“I thought she will never come, until I saw a positive test that day…it was Independence day.”

I personally know Sol from my secondary school days. We are not really close until recently. She became a dear friend to me and my husband and has documented our milestones as a family. I followed her journey of pregnancy and now that she finally got Sam, all I have for this woman is admiration.

She is a Wife First

I was there when she first introduced her then boyfriend and now husband Anchito. I can still remember how blissful it was to see her happy with him. They are both artistic, free and you can see that they share the same interests. I was inlove with their story, their craft. But as all fairy tales go, there were bumps along the way. Sol somewhat told us their story when we came home for our post wedding shoot. And when she did my daughter’s newborn shoot I was thrilled to know that they are fixing things. The circumstances  was hard for her and yet she chose to be resilient.  With God’s guidance they were able to look past the past and start new again. This time, they are at their happily ever after.

The Complicated Pregnancy

Following her story in her blog, Sol described how exciting her pregnancy was with Sam.  At first, she was afraid to face reality that she has difficulty getting pregnant.She put check ups at the back burner because she is afraid of the probable findings and all of her what ifs. Wishing to have a child is one thing but doing something about it is another. We all have our chances each day, so if you bravely took yours today, congratulations! Not everyone can do it everyday. After some series of tests she found out that she has polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). She has some issues in producing healthy eggs needed to bear a child. She was losing hope, until the good news came one day. It was surreal as she recalled the day that she tested positive. Euphoria was cut short when they learned that she has a Bicornuate Uterus. She have two instead of one big uterus. Having two uterus made the space for the baby too small leading to high chances of miscarriage and pre term labor. Only 1%-5% of the female population have this defect and she is one of them.

The party did not end there. Along the way she had other challenges like high sugar level, Urinary Tract Infection and she was admitted in the hospital since her 23rd week due to her incompetent cervix. Her OB had to stitch her cervix so that her daughter stays inside until she is old enough to be born.

She stayed in the hospital for 53 days to make sure that in the event that she has other complications, the doctor can respond immediately. She was also asked to be in a total bed rest. She need to do everything in bed including taking a bath, taking a pee etc. I was also on total bed rest for 2 weeks and 53 days of it is not a joke. All those days, she only thinks of her daughter and the idea that soon, she will be able to hold her.

The Day Sam was Born

They were all expecting that Sam will be born on January 2017 but surprisingly she came on the last week of December. The doctor that that Sol was very lucky that if she waited for more time to go to the hospital, her uterus might burst and they will be both in critical condition. She cannot remember anything. The next thing she knows, she is being wheeled towards her room. Sam was left in the hospital while Sol went home to recover. Sol was able to hold Sam only on the 4th day and the feeling was incomparable.

The Enriched Sol

We are who we are because of our experiences. As a new mom, her life has just turned a new page and like any other mother out there, our kid will be one of the great teachers that we will have. This is our chance to be humble and let our kid make us better individuals than before. Her journey was an extraordinary feat. It is scary to know that there is a possibility that she will not have kid but she chose to do something, she chose to have faith. She admitted in her blog that she had post partum depression and she is lucky to have a supporting husband and family to help her through it. If there’s one thing that I really admire about her is her ability to make people see the “extraordinary side” of an ordinary thing. She does it well in her photographs but most specially in her life. Her imperfections, her struggle, her stretchmarks made her appreciate life more than she ever did before.

“And once the storm is over, you won’t remember how you made it through, how you managed to survive. You won’t even be sure, whether the storm is really over. But one thing is certain. When you come out of the storm, you won’t be the same person who walked in. That’s what this storm’s all about.”–Haruki Murakami

You may follow her at her blog at www.nanaywithkamera@wordpress.com