As Valentine’s Day draws near, I am reminded of a story that I read in 1995 about twin baby girls. When they were born on October 17, 1995, they were premature by 12 weeks and were put in the neonatal intensive care unit of the Medical Center in Central Massachusetts in Worcester.
As a standard practice of the hospital, the babies were placed into separate incubators in order to reduce the risk of infection. One baby, Kyrie, was much larger than her sister Brielle, who only weighed two pounds at her birth.
Kyrie slept well and was healthily gaining weight, but her smaller sister Brielle, was having trouble breathing and had low levels of oxygen in her blood. She also had low weight gain and problems with her heart rate. Everyone was deeply concerned, especially a particular nurse named Gayle Kasparian, who was trying everything she could think of to help Brielle.
On November 12th, Brielle had an emergency health situation. She started gasping for air and turning a gray-blue color. She got the hiccups and her heart rate went way up. Everyone was afraid Brielle would not survive.
In desperation, Nurse Kasparian remembered a common procedure that a fellow colleague had mentioned to her once. It was common practice in most of Europe, but was not done in this country. It was the practice of placing newborn multiple-birth babies in the same bed together. They called it double-bedding.
She was not able to ask permission from her manager, because she was away and unable to be reached, so she asked the parents’ permission to put the girls together in one bed, to see if it would help. They agreed. Nurse Kasparian broke the rules and placed the larger baby in the same crib with her smaller baby sister, who was now in extreme danger of dying.
The moment they were together, Brielle immediately snuggled up to her sister and within minutes, Brielle’s readings for her blood and oxygen were better than they had been since her birth. Kyrie gently put her arm around Brielle. It was such a beautiful hug.
In the article I read, they called it a rescuing hug. It was a very powerful hug. Being together had quite literally saved Brielle’s life. It wasn’t much later that the parents were able to take both girls home, because they were both thriving.
Nurse Kasparian did not get in trouble. In fact, the practice of double-bedding multiple births is now a standard practice at the hospital. Sometimes, breaking the rules can lead to changes in old antiquated practices. It takes courage and a strong heart to do what you believe in.
So, as we lead our busy lives, we need to remember to stay connected, and to be loving and caring and kind to others. You can literally save another’s life, just by being there for them.
Hug your loved ones, listen to what they have to say, and reach out with the most precious gift you can give, the gift of you.
You may never know how much of an impact you might have on another’s life, but remember, ”To the world you may just be someone, but to someone you may be the whole world”.
Have a joyful and loving February.
I am sending a hug to each and every one of you.
Love, Nancy
xxoo
By Nancy Addison CHC, AADP
copyright@nancyaddison2015
This is a beautiful story about the power of a hug.
It really touched my heart.
Thank you for always sharing these kind and heart-warming stories.
I look forward to reading your newsletter each month!!
Great story! We can all use a hug. Happy St. Valentine’s Day to you!