Journee’s Journey

Journee is now 3 years old, thriving and loves, letters, numbers, colors, animals and more. We are still struggling for mobility. But we are getting there, one day at a time. She will walk one day! We are surgery free for now. Her shunt has been stable for a year, keep prayers that she stays surgery free. I updated her picture from her PreK photo. As always we love you and thank you all!

Hello, my name is Jayna Jackson from Michigan, currently residing in Ohio. I’m a first time mom, at the age of 30 with a pregnancy experience that has changed me forever! I’ve made this fundraiser to raise love offerings and blessings for my daughter Journee. She was unexpectedly birthed at 24 weeks old.

My pregnancy started with no concerns or complications, always received a good report each doctors’ visit. Until, midway into my second trimester I found out during my anatomy screening, my cervix was short. At the time, I had no clue what that meant. Early labor never crossed my mind, being that her due date was July 27th, it just couldn’t be! What I thought I had 9-10 “easy” months to complete, suddenly changed to forfeiting my job in January, becoming bedridden, preterm laboring for two weeks, emergency cerclage surgery, hospitalization, and ultimately delivery! We’ve been on a long rocky “Journee”! Hence her name, she’s truly living up to!

Journee Rae Jackson arrived 24 weeks and 1 day, exactly her 6 month mark, due to a failed cerclage. A surgical procedure that assist in closing the cervix dilating prematurely. It’s not a promised procedure, but works for most expecting mothers. So it was worth a try! My daughter and I, unfortunately wasn’t the case. The procedure I hoped to work, actually increased agitation to my cervix, progressing my dilation to 5cm during the procedure. Which gave me a hot ticket to hospitalization! After prematurely laboring twice during my stay my body had gave up and fault against the cerclage, steroids, and magnesium used to slow contractions.

March 27th Journee arrived at 2:40am weighing 1 lb 4oz, known as a micro- preemie. Her prematurity cost her a level 4 intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) brain bleed on her left and right side. She was later transferred from Promedica of Toledo to Nationwide Children’s in Columbus, Ohio April 18th to assist with her hemorrhage. Just for them to discover Journee also has necrotizing enterocolitis known as (SEC) in which her intestines have a bacterial infection, known to kill infants in hours! Emergency surgery it is, within her first 48 hours of arrival she lost 8cm of her small intestine, and now has a ostomy. She has come a long way! So far, Journee has had over 10 different shunt revision. Yes, all were surgeries ! She’s a true fighter!

This “Journee” has had its highs and lows. I walked away from everything for my daughter! I had been living at the Ronald McDonald House of Columbus since her transfer, bedside daily advocating all her medical decisions.

I’m highly grateful for all for prayers, kind words and blessings, most high to Journee's Nationwide care team, Go Fund Me Foundation, Ronald McDonald House and all its volunteers! It takes a village!

Support Journee also via cash app $4Journee327