Meet Little Miss Teagan
June came and my family had a celebration for me, their wee little warrior. Surrounded by friends and family, they focused all of their energy into fighting for me, their daughter, lining up the best doctors and surgeons for me that were within their reach, and arming themselves with knowledge to face what they had to directly after I entered the world. My mommy and daddy trusted in God and didn't stress through the pregnancy. They smiled a lot, they lived a little more knowing that their world was soon to be forever changed, and they kept their eyes on Jesus. I was made just the way He intended. My family's smiles and demeanor baffled the cardiologist. That would continue well into my journey, as my family's smiles have rarely wavered.
August 19, 2012, 5 weeks early, I, Teagan Kelly Zeitler, came in this world kicking and screaming, all 5 lb 12 oz of me. Mommy says I was gorgeous and feisty from the start. She was able to hold me for a whole 60 seconds before they wisked me away to the children's hospital to stabilize and treat me. The first of my three surgeries would be in five days. My family kept focus and smiled and thanked God for His favor on them.
I quickly began to struggle due to my anatomy. My lungs got too much blood for how my heart was constructed and I quickly ended up with collapsed lungs. Surgery was postponed and I had to be out on a ventilator. My family was devastated, but they held onto hope and the peace that passes all undestanding. Days passed and I was clearly not strong enough for surgery and soon became septic, meaning I had an infection in my blood racing throughout my entire body. If there was something that could go wrong it did. I kept getting sicker, not stronger. My parents continued to smile through the storms, and thank God.
At three weeks old, the time came where something had to be done or they would risk losing me, their girl. I appeared to have beat the infection, but the doctors were not 100% sure. The doctors wanted a few more days to be sure, but there was not that kind of time. I was born with a VSD, a heart defect that was actually allowing blood to flow in such a way that it was helping me, but that had started to close and the doctors had to go in now. My mommy and daddy were so strong; they smiled and thanked God for providing such a skilled team of doctors treating their fragile baby.
I received my first open heart surgery, called the Norwood, and from a cardiac standpoint flew through it. For many weeks after I clawed my way to health. I battled numerous setbacks, including collapsed lungs, damaged lymphatic ducts, and intense gastrointestinal issues. I also received new diagnosis of Turner Syndrome, horseshoe kidney, and failure to thrive. After a long 3 months, I finally came home to my family..
I have had 3 more hospital visits, for the basic cold (something that can kill babies with heart defects), non-stop unexplained vomiting, and a terribly failed attempt to place a specialized feeding tube. It has been a long hard road; my mommy and daddy know I may be their little fragile girl, but I am a fighter.
Friday, February 1 I received the second of the three stage series of the open heart surgeries, the Glenn. I continue to recover at our local children’s hospital. Please continue to pray for me because there is a bit of fluid around my lungs and I just want to get healthy so I can go home with my mommy, daddy, brothers and sisters.
Through it all my family has seen God's hand present in every step of my short, but powerful life. He has moved thousands through my journey which they have chosen to share via Facebook. I have shown my parents what true strength is and has been worth every bit of struggle through the difficult days. They continue still to smile, and even more abundantly today thanking God for His gift of every day He gives them with me.
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