I was born in #Managua, #Nicaragua in one of the best private hospitals in the country. My mother did not realize when she became #pregnant and her #gestational period remained uncertain. Without adequate #ultrasound or technology to identify my age in utero, her pregnancy became "high risk." In Nicaragua though, high risk pregnancies are common due to the lack of services, especially during the decade I was born. I was born a few years after the #revolutionary civil war in Nicaragua and the country was in ruins. Little to no access to food, let alone healthcare services.
Yet, I was one of the lucky babies born in one of the best hospitals. Despite the seemingly access to resources in comparison to other Nicaraguans, my mother's pregnancy was difficult. Towards the end of her pregnancy, she visited the doctor's office everyday to check on my health. The doctors were waiting for my mother to go into labor but she never did. My mother did not get labor pain (she didn't with my sister's #pregnancy either). One day, during one of her check-ups, the doctor noticed a weak heart beat and decided to perform an emergency c-section. The #csection was complicated, the doctor struggled to get me out and unknowingly broke my arm.
I cried every time they would lift my arm. When my mother inspected me, she realized my arm was swollen and called the nurse. The nurse was not sure what to do. In fact, no one knew what to do. There were no #neonatologists and doctors refused to treat a delicate #baby. In desperation, my dad decided to make a splint using a piece of #cereal box to prevent any movement and support healing. Splints, as known here in the United States were not available in Nicaragua at the time and my dad had to be #creative. Thankfully, baby's bones aren't fully developed at such an age, bones are mainly cartilage, and any fractured bones heal with little support. Here in the United States, such #fractures are treated with tiny baby splints to prevent movement and support healing, just like my dad treated mine. My #dad's creativity and his ingenuity healed my arm without proper medical supplies.
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