The Woman Who Carried Her Terminally Ill Baby to Term In Order to Donate Her Organs Gave Birth
Finding out your unborn child has a birth defect or condition that is "incompatible with life" is horrifying and something that no parent should ever have to face. But one Oklahoma City couple received the worst news imaginable about their unborn daughter and managed to turn it into something beautiful.
Keri Young and her husband Royce's story first went viral back in December, when they shared the sad news on Facebook and Instagram that their daughter was terminally ill, having been diagnosed with anencephaly (a defect causing the baby to be born without parts of the brain and skull) during their 19-week ultrasound.
Doctors told the couple that the baby would not survive long after delivery. In the post announcing the news, Young shared an ultrasound photo and explained that, rather than inducing early labor, she would be carrying the baby to term so that they could meet their daughter briefly and donate her viable organs to people in need once she had passed.
On April 17th, their baby Eva Grace was born. Young marked the occasion the following day by posting a photo of the family (including the couple's toddler son Harrison) to her social media account, explaining that they'd "said hello and goodbye" to their daughter the day before and intended to share more about their daughter's "incredible story" at a later time.
Royce also shared an emotional black-and-white photo of himself holding their daughter.
The couple have been open and honest about the reasoning behind their decision to carry their terminally ill baby to term and to donate her organs, documenting the remainder of Young's pregnancy journey via public social media posts. In February, Royce shared a tribute to his "superhero" wife on Facebook that quickly went viral.
"Eva will have life even though it will be short," Young wrote on Facebook of her decision on back in December. "She'll donate anything she can and do more in her time on earth than I ever will."
(h/t Us Weekly)
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