- C
On June 6, 2015 Caleb and I had a life changing experience. We found out our son, Charlie William Gee, had no heartbeat at 38 weeks. I had noticed the night before that I had not felt the baby move. We went in to the hospital the next morning after trying several things at home get the baby to move. While waiting in triage in Labor and Delivery, we got the news that every parent dreads. “I am sorry but there is no heartbeat.” Those words were crushing. It was in that moment we knew life would never be the same. We learned that sweet baby was a boy. About ten hours later, on June 7, our beautiful son, Charlie William Gee was born into my arms. We had been surrounded by family and my amazing birth team during much of my labor. His birth was peaceful--a moment that was just Caleb and I. Even though there were many tears, we felt surrounded by God’s presence and peace.
But like every parent who goes through the loss of their child, we were racing against time. Many parents do not know that after the death of a baby, just like any other thing after it passes away, the baby's body will rapidly deteriorate. If the body is kept at a very cool temperature it can delay the process of decomposition. Unfortunately, Caleb and I did not have that option available to us. Only six short hours after he was born, we kissed our son for the very last time and delivered him into the arms of our nurse. That moment was the hardest thing I have ever done. No mother or father is ever prepared to say goodbye to their child. The time was so short. We had more hugs, more kisses and more prayers to give. I had wished there was something that could have given that to us.
We learned shortly after that a product had been invented to keep the baby cool thus allowing the parents unlimited time with their baby. It was called a Cuddle Cot. Unfortunately, the hospital where Charlie was born at did not have a Cuddle Cot at the time. After much prayer and encouragement by another local doula, Marcia Mattern, I decided to start this campaign to raise funds to provide a cuddle cot to a local hospital in honor of our son. After finding out that OSF St. Joseph Medical Center was without a Cuddle Cot, I wanted to provide one for them.
A Cuddle Cot is small, light and quiet and is designed for use with deceased babies in any moses basket or cot. The manufacturers of the Cuddle Cot state, "Dealing with the death of a baby is clearly an incredibly difficult event for parents and bereaved parents should be given the option of spending time with their baby. Providing families time through the use of the CuddleCot is internationally encouraged by midwives, bereavement practitioners, still birth/neonatal charities, and academics. Time allows the family to form an important bond with their baby; whether changing a nappy (diaper), dressing the baby, taking photographs or simply just staying close this unquestionably helps families in dealing with their loss. The problem is that in a warm room the baby’s condition can deteriorate quickly, therefore cooling the baby is absolutely essential. Transferring to and from the hospital morgue is now widely regarded as an outdated practice as it is traumatic for parents to repeatedly go through the separation process whereas the CuddleCot allows the family to spend every moment with their baby, precious moments where every minute counts."
Would you please help me to provide the gift of time to other parents who will unfortunately experience the loss of a child whether through miscarriage, stillbirth, or infant loss? Every donation whether big or small gets us one step closer to providing this amazing gift to other parents. I truly thank you for your generosity. Your love, support and prayers through this campaign mean the world to us. God Bless all of you.
But like every parent who goes through the loss of their child, we were racing against time. Many parents do not know that after the death of a baby, just like any other thing after it passes away, the baby's body will rapidly deteriorate. If the body is kept at a very cool temperature it can delay the process of decomposition. Unfortunately, Caleb and I did not have that option available to us. Only six short hours after he was born, we kissed our son for the very last time and delivered him into the arms of our nurse. That moment was the hardest thing I have ever done. No mother or father is ever prepared to say goodbye to their child. The time was so short. We had more hugs, more kisses and more prayers to give. I had wished there was something that could have given that to us.
We learned shortly after that a product had been invented to keep the baby cool thus allowing the parents unlimited time with their baby. It was called a Cuddle Cot. Unfortunately, the hospital where Charlie was born at did not have a Cuddle Cot at the time. After much prayer and encouragement by another local doula, Marcia Mattern, I decided to start this campaign to raise funds to provide a cuddle cot to a local hospital in honor of our son. After finding out that OSF St. Joseph Medical Center was without a Cuddle Cot, I wanted to provide one for them.
A Cuddle Cot is small, light and quiet and is designed for use with deceased babies in any moses basket or cot. The manufacturers of the Cuddle Cot state, "Dealing with the death of a baby is clearly an incredibly difficult event for parents and bereaved parents should be given the option of spending time with their baby. Providing families time through the use of the CuddleCot is internationally encouraged by midwives, bereavement practitioners, still birth/neonatal charities, and academics. Time allows the family to form an important bond with their baby; whether changing a nappy (diaper), dressing the baby, taking photographs or simply just staying close this unquestionably helps families in dealing with their loss. The problem is that in a warm room the baby’s condition can deteriorate quickly, therefore cooling the baby is absolutely essential. Transferring to and from the hospital morgue is now widely regarded as an outdated practice as it is traumatic for parents to repeatedly go through the separation process whereas the CuddleCot allows the family to spend every moment with their baby, precious moments where every minute counts."
Would you please help me to provide the gift of time to other parents who will unfortunately experience the loss of a child whether through miscarriage, stillbirth, or infant loss? Every donation whether big or small gets us one step closer to providing this amazing gift to other parents. I truly thank you for your generosity. Your love, support and prayers through this campaign mean the world to us. God Bless all of you.