Background on Baby Cayden

Below are the past mass emails that I sent out to everyone updating them on my difficult pregnancy and the birth of Baby Cayden.
May 25th, 2011 (mass email #1) :

Dear Friends and Family, 

I wanted to give you an update on the current state of the baby and
believe it or not, we have run into another obstacle in our pregnancy
that leaves us desperate for prayer.  Please email this to as many
family members as possible as the more that are gathered in agreement in
prayer, the more confident we are that God’s in control.

You won’t believe what happened. We have already been through trying to
get pregnant for over a year, a cyst on my ovary bursting in the first
month, a heterotopic pregnancy, a complicated surgery, severe nerve
damage done to my right leg during surgery, a miscarriage scare and now
another obstacle.  My OB doctor and her colleagues and fellow
specialists all say they have never seen one woman endure so many trials
in one pregnancy and they all seem in shock of how the baby is
continuing to persevere.

Yesterday, my water broke (way to early).  This means I may lose the
baby but there is still a rare possibility that the baby will make it
and be fine.  I have to be on bed rest for the next 4 weeks until I am
24 weeks… this is when the baby is considered viable.  At this point, if
the baby has survived those 4 weeks with a decrease in amniotic fluid, I
will then be admitted to the hospital for the remaining 2 and half
months of my pregnancy to be daily monitored and observed. 

Now that my water sack has broken, there is a high risk of my
contracting an infection of the uterus which can become fatal, so I have
to be under close monitoring.  If I do contract an infection from the
baby’s fluid now mixing with mine, they may have to terminate the
pregnancy to keep me alive.  I was sobbing all day yesterday and I am
trying to stay in faith and away from fear as much as possible.  Please
pray for me and the baby... that we avoid any health problems and that
the baby makes it and arrives healthy.  It is very rare that the baby
makes it when the water sack  breaks this early, because a decrease in
fluids effects the baby’s lungs from expanding and growing.  With the
power of prayer, we believe our baby can beat the odds.  There is
nothing I want more than to be a Mommy and this is my only chance at
having a baby naturally as I don’t have any fallopian tubes left after
the surgery. My doctor says that there is always a
chance of a miracin this pregnancy due to prayer)… the miracle being that one in a
million of these cases, the water sack just reseals itself and
everything continues normally, but that is unheard of. Thank you so much
for being persistent in praying for the baby and our family.  We really
appreciate your support and we really need family and friends during a
time like this.

Concerning a baby shower, if the baby makes it through the next four
weeks, I will be hospitalized for the remaining 2-3 months of my
pregnancy.  So, I am so grateful to have a shower thrown for me, but it
may be best to do a shower after the baby is born… a Shower/Sip and See
(sip drinks and see the baby J).  That’s just a thought I had. 
Hopefully, a miracle will take place and my water sack will re-seal and
I will be back to a normal pregnancy soon and we won’t have to wait
until after the birth.  It means the world to me to have married into
such an incredible family.
Mandy Dirksen


June 11th, 2011 (mass email #2) :

I apologize for taking so long to send out an update on Baby Dirksen.  I
know that so many of you have been praying and there aren’t words
elaborate enough to express how grateful we are to all of you for your
consistent prayers.  This has definitely been the most trying time in
mine and Chad’s life.  At 20 weeks, my water broke early and this time
has been critical for us.  We were told by all doctors that if the baby
does not survive up until the time of 23 weeks and 5 days old, there is
nothing medically that can be done.  They also said that my chance of
becoming infected once my water broke were extremely high and if I did
develop a temperature, it was a sign that I had contracted an infection
of the uterus.  Once this happens, they have no choice but to deliver
the baby and if it is before 24 weeks, the baby would not survive.  This
Sunday, June 12th will be 22 weeks and I have yet to develop a
temperature or any sort of infection.
Praise God!!  Also, after leaving the doctor’s office on May 25th, they
told me that I was not going to be seen again until June 25rd when I
would be admitted to the hospital.  They also told me that the baby’s
heartbeat could possibly stop at anytime.  Loved ones strongly
encouraged me to insist on weekly ultrasounds with my doctor to check
the heartbeat.  Fortunately, my request was granted.  Last week on
Monday, the heart beat was strong!  And believe it or not, all of the
water from my sack had not leaked out yet; there were still a couple
small pockets of fluid which is so much better than nothing.  Again,
Praise be to God!  He is faithful in answering our prayers.  I have
another ultrasound this Monday, so I am asking you to please pray that
the heartbeat is still just as strong and that there are still pockets
of fluid left for my baby.

I also begged them to grant me an over-the-phone appt. with a
specialist/a perinatologist.  During that phone appointment, she
informed me of some statistics regarding my situation:  There is only a
50% chance the baby will survive and a 15% chance that the baby will
make it to delivery and then die within a week.  Then, if the baby does
survive past a week after birth, there is another 50% chance that the
baby will have lung disease, developmental disabilities or club foot.
Club foot can be corrected with braces and lung problems would be the
most serious issue other than non-survival.  I hope this information is
helpful if you desire to pray for specifics.  Chad and I and our
families 100% believe that it is completely because of prayer that this
baby has made it this far and we are whole-heartedly grateful to you for
your commitment to praying for our child and our family.  There is
nothing we value as more important or treasure more.
Knowing that so many are praying is the number one fact that has
assisted me in trying to remain calm and trust in the Lord.  I have
continued to be reassured by God making himself evident to us.  We went
to Babies R Us the other night to register and the young girl helping us
with our registry asked if she could share her story with us.  She went
on to tell us that she was the product of a high risk pregnancy and was
delivered at only 24 weeks.  She shared with us that she is in Honor’s
classes and is completely healthy.  She says she has had minor struggles
with her lungs, resulting in an annual episode of Bronchitis, but
nothing serious.  It is not mere coincidence that she was the one who
helped us register that night for our miracle baby.  I asked every
question possible to the specialist (many that were sent to me from my
sister, Megan and my sister-in-law, Kristi).  I was told that there is
nothing that I can do to make my situation
with the water sack better… not drinking more fluids or lying down 100%
of the time.  Due to there being so little fluid, it is much harder for
the baby to move and so it will be very difficult for me to feel my baby
inside me which is hastill trucking along.  Also, during our 20 week ultrasound, the baby’s
legs were closed and will stay that way until delivery, so we will not
know the sex until after the baby is born.  I was also told, that the
fluid does not replace itself and that once it all leaks out, I will be
without fluid.  However, every time the baby urinates, more fluid is
produced but then just leaks out.  If there are any other questions you
might have for me, please email them to me and I will be more than happy
to answer if I know or find the answer.

I’d like to share with you a little more about what we are currently
facing along with our main struggle.  It has definitely felt like we
were under attack.  We have ran into almost every “possible” problem
with our pregnancy and in the midst of our most trying struggle, both of
our cars started breaking down.  The engine blew in our first car, and
at the same time, our other car began to have serious transmission
problems and it is only a matter of time before the transmission
completely goes out.  Also, right after I came out of surgery for my
heterotopic pregnancy, Chad went into surgery to have his Gallbladder
removed.  We were both completely isolated to our bed for over a week
and only got by with the help of both sets of parents and my sister
Megan.  Chad doesn’t have Kaiser like I do because he is insured through
Veteran’s Affairs, so we were hit with a huge bill just for the
ambulance ride and another similar size bill for his
stay in the hospital.  If that weren’t enough, a few weeks after we
both got out of surgery, we noticed that our laminate floors were
beginning to warp.  Come to find out, we had a serious leak in back of
our kitchen sink and we had severe water damage throughout our entire
kitchen… cupboards, floors, walls… everything.  It had began turning
into a major mold problem.  And when we called our Home Owner’s
insurance to file our claim, they continued giving us reasons why we
were not covered and the minimum cost of repairing our kitchen was going
to be $10,000.  At this point in our “adventure,” it became hard to
breath and I started to fear that my stress and anxiety was harmful to
the baby.  We only had a small savings and I had absolutely no idea how
people get through situations like ours. We prayed and prayed and
eventually, I threw my hands up in surrender, knowing that trusting in
God to provide was the only way.  I had no clue
how he could possibly do it and I fought fear with faith daily,
sometimes hourly.  A couple of days ago, our Home Owner’s insurance
called out of the blue and said that they had decided to take our
claim!!  UNBELIEVEABLE!!  Chad and I were in complete shock.  Well,
that’s not entirely true.  I must tattle on myself and say that “I”
was in complete shock, while Chad simply looked at me and said, “I told
you that God’s got us.”  I strive to have his level of faith, trust and
assuredness.  I really wanted to take the time to share with you our
praises and testimony.  Our insurance is going to be putting us in an
extended stay hotel while they are renovating our kitchen and re-doing
our entire flooring.  This has been such a relief and answer to prayer!
When we thought that insurance wasn’t going to take our claim, Papa Ron,
Uncle Rick and my Dad all offered to take time off to come help us with
the repairs.  We are so incredibly
blessed to have such loving, willing family members to help us in our
time of need.  It seemed that everyone we told about our struggle,
offered to help in any way that they could.  Even our good friends Will
and Kayla said they didn’t have any experience with kitchen repairs, but
would be willing to provide labor.  We are so, so blessed! I have to say
that I am incredibly grateful that my family members and friends are not
having to do all of that hard labor now and face the dangers of the
mold!  I really need the support of my husband and his time while I am
in the hospital and if he was having to fix owould’ve had to be without him often.  Although, insurance taking our
claim is such an obvious answer to prayer, our financial situation
remains trying with the medical bills, car problems and a landscaping
issue we just found out about that needs to be rectified in order to
keep water from running toward our home!  I
share this only to ask for your prayers as it is clear that their power
is amazing.  It has proven so in that our baby is still going strong and
our kitchen and mold problem is being taken care of!!  It is all of you
whom are to be thanked!! 

I have included my initial email below and please forward this email to
anyone that has been praying or may be willing to do so, if I have not
included them in the above distribution.  I will be admitted to the
Kaiser Hospital in Roseville on June 25th.  At this time, I will be
under constant monitoring and if anything goes wrong after this date,
the baby is viable and they will do everything possible to deliver the
baby safely.  There will be much relief once I am admitted.  It will be
a trying time because I will not be able to leave the hospital for the
remainder of my pregnancy.  If I can carry my baby the full time without
interruption, I will be in the hospital for 2-3 months and they will
induce me around 35 weeks.  Your prayers are our greatest weapon, so I
thank you with my deepest gratitude.

Thank you so much for praying and continuing to pray.  We love you and
cherish your support.

Mandy, Chad and Baby Dirksen
(Mandy is the daughter of John and Gerri Mitchell.  Chad is the son


Mass email #3 :

Dearest Friends, Family and fellow Prayer Warriors,

            Hi Everyone!!  I wanted to make sure and send out another
update because I know that so many of you are praying.  Chad and I, and
our families cannot thank you enough for your dedication to praying for
our baby.  It has been amazingly clear that prayer is what is carrying
us through every single day.  I am in the hKaiser in the Women and Children’s Center (Building B), room 332 in the
high risk area.  I have been here for 9 days.  I was admitted on Monday,
June 27th and the first night was extremely difficult because they had
all the specialists come by to evaluate me and discuss with me all of
the potential risks and difficulties associated with my situation.  I
had to hear about the risk of blindness, deafness, cerebral palsy,
mental retardation, lung disease, brain complications, club foot and the
most dreaded… death at birth or shortly after.  They even asked me that
if the baby comes out
looking as though it is going to pass, do I want the doctors to
intervene and try to resuscitate.  I couldn’t believe that they even
asked me that question.  It was a night of a lot of tears, but I was
again surprised at the overall peace I was experiencing.  I know that is
a result of all of you praying.  It is a peace beyond all my
understanding.  I keep telling Chad how I cannot understand why I have
an overall calm and sense of security in the midst of this storm.  It is
puzzling to me and not characteristic of how I would normally respond in
such a painful time. 

They put me in my own room and basically let me move in, because I could
potentially be here up to two and a half months.  The longest that they
will keep me pregnant is 35 weeks and that would be optimal because the
baby has less and less risk the longer she stays in utero.  All of the
nurses tell me that staying pregnant that long is highly unlikely due to
the fact that there is very little fluid left and as the baby grows, the
chances of going into labor continue to increase.  The nurses are really
great to me and I am getting to know all of them really well.  They
monitor the baby’s heartbeat for a half an hour twice a day.  The heart
beat is strong and doing well so far.  I had a PICC line put in which is
a more permanent IV so that I am ready at all times if I am rushed into
emergency surgery.  I am daily struggling with debilitating pain in my
right leg which was caused to a stretch injury to my nerves that
happened during the
herterotopic surgery to remove our baby’s twin that was stuck in the
tube.  I really need prayer for the healing of my right leg and in the
meantime, prayer for the doctors to find the appropriate treatment for
the pain that does not involve any risk to our baby.  It never hurts to
still pray for the miracle that my water sack seals back up all on its
own.  They say that is nearly impossible, but I know how big my God is.
Whatever does end up happening, I know that this baby inside me is
absolutely a miracle child.

This pregnancy has been filled with so many trials and tribulations,
pain and heartache and Chad and I are confident that God has a very real
purpose in all of this and we are looking forward to seeing what he is
going to do.  I have to say, it excites me to think about.  I was really
dreading being locked away in the hospital for so long, but it has been
so much better than expected.  People are coming to visit me all the
time and I just love that.  So, if you would like to visit please know
that you are more than welcome.  My family has been coming to help take
care of me on a regular basis and I feel so blessed to have the best
parents, sisters and nephew in the world!  My sister in law, Kristi, her
husband and my four nieces and nephews are on a trip all the way from
Wisconsin and they took time to come see me in hospital which was so
wonderful! Chad’s mom was with them and it was so great to spend time
with them!  I have also had many
friends come by and the visiting (and of course bringing me yummy
“non-hospital” food) is really helping me through this difficult
time!  Chad is living out of a suitcase and spends almost every night
with me on a tiny window seat bed.  Again, we can’t thank you enough for
your prayers and plead with you to continue praying as much as you can.
I really believe prayers are our biggest weapon.  We love you all and
appreciate your support during this time.

Sincerely,

Mandy


July 25, 2011 (mass email #4) :

Hi Friends and Family!!

This is update #4 on Baby Dirksen.  All of the past updates are below.

Baby Dirksen was born!!!... on July 23, 2011 at 3:44 pm at 2 lbs. 14
ounces, 14 3/4' in length and not a girl!!  I was 27 weeks and 6 days
when he ran out of room inside me and pushed his little way out.  He
came extremely fast and without any notice, so I had the joy (complete
sarcasm) of experiencing 100% natural child birth without the help of an
epideral. We were expecting a girl, but extremely blessed by our first
born son.  During the whole pregnancy and birth, everyone kept referring
to him as a little fighter, so we looked up fighter in the book of names
and the name meaning "fighter" is Cayden.  We chose the middle names as
a tribute to Chad's and my fathers.  So, our son's name is Cayden John
Rodney Dirksen (AKA "CJ").  Chad and I are so incredibly in love and
pray all day every day for his battle ahead.  We really need prayer
right now.  CJ is in the NICU at Kaiser Roseville and will be for an
estimated time of 2 months.  The main
issues he is currently facing is a specific valve or door in his heart
that normally closes within three days after a baby is born.  But
because Cayden was born so early, the PDA hasn't closed.  We have been
trying to avoid the medication that will help with this because it has
extremely high risks associated with it.  We have waited a week, CJ has
had a blood transfusion and the PDA still hasn't closed.  He will have a
heart ultrasound tomorrow to see if it has closed at all and if not, the
doctors will have to proceed with the medication.  He also needs prayer
for his apnea spells.  He just stops breathing at least 5 times a day
and his heart rate drops.  If this continues, they will have to put the
breathing tube back down his throat (a stronger ventilator) which Cayden
hates and is much harder on his tiny body.

My Dad had a wonderful suggestion... that we all set an alarm (perhaps
on our phones) for the same time to pray all together for these two
things for Cayden: for his heart PDA to close and for his Apnea spells
to stop.  I was hoping we could all pray at 9 pm tonight and again at 8
am tomorrow.  Please join us in this united prayer time for our miracle
boy.  If you can't pray at these times, please pray any time you can and
as much as God may put Cayden on your heart.  We believe prayer is the
only thing that brought him this far and our little boy needs you again
now.  If you have a moment after reading this email, please take a
moment to pray.  We need prayer as much as much as we need air right
now.  We love you all and your support is everything to us right now.

We love you all and thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
Please pass this email on to anyone that you don't see on the
distribution list that you believe would love to pray for our son.

Love and Blessings,

Chad, Mandy and Cayden