Rhiannon Jenkins
Rhiannon's St.Davids Day 10k/Zumbathon
Fundraising for Bristol & Weston Hospitals Charity (previously Above & Beyond)
Story
Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.
As many know our family was blessed with identical twin girls last year. Unfortunately we were only able to bring one of our girls home after a tough pregnancy. We were treated St Michael's Hospital in Bristol by the amazing Mark Denbow, Sarah Newell & fetal medicine team. During a period of 4 weeks we travelled to Bristol for assessment of our babies every 4/5 days and eventually we qualified for laser ablation surgery, our babies were sufferers of TWIN TO TWIN TRANSFUSION SYNDROME, the odds of survival without intervention was 10%, but with it we had a 60% chance of taking our girls to a viable gestation and home. Surgery was preformed by Mark and Sarah on a cold Friday night, they treated us with complete compassion; their expert knowledge meant the surgery using highly specialist equipment went well & we left Bristol with 2 babies alive. Returning the following week things continued to improve & our girls looked well. Things changed on February 14th 11days post surgery when we discovered twin 1 Isabelle had no heart beat. Devastating doesn't describe that feeling. It's believed that we had a small placental bleed that was catastrophic for Isabelle as she was small. The only consolation was due to our surgery Isla had been protected from stroke as their blood supplies had been separated. Without the surgery we would likely have faced a grim prognosis for our survivor Isla.
We have decided to raise money in Isabelle's name, to contribute to ongoing research into advanced medical practices. Laser ablation surgery is a relatively new procedure & highly specialised at that. Research continues to improve technique & understand TTTS. The Capella foundation aim to help fund that research, but also research into any complicated pregnancy. As a mother I was lucky to have 3 healthy pregnancies, I never thought I'd need the services of fetal medicine but I did & they have served my family well. Lots of families pass through fetal medicine each year, I want to say thank you. Our Isabelle hung on to deliver her twin to us as beautiful healthy baby, we want others to benefit from our experience to make the heart ache worth it.
I have set some physical challenges, since my pregnancy & 2 surgeries I have and continue to work hard to improve my fitness which suffered greatly. These challenges also set me goals & help my mental wellbeing. I miss & ache for Isabelle every day but I continue to look forward and be greatful for my health. Every penny will be appreciated & your support is invaluable to our recovery 💕
Thank you for reading xxx
Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.
As many know our family was blessed with identical twin girls last year. Unfortunately we were only able to bring one of our girls home after a tough pregnancy. We were treated St Michael's Hospital in Bristol by the amazing Mark Denbow, Sarah Newell & fetal medicine team. During a period of 4 weeks we travelled to Bristol for assessment of our babies every 4/5 days and eventually we qualified for laser ablation surgery, our babies were sufferers of TWIN TO TWIN TRANSFUSION SYNDROME, the odds of survival without intervention was 10%, but with it we had a 60% chance of taking our girls to a viable gestation and home. Surgery was preformed by Mark and Sarah on a cold Friday night, they treated us with complete compassion; their expert knowledge meant the surgery using highly specialist equipment went well & we left Bristol with 2 babies alive. Returning the following week things continued to improve & our girls looked well. Things changed on February 14th 11days post surgery when we discovered twin 1 Isabelle had no heart beat. Devastating doesn't describe that feeling. It's believed that we had a small placental bleed that was catastrophic for Isabelle as she was small. The only consolation was due to our surgery Isla had been protected from stroke as their blood supplies had been separated. Without the surgery we would likely have faced a grim prognosis for our survivor Isla.
We have decided to raise money in Isabelle's name, to contribute to ongoing research into advanced medical practices. Laser ablation surgery is a relatively new procedure & highly specialised at that. Research continues to improve technique & understand TTTS. The Capella foundation aim to help fund that research, but also research into any complicated pregnancy. As a mother I was lucky to have 3 healthy pregnancies, I never thought I'd need the services of fetal medicine but I did & they have served my family well. Lots of families pass through fetal medicine each year, I want to say thank you. Our Isabelle hung on to deliver her twin to us as beautiful healthy baby, we want others to benefit from our experience to make the heart ache worth it.
I have set some physical challenges, since my pregnancy & 2 surgeries I have and continue to work hard to improve my fitness which suffered greatly. These challenges also set me goals & help my mental wellbeing. I miss & ache for Isabelle every day but I continue to look forward and be greatful for my health. Every penny will be appreciated & your support is invaluable to our recovery 💕
Thank you for reading xxx
Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.