Soleannys Lugo was told to have her baby terminated while pregnant after scans showed the child would be 'incompatible with life' according to The Daily Mail.
Looking back as the child reaches her third birthday, Lugo doesn't seem to regret the decision that would be difficult to turn down for some mothers.
Today, Lugo and her husband Henry Buitrago, are caring and growing with their child, Helianny Francheska. The story to get to this point has had many twists and turns, but it would seem that love takes form that looks past the syndrome that affected the girl before birth.
Going back to the moment with the doctor, scans showed that the child suffered from Amniotic Band Syndrome, when the fetus "becomes entangled in fibrous string-like amniotic bands in the womb" which affects her development.
In a CafeMom post, the news was devastating:
"We received the news that Helianny had many deformations of her hands, feet, eyes, lips, nose, skull, and brain. Only her other organs and [spinal] column were okay. Her condition was the result of Amniotic Band Syndrome. She became entangled in string-like amniotic bands in the womb. That restricted her blood flow and affected her development."
From there, the doctor gave suggestions on what to do next. It is safe to say that none of these options included going forward with the birth:
While I cried inconsolably, the doctor suggested donating her organs. It seemed so cruel on her part to ask that at such a tragic moment in our lives. We left that office with our hearts broken and our dreams shattered. My husband and I felt an inexplicable pain like nothing we’ve ever felt before.
Then her husband said something that set them on a path that should be inspiring to anybody:
After crying for a long time, we stared into each other’s eyes; we hugged, and my husband said in my ear, "Let’s keep going. Do you want to?
I immediately told him yes of course I wanted to. And that’s how we decided to keep the pregnancy -- we decided to give Helianny a chance.
From there, doctors didn't give much hope and kept suggesting to end the pregnancy. According to her post, all the doctors suggested the same thing:
Helianny would die in my womb or if we were lucky enough, she would be born alive but die shortly after delivery. I have always believed in God and I clung to my unconditional faith. I went back to my OB-GYN and told him with an unwavering stance, "I will continue this pregnancy. Please manage it like any other," and so he did as I asked.
As we know, the baby was born alive. And the real work started.
Returning home, Soleannys and her husband had to monitor the child's sleep and work hard to ensure the baby's health. Also, they had to contend with life in Venezuela, which was a trial on its own according to her story:
The first days were very difficult. Due to my condition, I was only able to see her after 24 hours. The nurses started whispering that I didn’t want to see my own daughter, that I was rejecting her. After hearing those comments, I decided to try to get up even with the extreme pain I was feeling...
Helianny was able to come home with her father and me after 13 days in observation. I felt at a crossroads without knowing where to go from there and without any guidance.
As she says, their family and the child get stronger every day. And as they keep moving forward and getting surgeries for the child to live comfortably, they keep encountering the same tale:
The anesthesiologist said she didn’t believe that Helianny could survive this operation. But I was confident that my daughter would come out alive and Helianny didn’t disappoint me -- the surgery was a success.
I thank God because so far everything has worked out. She had two other operations to correct a clubfoot and to release her lip.
The story was great fodder in the media, with perseverance and faith winning out over the general thoughts of the medical community. It is her choice to fight on and it makes for a fine story to raise awareness for the child.
Was it the best decision? Maybe not. But you can't deny that the baby is powering forward and proving all the doctors wrong.
It's a story where you wish the best for everybody involved. Helianny and her parents might not have a long time together. Or they might live long lives. Nobody knows for sure and this story proves it.
What is certain is this family is spending their time living. And living as well as they can.
Right now, Helianny is safe with people who obviously love her. They may know that their time together is limited, so they are spending as much time as they can creating happy memories.
And it looks like they've been able to take her to the beach and out on the water. Helianny appears to be having some fun too. These are all moments she would not have had if her mom had done what the doctors suggested.
The family also posted a thank you to doctors who have helped them on their journey. "We are so grateful to God first for the blessing we have received from you Dr. Oswal from India to Venezuela where once again it is shown that to help there are no borders, thank you very much for taking into account the case of Helianny Francheska. We ask God with all the faith in the world to bless this treatment as well as the hands that do it. Amen"
Helianny is so loved, she even gets serenaded!
