Jen’s story, bringing Mighty Jack into the world…
What Jen has to say about her experience…
”You'll need to bring your son to SickKids in the next hour."
Those were the words I heard on the phone on March 7, 2018, while holding my 18-day old son as he slept in my arms.
The last thing a family rushing off to The Hospital for Sick Children is thinking about is grabbing a camera to take photos. But that's precisely what I did when I frantically packed to get to SickKids after I received that call.
The week before this, my son had worn a heart Holter for 24 hours, a device that measures a person's heart rate. The results of that Holter are what prompted the phone call and the urgency to get to SickKids.
The week before that he entered the world with the biggest bang that none of us could have expected.
I knew there were more issues with my son's heart than we initially thought, even after evidence in utero and hours post-birth.
My mama intuition was finally validated.
I cried because I had wanted to speak up when we heard it in utero for a couple of seconds, but tried to be a "good pregnant woman" and let the experts do their job. I cried because post-birth I was in such a fog from both an exhaustingly long and traumatic labour and birth and couldn't advocate more for my son - something I learned in hindsight. I cried because his paperwork was lost between hospitals, and we waited far too long to get this information.
My son, nicknamed Mighty Jack was resting at 300 beats per minute (bpm) when we arrived at SickKids… A normal heart rate for a newborn is 120-160 bpm.
When Jack was 18 days old we were admitted to the inpatient 4D cardiac ward at Sick Kids and spent 4 days monitoring my son on beta-blockers for his congenital heart disease (CHD).
My experience becoming a Mother was NOT what I anticipated in any way shape or form.
I've grieved the birth into Motherhood I didn't have. It's still tender and still something I'm working on.
But from that experience and our time at SickKids, something else was born.
@projectmightyhearts was born from trauma.
We provide free, compassionate and authentic photography sessions that document the raw experiences of families whose children have CHD's. For every session sold through Jen Allison Photography, one is gifted to a heart family through Project Mighty Hearts.
Life doesn't just happen in a photography studio, with perfectly posed infants and colour coordinated outfits. Life happens in the mundane, the magical, and amid struggle. Life happens in hospital rooms, and that life deserves to be documented too.
-Jen.
For so many, talking about birth stories is so difficult. Trauma is relative to how we feel and I am amazed by how many women are affected by such feelings. All the more reason why listening and being a witness to the stories being told it so important.
Thanks Jen for sharing your story with us. I know it wasn’t easy and I thank you for having the courage.
To follow more of what Jen is up to go her Instagram @jenallisonphoto and of course, go give @projectmightyhearts some love.
Happy listening
