Dear Friends,
Welcome to my fundraising page! I am participating in the Miracles in Motion 5K, which is raising money for Johns Hopkins Children's Center. The funds raised by our team will directly support research and patient care at the Center for Fetal Therapy.
Let me tell you why supporting the John's Hopkins CFT is so important to me.
In September 2021, I learned I was expecting twins. My husband, Shawn, and I were thrilled and nervous, but ready for the challenge. What we were not ready for was the news we received just a few weeks later, when we learned that I had developed Twin-to-Twin Transfusion Syndrome, also called TTTS.
TTTS is a rare complication that effects about 3 in 10,000 pregnancies, including mine. It happens when identical twins share a placenta that doesn't grow correctly. In TTTS, the blood vessels in the placenta are unevenly shared, causing danger and distress to both babies. Without treatment, in nearly all cases, TTTS results in the death of both children.
Only a handful of hospitals in the US can treat TTTS, including John's Hopkins.
On my 35th birthday, I underwent surgery at Johns Hopkins to treat my TTTS and try to save my babies. This highly specialized surgery uses a laser, inserted through a small abdominal incision, to cauterize the placental blood vessels so the babies no longer share. While that certainly wasn't how I wanted to spend my birthday, giving my sons a chance at life was the best birthday gift I could ever receive. Wonderfully, the surgery was successful and I was able to carry the boys until they were able to be safely birthed at 32 weeks. They are now happy, healthy, rambunctious 3 year-olds.
The John's Hopkins Center for Fetal Therapy treats many fetal complications and is at the forefront of advanced treatments, including those for Spina Bifida, Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia, Fetal Tumors, TTTS, TRAP, and TAPS.
Without the very special doctors and ultrasound technicians at CFT, I would have lost my sons. The only way I can even try to repay them, is by supporting them in providing life saving care to other families. Every dollar raised through Miracles in Motion goes directly to the CFT to support research and patient care.
Please join me in supporting this fundraiser, so more families, just like mine, can access this incredible care. Thank you.
