Danielle Childs

Arkansas

Danielle Childs

Hub Leader

[email protected]

My name is Danielle Childs. I’m the mother of one amazing little boy who is my gastro kiddo. I had never heard of Gastroschisis until after my 20-week ultrasound whilst I was pregnant. We actually thought that our baby was healthy because it took a bit for our doctor to get back to us. Of course, we were devastated when we did find out, but that launched us into research and preparation mode.

I had my baby at 35 weeks after being induced due to his bowels dilating. He had the smallest case of gastroschisis the hospital had ever seen, undergoing surgery merely 4 hours after birth. We thought we’d have a quick “typical” stay of about 2-3 weeks. Over the next few days though his abdomen swelled like a balloon and the doctors informed us something was wrong. After a couple x-rays and an exploratory surgery, it was discovered that my son had an atresia and was fitted with a temporary ileostomy. This, of course, extended our stay. My baby has had a total of 3 surgeries and a NICU stay of 72 days. That hasn’t slowed him down one bit though!

I discovered Avery’s Angels through my husband’s aunt. I knew I wanted to help others on their journies as well because I knew how scared and alone I felt prior to AAGF. I’m here and ready to support my fellow gastroschisis families. Please let me know if I can help with anything!