Alissa is her parents’ little bundle of joy
Little princess warrior Alissa was born with hydrocephalus, more commonly known as a water head, and therefore has to remain in the hospital for continuous monitoring.
Alissa van der Walt was born prematurely at 32 weeks on December 23 and just like the meaning of her name, she immediately brought joy to her parents’ lives.
Shevaughn Britz (30) and Stefan van der Walt (34) told the RECORD that every day has been a miracle as their first newborn has been through so much in such a short space of time. Alissa has been diagnosed with holoprosencephaly (HPE) and hydrocephalus. Her road to recovery is still scary and unknown.
Shevaughn’s pregnancy
Her pregnancy came as a surprise to her and her husband as she had a miscarriage in March last year. “In June, we found out that I was again expecting and when we went for my four-and-a-half weeks scan, everything was fine and we were able to hear our baby’s heartbeat.”
Later that day after the scan, Shevaughn started bleeding and she immediately thought that she is having another miscarriage and Stefan rushed her to the hospital. “When we arrived at the hospital, they told me they were only going to attend to me the next day.
Feeling shattered, I told Stefan to take me home. “The next morning, my mum called and said the hospital’s radiology could see me. We rushed to the hospital and there we saw a heartbeat as small as a mustard seed. And God said all you need is faith as small as a mustard seed,” said the couple.
They continued monitoring the pregnancy with scans every two weeks and at 12 weeks, they got another scare when they were informed that their baby might have down syndrome, but they needed to go for further tests to clarify this. The results came back clean, but during their scan at 14 weeks, their doctor told them that their baby’s ventricles measured larger than normal and that they needed to see a foetal specialist.
“We saw two foetal specialists in the period of my pregnancy between 14 and 17 weeks. We were told that the way forward is to terminate the pregnancy, but we refused.”
The couple then sourced one more specialist who also told them that the best way forward is to terminate the pregnancy. “We were so scared and unsure of what to do, but fearfully we both agreed to terminate the pregnancy and we made the appointment for the following week.”
Shevaughn’s mother went with her and while her gynaecologist explained the whole termination process, she paused and told her mother that she could not do this
“I walked out of his room and said it was God who put us on each other’s pathways and I am not going to terminate my pregnancy.” Alissa’s ventricles kept growing bigger and her head was growing faster than her body.
“My pregnancy got harder and harder, and doctors warned me against this.” It got so bad that Shevaughn could not do anything as it was too painful. At their 28-week scan, her doctor told them that Alissa’s head lodged into her mother’s ribs and that is why she could not turn.
On 31 weeks of her pregnancy on December 16 after three painful days, her gynaecologist told her that she is in pre-term labour and she was hospitalised to try and stop the labour. “I kept on telling them it is too early. After three days I was discharged.”
On December 23, Shavaughn and Stefan went out and while waiting for Stefan in the car, her water broke. “At that moment, I did not realise what was happening. When Stefan got back, he rushed me to the Netcare Clinton Hospital.”
When they got to the hospital, Shevaughn and Alissa were rushed into the theatre while Stefan had to do a Covid-19 test and arrived a minute before Alissa’s birth. “The expression on Stefan’s face while watching him become a father was priceless. I remember seeing Alissa for a second in front of me with an angry little face before they rushed her to the NICU.”
More about her diagnosis
Holoprosencephaly (HPE) is the failure of the prosencephalon or forebrain to develop normally. The forebrain is a region of the brain in the foetus that develops into parts of the adult brain, including the cerebral cortex. She has been in the Netcare Clinton Hospital since birth, and doctors inserted a stent on January 13 to help drain the water on her brain.
“We still won’t know the quality of her life Help raise funds for baby Alissa’s medical bills and care until she grows up. There is no cure for HPE, but treatment is symptomatic and supportive. Doctors told us that she can grow up with disabilities,” said Shevaughn.
According to the parents, Alissa is the sweetest little girl. “Her head makes it hard for her to smile and express happiness. However, there is one thing she always reacts to, and that is when I sing the song Jesus loves you,” said her mother.
Equipment and care needed
If all goes well, the family hopes to bring their baby home soon, but there is still a lot that needs to happen. “We would love to bring Alissa home after her surgery but only when we have the right medical equipment.”. Alissa is going to need therapy for most of her childhood so that she can have some sort of life. “We won’t know if she will meet her milestones. Lastly, we also need a sensory teacher who will help with her senses. We are unsure what the future holds, but we remain hopeful and our faith is what is keeping us strong.”
Friends in need
Belinda Grundy, a family friend, created a back-a-buddy page to take away some of the family’s financial stress. “I have known Shevaughn for nine years, and have to say she has grown into a beautiful young woman in the past year. Stefan has certainly calmed her spirit and shown her what a loving partner can be,” said Belinda.
According to her, the family has a hospital plan, but there are still a lot of expenses, like petrol, medicine and rehabilitation sessions, medical equipment and sensory therapy.
“My heartfelt plea to the readers, if you can donate, please do so using the back-a-buddy link, but even if you aren’t able to, please share the link with your friends and family.” How you can help “The biggest concern the couple has is the continued support that Alissa will need in the future.
“The funds from the back-a-buddy scheme will be used for therapy, equipment required at home once she can come out of the hospital, as well as medical bills that have not been covered by the hospital plan.
“And the scary thing is they will only know what these bills are once Alissa can go home,” said Belinda.
Donate via the back-a-buddy page or contact Belinda on 064 680 3003 (bcolandus@yahoo.co.uk) or Cathy (Shevaughn’s mum) on 072 375 1038
