A Quick Update on Lynette

When I saw Lynette's name on the roster for Friday prenatals, my eyes eagerly scanned the crowd for her face. I called her number and impatiently waved my hand for her to come sit by me. I was desperate to know what her second ultrasound revealed. I clasped her hand within mine and asked if she had been able to get the scan and she nodded slowly, reaching for a brown envelope to give to me.

I pulled out that white sheet of paper, my heart racing with dread and hope simultaneously. The sonologist remarked that the baby boy was only 28 gestational age (roughly 7 months) and had a grossly enlarged left ventricle in his brain, indicating hydrocephalus - or extra fluid in the brain. The uterus was also filled with too much fluid.

As horrid as this sounds, I was thankful. Anencephaly is a certain death sentence. Hydrocephaly is not. I explained what her ultrasound possibly meant and asked her to be sure to show the results to Mavis when her number was called. Then we briefly prayed together. (I'm still puzzled by what I saw on the screen when I scanned her compared to what the ultrasonographer saw.)

I later asked Mavis what she had decided to do: during her exam, Mavis felt two strong, definite contractions...much too early for labor! If the second ultrasound had confirmed anencephaly, we may have tried to deliver her at our birthing home because no amount of money, of which they have very little, could save this baby's life. However, if it is truly hydrocephalus, there is a good chance the baby could survive with advanced medical attention and equipment. She was referred to the Philippine General Hospital as they are the best institution for dealing with this sort of thing. I hope her family was able to scrounge together the resources to take her. Room and services are free, but all medications and medical equipment must be paid for in advance.

Please pray for Lynette and her little one. I have no way of knowing if she did deliver, if her baby still lives, or if she made it to the hospital. But God does.