My son Clyde is an energetic 22-month-old from Josephine, Texas who loves music! Clyde was born early at 27 weeks (about 6.5 months) and weighed 1lb and 11oz. He spent almost the whole first year of his life at the NICU. Not even a month after he was born, Clyde caught a staph infection and several sicknesses or viruses that made him have such a hard time weaning with the ventilator. At his 5th month of age, we had to make a very hard decision to proceed to have his trach and G-tube surgery to avoid more developmental delay. We had a lot of training from the hospital and Apple HMS to learn more about his needs and how to take care of him. We got discharged last April, a month before his first birthday. It was the best day ever! Ever since he came home, Clyde has been thriving pretty well. Not saying every day is perfect and happy but he is developing amazingly.
My son is amazing because he’s simultaneously the most unique person you could ever meet, but also just like other children in so many ways. He has so much to offer the world! His smile lights up the room, and he can teach you a lot about yourself. Like all other kids, he has a silly sense of humor, and he wants to be involved. Clyde thrives on social interaction, and he loves to explore the world. He may go about things a little differently, and it may not always be obvious how to talk to him if you don’t know him but just TRY!
Clyde has overcome a lot already at his young age. He has had multiple surgeries and sicknesses. It is so amazing watching him grow from a little tiny baby; now he is such a very hyper toddler. It is amazing to think about how tiny he was 2 years ago, surrounded with all the machines that helped him breathe and now he is almost running and breathing on his own. I am so proud of my little guy because he has crushed so many difficulties. Life is so different now than last year. He is more active and more aware of what is going on. He hates to be on the vent and doesn’t like anything attached to him.
It is an honor to be Clyde’s mom. There were a lot of challenges at the beginning, but I would never change a thing. He brings so much joy into our family! Of course, life after NICU is still very challenging. A medically complex baby is very challenging. There are some intense moments at times filled with overwhelming stress, but we have to remain calm in order to successfully take care of Clyde. Afterwards, I look at my son and I see how perfect and peaceful he looks and it makes it all worth it. Our worst days at home are 1000x better than our best days in the hospital. It is an absolute honor and delight to have Clyde in our life.
Life is starting to move more and more towards “normal” and I’m so grateful. It was almost a year ago that we got to bring this little ray of sunshine home. We didn’t know what to expect, we just knew it would be better together. Clyde is loved beyond measure. This kid is seriously a miracle. He is our micro preemie, our tiny hero, our miracle, our 27 weeker, our son… and the world is his!