Dawson’s CDH Story

Our son Dawson was born on March 2, 2022. We had one ultrasound while pregnant with him at 20 weeks, where we were told he was healthy and all looked great. Delivery went well, and everything seemed good until the day we were discharged. A nursing student had heard his heartbeat on the right side of his body, which led them to do an x-ray. They told us he was rushed to the NICU and needed emergency surgery as he had a hole in his diaphragm, CDH, and all of his organs had moved up into his chest cavity. We were shocked. If she had not caught this, it likely would have been detrimental.

We immediately moved over to the NICU, where he was put on a ventilator in preparation for his CDH repair. His oxygen saturation was decreasing quickly, and his body was in distress. Just two hours later, he was taken to emergency surgery at only two days old. Fortunately, they were able to move all of his organs back to where they should be and repair the two-inch hole in his diaphragm. He made it through the four-hour surgery, and his team told us the first 24 hours after surgery would be the biggest battle. They warned us he would likely get worse before he would get better. It was the scariest time of our life.

Dawson continued to be a fighter and impressed our team of doctors and nurses daily. After just a day, he was able to get off the ventilator and moved to a CPAP. He then moved to just a nasal cannula and then room air. After a week, he was able to get breast milk through his feeding tube and then moved to bottles. He progressed daily, and after only two weeks in the NICU, we were able to go home. Dawson had a home health nurse come frequently for the first month at home and then graduated from those appointments as well.

Now, at two years old, it is hard to believe he ever faced this CDH battle. He is strong, resilient, and busy. His favorite toy is any kind of ball — or anything he can find to throw! Dawson is thriving in all areas of life, and we are so very grateful.

Our team of doctors and nurses was incredible and gave us so much strength. With a sudden diagnosis, it was easier to educate ourselves on his condition with the scary statistics that we found on Google. I was so relieved when I found the Tiny Hero community, as it gave me a sense of peace and better understanding. We hope our story provides hope for others who may be navigating these same fears and worries.