After a normal pregnancy with their first child, Daniel and Christy Mitchell had no idea they were in for trouble down the road.
Christy had a relative who struggled through a premature birth, but never saw it coming for herself.
"I never thought anything like that would happen to me," Christy said.
After having Hannah, now 5, the couple struggled to have another baby, and their second pregnancy ended in a miscarriage. But on July 5, 2007, Christy found out she was pregnant again.
In the beginning stages of the pregnancy, Christy said she often felt sick and "couldn't keep anything down besides Coca-Cola."
In August, Daniel and Christy found out they were having twins, and in September, after Christy was brought to the hospital after passing out at Wal-Mart, they discovered they were having triplets.
At that point, their doctors began to prepare them for complications, including prematurity.
"They knew (the babies) would be early, but hoped they'd at least get to 27 or 28 weeks," Christy said.
The family had to travel back and forth from Jackson for doctor's appointments, and when Christy started having contractions on Thanksgiving — only 24 weeks into the pregnancy — she had to stay at the University of Mississippi Medical Center for several days.
After she was sent home to Sidon, it was not much longer before Christy went into labor on Dec. 15, which was three months before the actual due date of March 15.
On the day it happened there was a storm, and helicopters were not able to fly out of Greenwood Leflore Hospital, so specialists from the hospital in Jackson had to come to Greenwood so the babies could be transferred to UMC as soon as they were delivered.
Ian, who was born at 2:02 p.m., weighed 2 pounds, 4 ounces; Peyton, who was born at 2:03 p.m., weighed 1 pound, 15 ounces; and Wyatt, who was born at 2:04 p.m., weighed 2 pounds, 4 ounces. All three of the babies were 13 inches long.
They were taken to Jackson within an hour of their birth, but Christy had to stay at the hospital in Greenwood until she could be released.
"It's scary having premature babies when you can't be there with them," she said.
The Mitchells received a call telling them that doctors were having trouble keeping Ian stable, and he remained in critical condition.
Two days later on Dec. 17, when Christy was finally released, she was told she would need to get to UMC as soon as possible if she wanted to hold Ian. He passed away at 9:20 p.m. that night.
The worst was over, but the two other babies were still not completely in the clear.
In January, Wyatt suffered from an intraventricular hemorrhage, or bleeding in the brain, and had to undergo a ventriculoperitoneal shunt operation to relieve the pressure. This was the same condition Ian died from, though a less severe case, so it was especially scary for the couple.
Peyton and Wyatt remained in the hospital under constant care until April. The Mitchells spent those four months constantly driving back and forth from Jackson to be with Hannah and so that Daniel could keep working.
After bringing the boys home, the couple had to pull Hannah out of day care to avoid the risk of bringing infections into the house. They kept going back to UMC about twice a month through October to see the doctors, but the babies didn’t suffer from any major problems after that.
They are now both 1 year and 1 month old and healthy.
Because of their experience, the Mitchells have been selected to be the March of Dimes Ambassador Family for 2009.
The Ambassador Family is a family that has benefited directly from March of Dimes research or programs. For the next year, the Mitchells will help promote the March of Dimes by sharing their story with the public at various functions.
Christy first learned about the March of Dimes while doing research over the Internet during her pregnancy. Soon, she was meeting people through the March of Dimes blogs who had gone through experiences similar to her own, and she learned what a worthwhile cause it was.
"All the money is going to help all babies that are born early," Christy said.
She attended last year's March of Dimes kick-off luncheon in Greenwood, which was when Melanie Nixon, community director for the March of Dimes in Mississippi, approached Christy about serving as the Ambassador Family for 2009.
"Melanie asked if that was something I'd be interested in, and I told her it was," Christy said.
The March of Dimes was originally known as the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis, which was an organization created in 1938 by Franklin D. Roosevelt to fund research for the treatment and prevention of polio.
The National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis became the March of Dimes in 1979.
Through fundraising, research and awareness campaigns, the March of Dimes is dedicated to improving the health of babies by preventing birth defects and premature births, which are the most common causes of neonatal deaths.
According to the March of Dimes Web site, Mississippi currently has the highest rate of pre-term births in the nation.
Greenwood residents who would like to get involved with the March of Dimes can start by raising money and participating in the March for Babies walking event, formerly WalkAmerica, this spring.
The March for Babies will be held at 9 a.m. on May 9 at the Greenwood Leflore Hospital Wellness Center walking track.
The March of Dimes kick-off luncheon will be held from noon until 1 p.m. Feb. 13 in the large conference room at Greenwood Leflore Hospital.
During the kick-off, the Mitchells will speak about their experience, and it also will serve as an informative meeting for anyone planning on participating in the March for Babies. Team members and individuals are encouraged to attend the kick-off to pick up their information packets about fundraising and the walk.
To learn more about the Ambassador Family or to become a sponsor, call Christy at 453-3888 or visit her Web page at www.marchforbabies.org/mitchell38954.
For more information, contact Missy White at (601) 933-1071 or MWhite@marchofdimes.com.
