed our healthy baby boy into the world at 08:56am. We brought him home and spent the first 2 weeks enjoying our newborn & looking forward to Christmas with family.
On December 23rd we noticed he was grunting and sleeping more than usual. We figured he was constipated & was possibly fighting a virus. He went from eating every 2 hours to not eating at all. We brought him into our local ER after noticing his very high heart rate, only for the physician to say "chest X-ray came back clear, he's likely developing an infection, go home and watch it". That "diagnosis" almost cost him his life.
December 24th, we noticed the grunting again & felt bad that he was so constipated. We decided to bring him into the children's hospital instead. Within minutes of getting there, they had him triaged & told us he would require a lumbar puncture. We thought it was just routine. Within 48 hours we had a diagnosis. Our baby was septic, had GBS meningitis (the worst kind) and was a lot sicker than we thought. He had 3 lumbar punctures, 4 MRIs, an ICU consult, dozens of IV head pokes, PICC line, echos, possible stroke and medications that were shutting his kidneys down.
After 9 weeks of treatment he was finally discharged. My OB never informed me of symptoms to watch for and when my husband and I noticed abnormal behaviour, the doctor shrugged it off.
Speak up for your babies and trust your gut.
-Taylor
Spreads GBS awareness with family and friends, looking for more ways to spread awareness.
On December 23rd we noticed he was grunting and sleeping more than usual. We figured he was constipated & was possibly fighting a virus. He went from eating every 2 hours to not eating at all. We brought him into our local ER after noticing his very high heart rate, only for the physician to say "chest X-ray came back clear, he's likely developing an infection, go home and watch it". That "diagnosis" almost cost him his life.
December 24th, we noticed the grunting again & felt bad that he was so constipated. We decided to bring him into the children's hospital instead. Within minutes of getting there, they had him triaged & told us he would require a lumbar puncture. We thought it was just routine. Within 48 hours we had a diagnosis. Our baby was septic, had GBS meningitis (the worst kind) and was a lot sicker than we thought. He had 3 lumbar punctures, 4 MRIs, an ICU consult, dozens of IV head pokes, PICC line, echos, possible stroke and medications that were shutting his kidneys down.
After 9 weeks of treatment he was finally discharged. My OB never informed me of symptoms to watch for and when my husband and I noticed abnormal behaviour, the doctor shrugged it off.
Speak up for your babies and trust your gut.
-Taylor
Spreads GBS awareness with family and friends, looking for more ways to spread awareness.
To learn more about Perinatal & GBS Misconceptions, click HERE.
To learn more about the Signs & Symptoms of Preterm Labor, click HERE.
To learn more about the Signs & Symptoms of GBS Infection, click HERE.
To learn more about Why Membranes Should NOT Be Stripped, click HERE.
To learn more about How to Help Protect Your Baby from Group B Strep (GBS), click HERE.
To learn more about the Signs & Symptoms of Preterm Labor, click HERE.
To learn more about the Signs & Symptoms of GBS Infection, click HERE.
To learn more about Why Membranes Should NOT Be Stripped, click HERE.
To learn more about How to Help Protect Your Baby from Group B Strep (GBS), click HERE.