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Personal column - by Shira Masvari

Yale was born at 24 weeks of pregnancy weighing 465 grams. She was born early because I had very severe preeclampsia and ended up in intensive care.

Only a week after the birth I saw Yale for the first time. My husband took me in a wheelchair to the maternity ward, where a nurse was waiting for me near the incubator, and then I saw her - a small, black, hairy creature. The nurse spoke, and to this day I have no idea what she said to me. I just got dizzy and my husband held me from behind, because I kept swaying. The doctors said there was no way she would live, and every day we feared that a call would come from the laborer to tell us it was over. Another day and another day passed and they didn't call, and I kept coming. One morning I decided that this was it, the girl would come back to life, and so it was.

After 40 days they wanted to remove her breathing tube with a medicine that hurts the head and it didn't work, so they put her into surgery. After the surgery Yala recovered and slowly gained weight, but very slowly. In between she received blood transfusions and of course all kinds of infections. The days were not easy.

We stayed in Fegia for exactly 5 months. Months with a lot of difficulty, ups and downs, 3 surgeries, from which I didn't think she would come out either. Every day I came - I would sit next to her from morning until evening, praying and talking to her, I sang to her a lot.

 

We were released home at the age of 5 months, weighing 2,900 kg, with oxygen around the clock. We stayed at home all day and did not entertain - except for the grandparents, no one entered our home for a year. Tests for a drop of milk, a doctor and weekly physical therapy were done at our home. We only left the house for frequent hospital visits.

At the age of one year and 9 months, Yala entered a therapeutic setting. The adaptation was very difficult, because until then she had not seen people except us. Little by little she opened up and blossomed there. She learned to sit and crawl. It was difficult for her to feel touch with her hands and feet and deep touch.

At the age of one year and 10 months, she started to wean herself off oxygen - every time for half an hour, an hour, and so little by little she only sleeps with oxygen (even in kindergarten).

Towards the end of the year, the unbelievable happened - she started standing up for support. It was for us very exciting and simply unbelievable! She also started swimming amazingly, with Levi of course. At the beginning of the second year, at the age of 2 and 9, Yala started walking with a walker. In between, they prepared a communication booklet for her in the kindergarten where she tells us in pictures what she wants, and that's how she communicates, because she still doesn't speak. They taught her sign language. At the age of 3 she already says a few words and understands much more what she wants and marks complete sentences for us through the booklet. Loves to walk with a walker, even ran with it. At the age of 3 and 4 months we were weaned from oxygen - and it was already a big sigh of relief - happiness!!!

Our Yale, for us, is a superhero, a fighter and larger than life! She taught us what true love is, patience, happiness, fighting, softness, bravery and valuing our lives. Despite the difficult road we are going through and will go through, and with the great faith that we have in us, we are sure that with her strong desire, Yala will reach greatness and prove to the world that it is possible - and everything!!

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