At the 12-week scan, Emma Gilkison found out her unborn baby’s heart was growing on the outside. She shares her story of love, heartache and hard decisions
“What’s that above our baby’s chest?” I asked. The sonographer was looking at the same thing as me on the scan screen. In the swirl of black and white it looked as if there was a little star flickering on top of our baby’s sternum. “I’ve never seen anything like that before,” she said.
Roy and I locked eyes and he squeezed my hand. This was our first baby and it had taken us a year to conceive. I’m a New Zealander and Roy hails from Peru. I’d already begun wondering what shade of caramel our child’s skin would be; that he or she would have big brown eyes seemed a given.
“They can sometimes do operations in utero… you’re going to be quite the talk around here.” The sonographer was now talking in half-sentences. She finished the scan and told us a doctor would be in touch. At the reception, a staff member gave us a blue folder containing a souvenir scan image. In it, our baby was lying on its back and clearly visible above its chest was a small, round orb.
“What do you think it is, mi amor?”
“I don’t know but we need to wait for the diagnosis before jumping to conclusions,” he said.
I agreed but after I’d dropped him at university and returned home my mind kept returning to the scan and what it meant.
LEARNING THE NEWS
Could that star above our baby’s chest possibly have been its heart? I googled my suspicions. Immediately there was a potential answer: ectopia cordis. An extremely rare condition, affecting eight in one million babies, where the heart quite literally grows outside of the body.
ãã®èšäºã¯ NEXT ã® December 2018 çã«æ²èŒãããŠããŸãã
7 æ¥éã® Magzter GOLD ç¡æãã©ã€ã¢ã«ãéå§ããŠãäœåãã®å³éžããããã¬ãã¢ã ã¹ããŒãªãŒã9,000 以äžã®éèªãæ°èã«ã¢ã¯ã»ã¹ããŠãã ããã
ãã§ã«è³Œèªè ã§ã ?  ãµã€ã³ã€ã³
ãã®èšäºã¯ NEXT ã® December 2018 çã«æ²èŒãããŠããŸãã
7 æ¥éã® Magzter GOLD ç¡æãã©ã€ã¢ã«ãéå§ããŠãäœåãã®å³éžããããã¬ãã¢ã ã¹ããŒãªãŒã9,000 以äžã®éèªãæ°èã«ã¢ã¯ã»ã¹ããŠãã ããã
ãã§ã«è³Œèªè ã§ã? ãµã€ã³ã€ã³
Caitlin Cady Shares Her Journey
Caitlin Cady always liked being in control, so the thought of meditating scared her. But once she sat down and let her thoughts leave her mind, it proved to be incredibly important to her health. She shares her journey
The Wright Direction
Back on home soil after her stint in NYC, Rebecca Wright shares with Monique McKenzie what she thinks the future holds for the US, and why she is proud of the positive role modelling New Zealand offers her young daughter
View From The Top
Sheâs just turned 50 and Hilary Barry is feeling happier and more comfortable in her own skin than ever before. The Seven Sharp host sits down with Phoebe Watt to talk about gratitude and why she wonât let the odd barb bring her down.
How To Magnify Your Meal
There are certain natural foods that offer higher nutrients than others, but how do we know which to choose? Anna King Shahab looks at how we can make choices that are backed by science.
My big BREAK
Sometimes things come together in ways we could never have imagined. Sharon Stephenson speaks to three Kiwi women about the pivotal moments that helped launch their careers and businesses to success
MOTHER AND SISTER
Linda Armstrong attended the Linwood Islamic Centre every Friday and on the day of the Christchurch mosque attack she confronted the shooter, asking him to stop. Now her daughter Angela Armstrong is going back over her mumâs footsteps to learn more about her conversion to Islam and the community she loved
The Acid Test For Anxiety
Microdosing involves taking tiny amounts of illegal psychedelic drugs such as LSD or magic Microdosing, the practice of taking tiny amounts of illegal psychedelic drugs, is being hailed by some as a new form of therapy. We separate the shamanism from the science in pursuit of the truth
Queen Of The Beehive
Tova OâBrien is living her career dream, leading Threeâs all-female political team in parliament. She tells Sharon Stephenson about reporting from Europeâs hot spots, landing in jail, and what they really talk about in the press gallery
Passion Project: How To Write A Romance
Have you ever secretly thought you could be the next Nora Roberts or Diana Gabaldon? Award-winning Kiwi romance novelist Bronwyn Sell takes you through her 10-step plan
The End Game
Everyone has their own approach to goal setting, but do some work better than others? Monique McKenzie shares the methods that will help you get to where you want to be.