Help Give Dot a Shot

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Your donation will go directly to NaKay.

Please donate generously and kindly leave a comment below.

For more information:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/standing-with-baby-dot-and-family-in-the-nicu

At just 23 weeks pregnant, Ashlynn woke at 2 AM with intense contractions. Throughout the day the pain kept returning, and by evening it was clear something was terribly wrong. At Labor & Delivery, doctors discovered she had experienced PROM (premature rupture of membranes) and had likely been leaking amniotic fluid for at least a week. She was urgently life-flighted to a larger hospital and placed on strict bed rest, hoping to keep her baby in utero and safe for as long as possible.

Just two days later, Ashlynn went into labor.

She endured 24 hours with a partially failed—then completely failed—epidural. When her baby’s heart rate began to drop and Ashlynn’s blood loss becoming dangerous, doctors rushed her back for an emergency C-section.

What they found was shocking: a 50% placental abruption and significant placenta deterioration. The week prior, Ashlynn had been passing what she believed were clots from a subchorionic hemorrhage she’d managed since 9 weeks pregnant. In reality, it was her placenta slowly breaking down. Doctors later told the family they were shocked her baby had survived in the womb and more so when she came out healthy and appropriately developed for her gestational age.

For privacy, we’ll call this little fighter by her nickname: Dot.

Born at 23 weeks and 3 days, weighing 1 lb 2 oz and measuring just 12 inches long, Dot entered the world and was immediately resuscitated and taken to the NICU, where she has continued to amaze everyone around her.

Now 3 weeks old, Dot is proving herself to be strong, determined, and incredibly resilient. Currently she is 1 lb 6 oz. NICU nurses affectionately call her “feisty,” and several doctors have even questioned whether she could truly be as early as her dates suggest. Like all nano-preemies, her days are full of ups and downs — moments of setback, moments of triumph, and moments that feel nothing short of miraculous.

Dot has a long journey ahead of her, with an estimated homecoming sometime in April. Until then, Ashlynn and her husband face months of 6 hour round trip drives to the hospital, lost income, bills coming almost daily and the emotional weight of having to leave their fragile preemie each visit.

As Dot's medical adventure begins, the bills have already started rolling in—the first arriving with a due date of Christmas Eve. (Fun fact: a one-hour life flight is $64,000)

Ashlynn and Jerry would not ask for help themselves, so we’re asking on their behalf. Any amount truly helps. All donations will be managed by Ashlynn’s sister and used directly for the mounting hospital bills, and future medical support for Dot.

From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for reading, sharing, praying, and supporting.

It takes a village. Thank you, Village. ❤️

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