Parents: Erika and Norman Pierce
Hometown: Elizabethtown, Kentucky
Carried to term, lived almost an hour
Colten Michael’s Story
In July 2014 my husband and I found out we were pregnant with our first precious child. We couldn’t have been any happier. We were scheduled on October 28, 2014 for our anatomy scan. We had been looking forward to finding out the gender so we could finally give our child a name. Little did we know that day was going to be the most devastating day of our lives. During the scan we could sense that something was wrong from the way the ultrasound tech was reacting. We went to another room to speak with the doctor and he gave us the heartbreaking news that there were abnormalities on the scan. These abnormalities, he thought, seemed consistent with Trisomy 18 and we would need to see a specialist. We both sat and sobbed in each other’s arms. I knew this was a condition that is likely to be fatal in most cases.
We saw a specialist two days later that only continued to confirm our fears. They drew blood, and in combination with the ultrasound, the specialist was confident our child did indeed have Trisomy 18. We declined an amniocentesis due to the risk of miscarriage. We were given a choice at that time. We could induce if we felt necessary due to the diagnosis. This was never an option for us. We knew that our child would live as long as God intended no matter how long that may be. We were blessed to have this child and would not do anything to jeopardize his life. We were so lucky to have been able to celebrate both Thanksgiving and Christmas with our baby *boy*. Which we had finally found out after the blood work came back.
He was a shy little man during the ultrasounds. Every kick and movement by our sweet boy was cherished. Often, I would sit at home and just enjoy all his movements. I felt so close to him during those times. Our baby boy was born on 01/01/15 at 7:21 am. We got less than an hour with our precious, perfect (2 lb 3 oz, 13 in) angel before he left us. I thank God for every moment that we did have with him. Although his life here on earth may have been short, he gave us more joy and pride than we ever could have imagined. I was lucky enough to be with him every moment of his little life. I cherished every kick and movement, and I know how lucky I was to be able to experience that. He was more than we ever could have imagined. The love we have for him is unlike anything I could have anticipated.
Colten was a fighter, and although our hearts are breaking into a million pieces that don’t feel like they could possibly ever be put back together, we will be fighters too. I had a placental abruption that put me into an intense, quick labor that could not be stopped or anticipated. We have a long road ahead but we will cherish the memory of our son for the rest of our lives and we know that someday we will meet him again.