Judah DeVries

Hello! My name is Rebecca Nettleship and I am the aunt of Judah DeVries. See Judah’s story below:

(Post by Judah’s mom, Derrian)

Judah Robert William DeVries

July 24th at 8:05 a.m. • 7 lbs 8 oz • 21 inches long.

After being induced at 38 weeks 2 days, it was a very long and exhausting labour and delivery. The first few hours after he was born were just blissful hazy exhaustion. The postpartum nurses decided little Judah needed some time in the NICU due to his low temperature and his big hematoma on his head from being stuck in my pelvis for a while and coming out a little sideways. The next day things got very scary. Judah had two seizures and the doctors decided he needed more advanced care. They flew him to Alberta Children’s Hospital in Calgary and Trevor and I drove up that evening. After an MRI, Judah has been diagnosed with HIE which basically means Judah has experienced compromised blood flow and oxygenation to the brain. We have learned that the main damage is in the motor function part of his brain but there are other smaller lesions on other parts as well. We are still in the NICU and just taking everything one step at a time. We don’t know what this looks like for Judah long term as symptoms can arise as he gets older. While this is scary and filled with unknowns we have also seen amazing things in his progress this week. Everyday is learning a little bit more about how to be the best parents to our son that we can be. We are so thankful for everyone who has reached out to support us in all kinds of different ways. We love our little man more than anything and can’t wait for the day that we get to bring him home.

So, how can you support Derrian & Trevor as they navigate this time. Firstly, we ask that you continue to pray for Judah and his parents. You can also support them financially. As I’m sure you can understand, Trevor and Derrian weren’t expecting to be away from home and out of work for so long. Finances will help cover:

-Bills as they focus on caring for Judah in hospital.

-Meals. Trevor and Derrian are currently staying at the Ronald McDonald House .

-Doggie daycare (their dog is back in Lethbridge).

Anything helps! What is important at this time is that they can focus on caring for Judah and caring for themselves as much as possible.

Anything helps!

Rebecca Nettleship