I still can hear that nurses voice when she said, “this baby doesn’t have a rectum!” I woke up and tried to get up, but of course I couldn’t because of my C-Section. My heart completely sank into my stomach. I’ve never heard of such a thing; can she live with this? How sick is she? Will she die? ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Our little girl was then life-flighted to the local children’s hospital to get the medical care she needed. We were finally able to get her with a colo-rectal doctor, his surgical team, and NP’s and were finally given a diagnosis. Our little one had an anorectal malformation (also called imperforate anus). It is a birth defect that affects the development of the rectum and anus. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
At 3 months old she had corrective surgery, which was the hardest week of our lives. Our future is so full of uncertainty and it’s so hard, but when she looks at me with her adorable smile I know we’ll help her through this. Our children are such strong individuals she has taught more than I can ever thank her for.
Anorectal Malformation
