Music City March for Babies: Why We Walk: Logan Wyatt

Meet Logan, as introduced by his mother, April:

In July 2006, I found out I was pregnant - 6 weeks and 3 days according to ultrasound. I was overjoyed and ready to face being a single mom. What I did not know was what was really in store for me.

At 20 weeks I started experiencing cramps and back pain. I – and my doctor – should have seen the signs. It wasn’t until 23 weeks 6 days that I went to the emergency room.

In the ER we discovered that I was dilated to 3 cm and that Logan was head down. They determined that I was in active labor by a fetal fibronectin test. Because I was in active labor I was not a candidate for a cerclage. We were lucky though; so far my water had not broken.

I was admitted to Centennial Women’s Hospital on Nov. 16^th 2006, and it became my home for the next seven weeks. I was placed in the Trendelenburg position, where my body was at an angle with my feet elevated above my head. I would remain in this position until Logan was born, no getting up at all, on complete bedrest.

Thanks to the research of the March of Dimes, the combination of the Trendelenburg position and medicine calmed the contractions and allowed Logan to get several more weeks to develop. I was on magnesium sulfate, Procardia, Indocine, Terbutaline and an antibiotic (just for good measure). I also received two doses of steroid shots to help Logan’s lungs develop. I was lucky that I never developed high blood pressure but actually was on the low side due to the medicines.

My water did not break until just before Christmas, and still I waited. I remember having a calm feeling just knowing everything would be ok. On New Year’s Eve, the medicine quit working and I continued to have contractions. It was a little touch and go during delivery, but I was able to deliver vaginally instead of via c-section.

Logan was born on January 1^st 2007 at 3 pounds, 3 ounces and 14 inches long. Thanks to the steroids, he was able to let out a small scream and never had to be intubated. He only had CPAP for a couple of days. Other than being small and slightly jaundiced he was healthy for a 31-weeker.

Logan's birthay

He spent the next 4 weeks in the NICU. That whole month was a whirlwind blur for me. My favorite memory is being able to hold him for the first time about a week after he was born. It was your typical NICU stay if there is such a thing.

On February 1^st 2007 I was able to bring him home weighing about 5 lbs. The next year was not easy, as he had several hospital stays due to asthma complications. I lost many jobs due to my absences.

Today Logan is 4 years old with no major health problems. He has slight asthma, but so do I, so he could have inherited that anyway. He loves Scooby Doo, dragons and his Daddy. We were lucky enough to meet Jason when Logan was 9 months old and he has not left our side.

Looking back, those 7 weeks in the hospital could have very well saved my son’s life. It’s amazing to consider that years ago he would not have made it. Without the research of The March of Dimes, we would not have my baby boy.

Logan's 4th birthday

Every day in Tennessee, 236 families find themselves in a similar position, facing the premature birth of the baby. Sign up to walk today at http://www.marchforbabies.org/ and help these children's stories have happy endings like Logan's.

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