Scarlett Sandoval was born at 32 weeks by emergency cesarean section.
The weeks leading up to her birth were stressful, to say the least.
Her mother, Jennifer, knew something was wrong when her belly looked bigger than normal for 30 weeks.
After going to the emergency department three separate times, she was told by doctors that she was just dehydrated and needed rest.
"I had a gut feeling that something was wrong," says Jennifer.
One night she turned to her husband with tears in her eyes and said that she knew something was wrong with her baby.
Following her gut, she made an appointment to get an ultrasound and found out that baby Scarlett had hydrops fetalis, a life-threatening condition that cases the fetus to become swollen.
Scarlett was born not crying or breathing.
She had chest tubes in both of her lungs and was intubated and placed on a vent.
"I was scared and worried for my baby," says Jennifer. "I was wondering if there was anything I could have done to prevent the hydrops from happening to her."
Today, Scarlett is healthy, growing and thriving.
She just turned 1 in August 2018.
"You would never think she was ever sick and almost died," says Jennifer. "We are so grateful to the wonderful staff that helped us through this scary time. My husband and I work for another hospital, and the quality of health care at Kapiolani is phenomenal."
Published on: October 19, 2018