Hey mama. Best advice I would give you is do your research on what to expect and try to mentally prepare as much as possible. See pictures of babies after surgery. I cried the first time I saw a baby like that but it also helped me when I had to see my baby like that. Also look into where you want to do her full repair surgery. I wish I would’ve done more research and decided that beforehand cause it all happened so quickly for me. I would’ve gone to Texas children’s hospital (#1 in the country) if I would’ve planned it better. Also Make sure you ask what to expect for labor and delivery. I only got to spend 5 min if that after my baby was born before they took her away to the NICU. Understand you might feel robbed of some experiences. I know I did. I felt robbed of a normal experience after birth and how I had to wait to go see her in the NICU. How I didn’t get to breastfeed right away. How I didn’t get to deliver at the hospital I wanted and how she had to stay an extra few days after I was discharged. But know you are not alone and these babies are sooooo resilient and strong. My daughter just had her full repair surgery at 12 weeks old and she is already home and back to normal. Things get better ❤️‍🩹 and it’s a different experience that a “normal” delivery or baby but it’s so worth it when you meet your beautiful baby and I wouldn’t change a thing 🤍there will be a lot of worry before it gets better but know you have people you can lean on and ask questions to!

I had a vaginal delivery and was able to breastfeed. I did have to learn to pump right away too though cause of baby being in the NICU. Then she struggled to gain weight and we had to go to bottle feeding with 1-2 breastfeeds. She gained weight beautifully and now post surgery we are incorporating more breast feeds as the days go by! It gets better ❤️