{"id":42869,"date":"2021-11-08T08:43:30","date_gmt":"2021-11-08T15:43:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/?p=42869"},"modified":"2025-12-31T08:17:47","modified_gmt":"2025-12-31T15:17:47","slug":"pregnant-and-dying-of-covid-how-ecmo-saved-pregnant-woman-with-covid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/pregnant-and-dying-of-covid-how-ecmo-saved-pregnant-woman-with-covid\/","title":{"rendered":"Pregnant and dying of COVID-19: &#8216;Miracle mom&#8217; and baby survive thanks to unprecedented double surgeries"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;\" class=\"sharethis-inline-share-buttons\" ><\/div><figure id=\"attachment_42878\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42878\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-42878 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/07202605\/Lead-pic-on-blanket-tiny.webp\" alt=\"Sarah and Andrew Mays gaze adoringly at their daughter, Kabrini. Sarah was about 6 months pregnant when she got a fierce case of COVID-19 that almost killed her.\" width=\"800\" height=\"577\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/07202605\/Lead-pic-on-blanket-tiny.webp 800w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/07202605\/Lead-pic-on-blanket-tiny-300x216.webp 300w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/07202605\/Lead-pic-on-blanket-tiny-768x554.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/07202605\/Lead-pic-on-blanket-tiny-150x108.webp 150w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/07202605\/Lead-pic-on-blanket-tiny-200x144.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42878\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sarah Mays and her daughter, Kabrini, nearly died after Sarah became critically ill with COVID-19 while pregnant. Sarah&#8217;s husband, Andrew Mays, feared COVID-19 might claim &#8220;both of my girls.&#8221; Photo by Cyrus McCrimmon for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The young pregnant woman lay fully sedated and belly down in the hospital intensive care unit, attached to a ventilator that was pumping oxygen into her body at the highest possible settings.<\/p>\n<p>But COVID-19 had ravaged Sarah Mays\u2019 lungs. Even with the ventilator\u2019s help, her blood saturation levels, which should have been hovering close to 100%, had plummeted into the 70s and 80s.<\/p>\n<p>Her vitals were tanking. She was dying.<\/p>\n<p>For the surgical team, it was \u201cgo time.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"su-youtube su-u-responsive-media-yes\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"400\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/fwe9vmlDV3E?mute=1\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen allow=\"autoplay; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture\" title=\"A Mother&#039;s Strength | Sarah Mays | Harry Mack x UCHealth | Ep. 033\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>Never during the pandemic had doctors at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/locations\/uchealth-university-of-colorado-hospital-uch\/\">UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital<\/a> put a pregnant COVID-19 patient on the last-chance, external lung and oxygenation system known as ECMO, much less delivered a 29-week preemie minutes later.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_42886\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42886\" style=\"width: 450px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-42886\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064919\/Early-pic-of-Kabrini-tiny.webp\" alt=\"Kabrini Mays, a preemie born to a mom who was pregnant with COVID-19. Here, Kabrini is just hours old. She is on a ventilator and connected to multiple tubes. Photo courtesy of the Mays family.\" width=\"450\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064919\/Early-pic-of-Kabrini-tiny.webp 750w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064919\/Early-pic-of-Kabrini-tiny-225x300.webp 225w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064919\/Early-pic-of-Kabrini-tiny-113x150.webp 113w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064919\/Early-pic-of-Kabrini-tiny-200x267.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42886\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kabrini Mays, hours after she had to be delivered at 29 weeks. Photo courtesy of the Mays family.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>But the doctors knew that the only way to save Sarah\u2019s life \u2014 and the baby girl who wasn\u2019t due for two-and-a-half more months \u2014\u00a0was to give the mother\u2019s lungs a chance to rest and recover. And that meant racing on the morning of Aug. 18 to gather nearly two dozen medical experts to carefully orchestrate back-to-back surgeries: first connecting Sarah to ECMO, then performing a cesarean delivery.<\/p>\n<p>Sarah\u2019s husband, Andrew Mays, returned to the hospital after a fitful night at a hotel across the street to find that Sarah\u2019s condition had gone \u201cdown, down, down\u201d that morning.<\/p>\n<p>No one sugarcoated how precarious things were.<\/p>\n<p>Dr. Tim Tran, an anesthesiologist and cardiothoracic critical care specialist who was overseeing Sarah\u2019s care in the ICU, had to go over the worst-case scenarios. He explained that ECMO (which stands for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) doesn\u2019t always work for critically ill COVID-19 patients. And, it\u2019s exceedingly rare for doctors in the U.S. and around the world to use ECMO for pregnant COVID-19 patients. The team felt confident that they could save the baby. But no one could promise that Sarah, 32, would survive.<\/p>\n<p>Tran\u2019s warnings devastated Andrew, but confirmed fears that had been gnawing at him.<\/p>\n<p>Especially when he was alone at night, he felt like all of his dreams were crumbling.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI cried myself to sleep,\u201d he said. \u201cI thought to myself, \u2018I\u2019m not getting my wife back. I\u2019m going to be raising a baby by myself.\u2019 Your whole life is over, just like that.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2><strong>COVID-19 extremely dangerous during pregnancy, but only one-third of pregnant patients are vaccinated<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The couple met when they were juniors in high school back in Michigan. They had been together 16 years and married for four. A year earlier, they bought their dream home, a charming log cabin yards from a river in a beautiful canyon just outside of a town with a perfect name: Loveland. They went fishing, hiking and skiing every chance they got. Their golden retriever puppy, Porter, joined the family a year earlier and, now their daughter would be arriving soon.<\/p>\n<p>Everything seemed perfect. Then everything fell apart.<\/p>\n<p>A COVID-19 infection that Andrew had gotten through work over the summer passed to Sarah in early August when she was just over 6 months pregnant.<\/p>\n<p>Neither Sarah nor Andrew, also 32, had been vaccinated. They hadn\u2019t opposed COVID-19 vaccines but felt like they were getting conflicting advice. Andrew\u2019s mom and sister were begging the couple to get vaccinated. Sarah\u2019s mother opposed the vaccine and her pregnant midwife (who didn\u2019t work for UCHealth) told Sarah she wasn\u2019t getting vaccinated. On top of confusing messages, Sarah hated needles. So, putting off a vaccine seemed like the simplest choice.<\/p>\n<p>When the virus struck them, they struggled with guilt and deep regrets. But, it was too late.<\/p>\n<p>Their family is far from alone.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_42897\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42897\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-42897\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065028\/Seated-with-Porter-tiny-1.webp\" alt=\"The Mays family with their dog, Porter. Sarah was pregnant with COVID-19 and nearly died. The family feels really lucky that both Sarah and her daughter survived.\" width=\"800\" height=\"571\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065028\/Seated-with-Porter-tiny-1.webp 800w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065028\/Seated-with-Porter-tiny-1-300x214.webp 300w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065028\/Seated-with-Porter-tiny-1-768x548.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065028\/Seated-with-Porter-tiny-1-150x107.webp 150w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065028\/Seated-with-Porter-tiny-1-200x143.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42897\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Mays family with their dog, Porter outside their log home in Colorado&#8217;s Big Thompson Canyon. Andrew feared Sarah was going to die and that he would be raising their daughter on his own. Photo by Cyrus McCrimmon for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The clinical trials for COVID-19 vaccines had not included women who knew they were pregnant. Some trial participants became pregnant after enrollment and did well with the vaccines. Still, because there was so little data initially about COVID-19 vaccines for pregnant patients, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was slow to release definitive guidance.<\/p>\n<p>Medical experts now know that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/urgent-warning-for-pregnant-women-get-your-covid-19-vaccines\/\">COVID-19 is extremely dangerous during pregnancy<\/a>. Only about <a id=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#vaccinations-pregnant-women\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">one-third of pregnant women are vaccinated<\/a> and health experts have issued <a id=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/covid\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">urgent warnings<\/a> pleading with everyone who is pregnant or planning to get pregnant to immediately get COVID-19 vaccines. Month after month this year, the number of pregnant women who have died across the U.S. from COVID-19, has set new dismal records.<\/p>\n<p>Sarah was on the verge of becoming one of these pandemic casualties when a group of highly trained specialists teamed up to give her a lifeline.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>An urgent Zoom meeting to coordinate unprecedented double surgeries for pregnant woman with COVID-19<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The doctors gathered for an urgent Zoom call at about 7:30 a.m. on the 18<sup>th<\/sup>.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_42900\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42900\" style=\"width: 200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-42900\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08071713\/Aftab-headshot.webp\" alt=\"Dr. Mhammad Aftab is an ECMO expert who saved a pregnant woman with COVID-19.\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08071713\/Aftab-headshot.webp 600w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08071713\/Aftab-headshot-200x300.webp 200w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08071713\/Aftab-headshot-100x150.webp 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42900\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dr. Muhammad Aftab<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The surgeries \u2014\u00a0and the timing of them \u2014 would be complex.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/provider\/muhammad-aftab-md-thoracic-and-cardiac-surgery\/\">Dr. Muhammad Aftab<\/a> is a cardiothoracic surgeon who led the team that connected Sarah to the ECMO machine.<\/p>\n<p>ECMO is essentially a set of lungs outside of the body attached to a pump. Aftab and his team needed to thread wide, garden hose-sized tubes known as cannula from a vein in Sarah\u2019s neck into her heart. The tubes then pull blood out of the body. The ECMO machine has an oxygenator that removes carbon dioxide from the blood and replenishes it with oxygen. The oxygenated blood then flows back to the heart. Normally, a person\u2019s lungs do this job. For Sarah, the ECMO machine would have to take over.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSarah had severe infection and inflammation in her lungs. She had what\u2019s known as acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). The lungs are made of millions of alveoli. Sarah\u2019s were filled with fluid and unable to exchange oxygen,\u201d Aftab said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cECMO doesn\u2019t fix that problem. It buys time for recovery and allows the lungs to heal,\u201d Aftab said.<\/p>\n<p>Doctors at University of Colorado Hospital have been doing ECMO surgeries for 10 years and have the largest, most experienced ECMO team in the Rocky Mountain region. Their depth of knowledge and ECMO research have proven invaluable over the last 18 months as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/boulder-woman-survives-covid-19-thanks-to-artificial-lung-treatments-called-ecmo\/\">critically ill COVID-19 patients needed \u201cHail Mary\u201d ECMO treatments to survive<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Aftab recently presented <a id=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/meetings.westernthoracic.org\/abstracts\/2021\/3.cgi\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">research showing that in the early part of the pandemic, from April to October of last year, nearly 63% of COVID-19 patients who went on ECMO survived at multiple facilities.<\/a> The delta variant hit even harder this year, however, and many unvaccinated patients are arriving at hospitals more gravely ill now, making it even harder for ICU and ECMO experts to save the sickest patients.<\/p>\n<p>ECMO doesn\u2019t work nearly as well for older COVID-19 patients, those who are immunocompromised and those whose organs are already shutting down.<\/p>\n<p>Doctors hoped Sarah\u2019s age and good health before she got COVID-19 might bode well for her; so, they gambled on ECMO.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe wanted to save two lives,\u201d said Aftab who is also <a id=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/som.ucdenver.edu\/Profiles\/Faculty\/Profile\/24107\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">an assistant professor of cardiothoracic surgery<\/a> at the <a id=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/medschool.cuanschutz.edu\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">University of Colorado School of Medicine<\/a> on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/locations\/uchealth-at-university-of-colorado-anschutz-medical-campus\/\">Anschutz Medical Campus.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Little did anyone know that Sarah\u2019s strong heart and a fierce maternal instinct soon would kick in.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Teaming up to saving pregnant woman with COVID-19\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Before beginning the unprecedented surgeries, the team of doctors created a detailed, step-by-step plan.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_42901\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42901\" style=\"width: 243px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-42901\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08072509\/Wood-headshot.webp\" alt=\"Dr. Cristina Wood, one of many doctors who teamed up to save a pregnant woman with COVID-19.\" width=\"243\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08072509\/Wood-headshot.webp 540w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08072509\/Wood-headshot-243x300.webp 243w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08072509\/Wood-headshot-121x150.webp 121w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08072509\/Wood-headshot-200x247.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 243px) 100vw, 243px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42901\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dr. Cristina Wood<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cWe had to get the baby out. We were out of other options, but how could we do this safely?\u201d said <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/provider\/cristina-wood-md-ms-anesthesiology\/\">Dr. Cristina Wood<\/a>, an obstetrical anesthesiologist, an expert on high-risk pregnancies and an <a id=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/som.ucdenver.edu\/Profiles\/Faculty\/Profile\/20066\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">associate professor<\/a> at the CU School of Medicine.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe went through everything: \u2018OK, we\u2019re rolling the patient in. We\u2019re doing \u2018x\u2019 task, then \u2018y\u2019 task.\u2019 We went over the plan, line by line, step by step, including contingencies in case anything did not go as scripted,\u201d Wood said.<\/p>\n<p>First, Aftab and his team would connect Sarah to ECMO. Next, obstetric surgeon, maternal-fetal specialist and <a id=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/som.ucdenver.edu\/Profiles\/Faculty\/Profile\/4297\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">associate professor<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/provider\/maria-hoffman-shuler\/\">Dr. Camille Hoffman<\/a>, would take over to do the cesarean delivery. Nurses would then hand off the newborn to a team of neonatal intensive care specialists, who would focus 100% on the infant.<\/p>\n<p>On top of the double surgeries, other logistical challenges loomed. COVID-19 patients breathe better when they are face down or in the prone position. But, in order to do the surgeries, the team needed Sarah on her back. And, to make Sarah\u2019s blood flow well once she was connected to the ECMO machine, she needed an injection of blood thinners. Those same blood thinners posed risks for Hoffman and her team. Excessive bleeding during the cesarean delivery could endanger Sarah and the baby.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_42902\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42902\" style=\"width: 240px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-42902\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08072627\/Hoffman-headshot.webp\" alt=\"Dr. Camille Hoffman, one of several doctors who teamed up to save a pregnant woman with COVID-19.\" width=\"240\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08072627\/Hoffman-headshot.webp 450w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08072627\/Hoffman-headshot-240x300.webp 240w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08072627\/Hoffman-headshot-120x150.webp 120w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08072627\/Hoffman-headshot-200x250.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 240px) 100vw, 240px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42902\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dr. Camille Hoffman<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The doctors kept thinking \u2014\u00a0and rethinking \u2014 the safest way to proceed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was an amazing effort. I\u2019m so fortunate to work with such dedicated, talented and nationally renowned colleagues. We were able to come together utilizing our sub-specialty training and took turns managing things,\u201d Wood said.<\/p>\n<p>The sheer number of people involved posed yet another challenge. Dressed in full, yellow protective gear with face masks and eye protection to keep them safe from the virus, how would anyone know who was who?<\/p>\n<p>Wood has organized other complex surgeries and simulations of emergency \u201ccode blues\u201d in the past.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCommunication is so important. Our faces were covered with masks, goggles and ventilated hoods, so I asked one our nurses to find stickers we could write on to identify each team member and their role,\u201d Wood said.<\/p>\n<p>The nurses found fluorescent pink sticky notes and attached the improvised IDs to everyone\u2019s caps.<\/p>\n<p>Once all of their plans were in place, the team planned to meet hours later at 12:30 p.m. to get started. They booked the largest operating room they could find, one typically used for open-heart surgery.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Husband\u2019s desperate plea: \u2018Whatever you do, please save Sarah.\u2019\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>After the planning session wrapped up, doctors met with Andrew.<\/p>\n<p>Aftab still was dressed in a suit, rather than surgical scrubs. He had been scheduled to see several patients during an outpatient clinic that morning but canceled all of those appointments to focus on Sarah.<\/p>\n<p>As Aftab described how the ECMO machine would work, Andrew wept. He felt responsible for bringing the virus into their home. He and Sarah both kicked themselves when they got sick.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhatever you need to do, please save Sarah,\u201d Andrew begged.<\/p>\n<p>Aftab held Andrew\u2019s hand.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI told him, \u2018We are here to help. We are going to take good care of Sarah. We will do our best to give her the best possible chance to survive,&#8217;\u201d Aftab said.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_42894\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42894\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-42894 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065009\/Kabrini-with-boppy-tiny-1.webp\" alt=\"Kabrini Mays. Her mom was pregnant and survived COVID-19.\" width=\"800\" height=\"520\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065009\/Kabrini-with-boppy-tiny-1.webp 800w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065009\/Kabrini-with-boppy-tiny-1-300x195.webp 300w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065009\/Kabrini-with-boppy-tiny-1-768x499.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065009\/Kabrini-with-boppy-tiny-1-150x98.webp 150w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065009\/Kabrini-with-boppy-tiny-1-200x130.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42894\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kabrini Mays relaxes outside her home. She&#8217;s now more than 2 months old and is growing fast. Photo by Cyrus McCrimmon for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Andrew nodded and felt some comfort.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt made me feel like he was a person too. I was going through serious stuff, but he was going to do everything in his power to save Sarah.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Before the surgeries started, Andrew had time to visit Sarah once more and give her a pep talk.<\/p>\n<p>He suited up in full protective gear, shuffled into the room and bent far down so he could try to get face to face \u2014 or in this case, mask to ventilator \u2014 with Sarah.<\/p>\n<p>Her eyes were closed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe was completely out of it,\u201d Andrew recalled.<\/p>\n<p>Still, he prayed that somehow, she could hear him and feel his love.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_42896\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42896\" style=\"width: 750px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-42896\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065021\/Sarah-with-Kabrini-on-oxygen-tiny.webp\" alt=\"Sarah Mays holds her daughter, Kabrini. Photo courtesy of the Mays family.\" width=\"750\" height=\"1000\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065021\/Sarah-with-Kabrini-on-oxygen-tiny.webp 750w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065021\/Sarah-with-Kabrini-on-oxygen-tiny-225x300.webp 225w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065021\/Sarah-with-Kabrini-on-oxygen-tiny-113x150.webp 113w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065021\/Sarah-with-Kabrini-on-oxygen-tiny-200x267.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42896\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Unprecedented, back-to-back surgeries saved both Sarah and Kabrini Mays. Photo courtesy of the Mays family.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>She had been riding what doctors described as the \u201cCOVID-19 roller coaster\u201d for weeks. People who are sick with the coronavirus \u2014 both at home and in hospitals \u2014 can seem to improve, then get worse, then rebound again and suddenly crash. That\u2019s one of the reasons why COVID-19 is so dangerous.<\/p>\n<p>And, it\u2019s partly why Sarah got so sick. She thought she was recovering. Then, she couldn\u2019t breathe.<\/p>\n<p>COVID-19 had hit both Andrew and Sarah hard in early August. He had attended a small in-person meeting at work. One co-worker was vaccinated and didn\u2019t get sick. The rest soon tested positive. Andrew tried to keep his distance from Sarah, but two days after he got sick, so did she.<\/p>\n<p>At one point, Andrew got dehydrated and both he and Sarah went to the ER at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/locations\/uchealth-medical-center-of-the-rockies\/\">UCHealth Medical Center of the Rockies<\/a> in Loveland. Sarah was coughing, but staff members took their vitals, said they were OK and sent them home to recover.<\/p>\n<p>Over time, Andrew started to improve and Sarah hoped she was a day or two from feeling better too. Instead, she declined dramatically. She was coughing around the clock and couldn\u2019t catch her breath. The woman who loved zigzagging up hiking trails soon could not stand up in the shower or climb a single flight of stairs to the couple&#8217;s master bedroom.<\/p>\n<p>Sarah\u2019s grandmother in Michigan was so worried one day that she sent an ambulance to bring Sarah from her home in the Big Thompson Canyon back to the hospital in Loveland. The paramedics called when they were en route. Sarah thought she could tough it out and told the paramedics they didn\u2019t need to come.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, after about two weeks of struggling, Sarah knew it was time to get help. Andrew took her to an urgent care facility. Her oxygen saturation was low: 84%. The providers called an ambulance, which took Sarah first to the hospital in Loveland, then on to University of Colorado Hospital, where specialists could better care for Sarah and her baby.<\/p>\n<p>She arrived on Aug. 13 and had to go on a ventilator the next day.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Trying to convince both of us: &#8216;Everything\u2019s going to be OK.\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Now, after five days and multiple ups and downs, she was heading into surgery. Andrew was terrified but tried to be positive for Sarah.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was quite emotional,\u201d Andrew said. \u201cI held her hand and stroked her leg. I tried to be calm so I could calm her down. I told her everything was going to be fine. She needed to be strong.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSarah is not good with doctors, hospitals, needles and all of that. It was very, very stressful before she got put on the vent. But you feel like there\u2019s a glimmer in there.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was trying to convince both of us that everything\u2019s going to be OK.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He promised Sarah that soon they would both meet their baby girl.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI can\u2019t wait to get both of you home,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Then, Andrew had to say goodbye.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_42891\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42891\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-42891\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064950\/Kabrini-in-purple-blanket-tiny.webp\" alt=\"Kabrini Mays poses in a purple blanket with her name on it.\" width=\"800\" height=\"508\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064950\/Kabrini-in-purple-blanket-tiny.webp 800w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064950\/Kabrini-in-purple-blanket-tiny-300x191.webp 300w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064950\/Kabrini-in-purple-blanket-tiny-768x488.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064950\/Kabrini-in-purple-blanket-tiny-150x95.webp 150w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064950\/Kabrini-in-purple-blanket-tiny-200x127.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42891\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kabrini Mays loves being swaddled and, like her parents, loves the outdoors. Photo by Cyrus McCrimmon for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2><strong>Another setback: the dangers of COVID-19 during pregnancy<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Soon after Andrew left Sarah\u2019s room, doctors got a new, ominous update.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSarah had worsened. Everyone was worried that her heart was going to stop. \u00a0If a pregnant woman codes, neither she nor her baby are going to live unless we act quickly,\u201d said Hoffman, the obstetric surgeon.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe were hoping for a little more time,\u201d added Wood, the obstetric anesthesiologist. \u201cBut, we obtained additional labs and realized we had to pull the trigger. We needed to go.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The doctors raced into the operating room ahead of schedule and got underway by about 10 a.m.<\/p>\n<p>As planned, Aftab began. He and his surgical fellow, Dr. Jeremy Leonard, connected Sarah to the ECMO machine. The procedure took about an hour and went very well. Immediately, Sarah began to rebound. Her vitals were looking good and her oxygen saturation levels climbed back up close to where they belonged.<\/p>\n<p>In fact, Sarah looked so good so quickly that Hoffman wondered for a moment if she should delay the cesarean delivery and give the baby more time in her mom\u2019s belly.<\/p>\n<p>But the team persuaded Hoffman that it was best to proceed as planned. The ECMO machine was doing its job, but sustaining another life is hard work and Sarah needed a break. \u201cThe physiology of pregnancy takes a lot of blood flow from the mom and sends it to the placenta for the fetus. If the mom is dying, you want to let all the blood return to the mom. You take the baby out as a life-saving measure,\u201d Hoffman said.<\/p>\n<p>At 11:42 a.m., tiny Kabrini Mays made her debut. She weighed 3 pounds, 4.9 ounces and stretched 15 inches long.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe looked great for a 29-weeker,\u201d Hoffman said. \u201cShe was vigorous. She was pink. \u00a0She made a little crying effort, which is always heartwarming.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Kabrini was named after the <a id=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/mothercabrinishrine.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Mother Cabrini Shrine<\/a> along I-70 west of Denver. On ski trips, Sarah and Andrew always noticed the sign and thought the name spelled with a \u201ck\u201d would be perfect for a girl.<\/p>\n<p>Hoffman handed the newborn off to neonatal expert, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/provider\/jim-barry-md-pediatric-neonatal-perinatal-medicine\/\">Dr. Jim Barry<\/a>, and his team from the NICU.<\/p>\n<p>By about 1 p.m., the surgeons were finishing up and both mother and baby were doing remarkably well.<\/p>\n<p>The doctors were in awe of what they had just experienced.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve never been through anything like this. I will never forget this case,\u201d Hoffman said. \u201cWe came together quickly. \u00a0Everyone interacted so well as a team.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe best-laid plans worked out as well as we possibly could have hoped. There were so many steps and everything went exactly as planned. \u00a0That never happens in obstetrics. We all were so happy and relieved,\u201d Hoffman said.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Moms are the strongest people in the world<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Most ECMO patients need to stay on the machine for 10 days to 2 weeks, some even longer.<\/p>\n<p>Sarah proved to be anything but typical.<\/p>\n<p>After just three days, Sarah was becoming more alert and felt a desperate pull to meet Kabrini and reunite with Andrew.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe woke up on the 21<sup>st<\/sup> and said, \u2018I\u2019m going to be out of here in two days,\u2019\u201d Andrew recalled.<\/p>\n<p>A day later, Sarah got to see her daughter via video.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat motivated me to get out of bed,\u201d Sarah said.<\/p>\n<p>Andrew cuddled with Kabrini and told her, \u201cMommy loves you and is going to see you very soon.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sarah was rebounding far faster than anyone expected.<\/p>\n<p>It wasn\u2019t really a surprise to Sarah.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_42893\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42893\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-42893\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065003\/Kabrini-sunglasses-tiny.webp\" alt=\"Kabrinia Mays in the NICU.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065003\/Kabrini-sunglasses-tiny.webp 800w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065003\/Kabrini-sunglasses-tiny-300x225.webp 300w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065003\/Kabrini-sunglasses-tiny-768x576.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065003\/Kabrini-sunglasses-tiny-150x113.webp 150w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065003\/Kabrini-sunglasses-tiny-200x150.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42893\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kabrini Mays snoozing in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Photo courtesy of the Mays family.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>All along she had had a feeling that she was going to survive. She remembered almost nothing from the time she arrived at the hospital. And, she had a sense of how rough things had been on Andrew.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know how terrified I would have been. But, all along, I kept hearing his voice. I heard, \u2018You\u2019re going to be fine.\u2019 He must have been saying those things to me,\u201d Sarah said.<\/p>\n<p>As Sarah improved, the ECMO team decided to test Sarah\u2019s lungs. They clamped the cannula on the ECMO machine \u2014\u00a0without removing them \u2014\u00a0to see if Sarah could maintain her oxygen levels.<\/p>\n<p>She did well.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_42931\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42931\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-42931\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/09054536\/Daddys-girl-tiny.webp\" alt=\"Kabrini Mays had to be delivered at 29 weeks after her mom got COVID-19 while pregnant. Here the preemie wears a &quot;Daddy's Girl&quot; tee shirt.\" width=\"800\" height=\"917\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/09054536\/Daddys-girl-tiny.webp 800w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/09054536\/Daddys-girl-tiny-262x300.webp 262w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/09054536\/Daddys-girl-tiny-768x880.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/09054536\/Daddys-girl-tiny-131x150.webp 131w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/09054536\/Daddys-girl-tiny-200x229.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42931\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kabrini had to have surgery for a malformed bowel. Like her mom, she recovered faster than expected. And, from the moment she was born, Kabrini&#8217;s been a daddy&#8217;s girl. Photo courtesy of the Mays family.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Her next challenge was to regain some strength.<\/p>\n<p>In order to do that, her team needed her to get up and try walking.<\/p>\n<p>The blood-filled tubes from the ECMO machine still were attached to Sarah\u2019s face and neck and felt extraordinarily heavy.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThree or four nurses were helping me stand up. I could barely walk to the chair, but I was determined,\u201d Sarah said.<\/p>\n<p>Along with working on her physical strength, Sarah started pumping her breastmilk for Kabrini.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI wanted her to have the antibodies,\u201d Sarah said.<\/p>\n<p>Wood, Sarah\u2019s obstetric anesthesiologist, credits Sarah\u2019s maternal instincts for her speedy progress.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMoms are the strongest people in the world. Sarah was so determined. She walked around with these huge bypass tubes. The strength it took her to overcome that, to get off ECMO and go see her baby was incredible. I work with a variety of patient populations, but mothers always impress me the most,\u201d Wood said.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>\u2018I need to go see my baby\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>On Aug. 22, Andrew and Sarah learned that Kabrini was having trouble with her bowels.<\/p>\n<p>She had malformed intestines that had developed early in the pregnancy and had nothing to do with Sarah\u2019s case of COVID-19 or Kabrini\u2019s premature birth. Kabrini would need to receive care next door at <a id=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.childrenscolorado.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Children\u2019s Hospital Colorado.<\/a><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_42895\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42895\" style=\"width: 750px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-42895\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065015\/Sarah-holds-Kabrini-first-time-tiny.webp\" alt=\"Sarah Mays, who got COVID-19 while pregnant, holds her baby for the first time.\" width=\"750\" height=\"1000\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065015\/Sarah-holds-Kabrini-first-time-tiny.webp 750w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065015\/Sarah-holds-Kabrini-first-time-tiny-225x300.webp 225w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065015\/Sarah-holds-Kabrini-first-time-tiny-113x150.webp 113w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08065015\/Sarah-holds-Kabrini-first-time-tiny-200x267.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42895\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sarah Mays, who got COVID-19 while pregnant, holds her baby for the first time. Photo courtesy of the Mays family.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The next morning, Sarah learned that Kabrini was about to be moved. She enlisted a nurse to rush her in a wheelchair to the NICU for a quick visit before Kabrini\u2019s transfer.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI need to go see my baby,\u201d Sarah told her nurse.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_42889\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42889\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-42889\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064938\/full-mermaid-tiny.webp\" alt=\"Kabrini Mays dressed as a mermaid for Halloween. Her mom was pregnant with COVID-19 and Kabrini had to be delivered months before her Halloween due date. Photo courtesy of the Mays family.\" width=\"800\" height=\"1067\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064938\/full-mermaid-tiny.webp 800w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064938\/full-mermaid-tiny-225x300.webp 225w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064938\/full-mermaid-tiny-768x1024.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064938\/full-mermaid-tiny-112x150.webp 112w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064938\/full-mermaid-tiny-200x267.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42889\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kabrini Mays wore a mermaid costume for Halloween. Kabrini&#8217;s original due date was close to Halloween, but she had to be delivered at just 29 weeks after her mom became critically ill with COVID-19. Photo courtesy of the Mays family.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>While it\u2019s complicated to detach ICU patients from all of their monitors, Sarah\u2019s nurse sprang into action.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe ran me as fast as she could,\u201d Sarah said.<\/p>\n<p>She sped Sarah in a wheelchair down two floors in an elevator then far across the hospital to the NICU.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI got to hold Kabrini for two hours. It felt like 10 minutes,\u201d Sarah said. \u201cI gave her lots of hugs and kisses. I told her I was going to see her very soon and that she was going to be just fine.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat gave me even more motivation to get better.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>By Aug. 23, Sarah\u2019s team removed the ECMO tubes and by Aug. 26, she got to leave the hospital, far sooner than anyone had expected.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe were absolutely flabbergasted that she was getting out so early,\u201d Andrew said.<\/p>\n<p>Kabrini ended up needing surgery to fix her malformed intestines. She stayed at Children\u2019s for several weeks and Sarah and Andrew visited every single day. For the team at Children\u2019s, Sarah was a celebrity of sorts. Everyone took to calling her the \u201cMiracle mom.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Kabrini, too, seemed motivated to bust out of the hospital early. Her doctors expected her to need to stay at Children\u2019s close to her original due date at the end of October. Instead, she was released on Oct. 8 and got to spend Halloween at home, where Kabrini donned a mermaid costume.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEveryone at Children\u2019s was so sweet and luckily Children\u2019s is the No. 1 pediatric gastrointestinal hospital in the nation,\u201d Sarah said.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Still amazed and thrilled that his \u2018two girls\u2019 survived<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>These days, Andrew and Sarah feel blessed to celebrate every milestone, including their recent wedding anniversary.<\/p>\n<p>Andrew can\u2019t stop kissing his &#8220;girls.&#8221; After all his family endured, he is relishing simple moments.<\/p>\n<p>Kabrini is growing fast. She now weighs 8 pounds, more than double her birth weight, and she is nearly 20 inches long. She loves to make funny faces and expresses herself with her arms.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_42887\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42887\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-42887\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064926\/Family-pic-red-door-tiny-1.webp\" alt=\"Andrew, Sarah and Kabrini Mays posing outside their log home. Photo by Cyrus McCrimmon for UCHealth.\" width=\"800\" height=\"553\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064926\/Family-pic-red-door-tiny-1.webp 800w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064926\/Family-pic-red-door-tiny-1-300x207.webp 300w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064926\/Family-pic-red-door-tiny-1-768x531.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064926\/Family-pic-red-door-tiny-1-150x104.webp 150w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064926\/Family-pic-red-door-tiny-1-200x138.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42887\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sarah and Andrew pose outside their log home with their daughter, Kabrini. The couple feels extraordinarily lucky to be celebrating the holidays together this year. Photo by Cyrus McCrimmon for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Both Andrew and Sarah \u2014 and all of their doctors \u2014 are on a mission to encourage people to get their COVID-19 vaccines. They want all people, including those who are pregnant, to protect themselves and avoid scary ordeals, like the one the Mays endured.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf I would have heard a story like mine, there\u2019s no doubt in my mind that I would have walked right in and gotten the vaccine right away,\u201d Sarah said. \u201cI strongly encourage everyone \u2014 particularly pregnant women or those who want to get pregnant \u2014 to get the vaccine.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf I had gotten vaccinated and still got sick, chances are I could have fought the virus more easily,\u201d Sarah said. \u201cPlease strongly consider it. I went back and forth so much and I wanted to do the right thing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Andrew already has received his first two vaccine doses. Sarah\u2019s doctors recommended that she wait 90 days after being released from the hospital. She\u2019s now slated to get her first vaccine dose around Thanksgiving, an occasion when her entire family will mark the holiday with extraordinary gratitude.<\/p>\n<p>Dr. Tran, Sarah\u2019s ICU doctor, also is pleading with people to get vaccinated.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_42903\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42903\" style=\"width: 200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-42903\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08073816\/Tran-headshot.webp\" alt=\"Dr. Tim Tran, one of the doctors who teamed up to save a pregnant mom with COVID-19.\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08073816\/Tran-headshot.webp 600w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08073816\/Tran-headshot-200x300.webp 200w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08073816\/Tran-headshot-100x150.webp 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42903\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dr. Tim Tran<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s remarkable that Sarah survived,\u201d said Tran, who is <a id=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/som.ucdenver.edu\/Profiles\/Faculty\/Profile\/25801\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">an assistant professor at the CU School of Medicine<\/a>. \u201cSarah was very fortunate. A lot of people aren\u2019t as lucky.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Nearly all of the people who are dying now of COVID-19 are unvaccinated. Their illnesses are largely preventable, Tran said.<\/p>\n<p>Sarah\u2019s survival gave caregivers a big boost just when they needed it.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are all very demoralized,\u201d Tran said. \u201cPlease get vaccinated.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Both Sarah and Andrew have some post-traumatic stress from all that they endured. While Sarah was released from the hospital quickly, she temporarily lost her speech and suffered deficits in her short-term memory. She has fully recovered now, but still has crazy flashbacks and dreams, which is typical for people who have been sedated in ICUs for long periods of time.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI dream that I\u2019m roaming the hospital. I\u2019m acting like a nurse and going into patient rooms. That\u2019s funny because I\u2019ve always been terrified of blood and needles. But, I always wanted to go into the medical field,\u201d Sarah said.<\/p>\n<p>Sarah helps manage programs that provide before and after school care for children in northern Colorado. She\u2019s back at work now, as is Andrew, who works as a general foreman for a telecommunications company.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>A welcome home from the neighbors<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Andrew never will forget the day when he finally knew everything was going to be OK.<\/p>\n<p>Kabrini was still at Children\u2019s Hospital Colorado but was doing well.<\/p>\n<p>Andrew and Sarah needed to check on their house and their dog. Their neighbors kindly had jumped in to help as the couple spent their days at the hospital with Kabrini and nights in Aurora at the <a id=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/rmhc-denver.org\/what-we-do\/aurora-colorado\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ronald McDonald House<\/a>, a charity that provided them a free home away from home.<\/p>\n<p>Smoke from wildfires had blocked views of the mountains for weeks over the summer and into September.<\/p>\n<p>As the couple turned west from I-25 toward Loveland, Longs Peak and Mount Meeker, two beautiful, soaring peaks, jutted up into crystal blue skies.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was one of those moments. I couldn\u2019t say a lot. But, it hit me. I was driving and I had my wife beside me,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was the first clear day.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_42890\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42890\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-42890 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064944\/Kabrini-big-yawn-tiny.webp\" alt=\"Kabrini Mays yawning. Like her parents who love the outdoors, Kabrini loves sunshine and fresh air.\" width=\"800\" height=\"535\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064944\/Kabrini-big-yawn-tiny.webp 800w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064944\/Kabrini-big-yawn-tiny-300x201.webp 300w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064944\/Kabrini-big-yawn-tiny-768x514.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064944\/Kabrini-big-yawn-tiny-150x100.webp 150w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/08064944\/Kabrini-big-yawn-tiny-200x134.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42890\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Like her parents who love the outdoors, Kabrini loves sunshine and fresh air.. Photo by Cyrus McCrimmon for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>They drove farther, and as always, felt immediately at home in their canyon, with its stunning beauty and a churning river that has carved a path through soaring walls of granite. They got closer to their home, crossed one bridge over the Big Thompson and another over a smaller tributary.<\/p>\n<p>There, they found their neighbors lined up in their front yard.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey welcomed us home,\u201d Sarah said.<\/p>\n<p>She and Andrew teared up over the simple, kind gesture.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou start to appreciate everything and not care about the little things,\u201d Sarah said. \u201cI look at life differently now. I\u2019ve always appreciated my life. But, without all the help I got, I wouldn\u2019t be here watching Kabrini grow.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Andrew, too, often feels utterly in awe of his miraculous wife and baby.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere are no words to describe how grateful we are. If it weren\u2019t for Sarah\u2019s nurses, doctors, surgeons and prayers from around the world, we wouldn\u2019t be here.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>A beacon to draw prayers and protection<\/h2>\n<p>Back at the hospital, during the scariest days, Andrew&#8217;s mom flew in from Michigan to support her son. She&#8217;s Jewish and brought Andrew a special &#8220;hand of God&#8221; bracelet to help ward off evil and protect his wife and baby.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Do not take it off until Sarah and your baby are home,&#8221; Andrew&#8217;s mother told him.<\/p>\n<p>Andrew wore the bracelet around the clock. And when Sarah&#8217;s survivial was most in doubt, Andrew held his wrist to his wife&#8217;s hand, pressing the omen to her skin and hoping to pass along the bracelet&#8217;s healing powers.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s a beacon for people who need help,&#8221; Andrew said. &#8220;I felt an extremely strong need to keep it on and to know that I had it with me.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The bracelet seemed to work.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I felt prayers coming to me. It was the strangest feeling,&#8221; Andrew said.<\/p>\n<p>Sarah and Kabrini did indeed make it home. And once mother and baby were safely out of harm&#8217;s way, Sarah and Andrew joined hands and slid the bracelet from his wrist to hers.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_42928\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-42928\" style=\"width: 750px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-42928 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/09052734\/Kabrini-with-bracelet-tiny.webp\" alt=\"Sarah Mays, who survived COVID-19, wears a &quot;hand of God&quot; bracelet as she holds her baby's hand.\" width=\"750\" height=\"1000\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/09052734\/Kabrini-with-bracelet-tiny.webp 750w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/09052734\/Kabrini-with-bracelet-tiny-225x300.webp 225w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/09052734\/Kabrini-with-bracelet-tiny-113x150.webp 113w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/11\/09052734\/Kabrini-with-bracelet-tiny-200x267.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-42928\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">A &#8220;hand of God&#8221; bracelet gave Andrew strength as his wife fought for her life in the hospital. Now Sarah wears the bracelet to protect their family. Here, Sarah wears the bracelet as Kabrini clutches her mom&#8217;s thumb. Photo courtesy of the Mays family.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&#8220;We always have it on to help protect our family,&#8221; Sarah said.<\/p>\n<p>The couple plans to raise Kabrini in the Jewish faith, and when she celebrates her transition to adulthood, Andrew and Sarah plan to give her a very special gift.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;At her Bat Mitzvah, we will give her the bracelet.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The young pregnant woman lay fully sedated and belly down in the hospital intensive care unit, attached to a ventilator that was pumping oxygen into her body at the highest possible settings. But COVID-19 had ravaged Sarah Mays\u2019 lungs. Even with the ventilator\u2019s help, her blood saturation levels, which should have been hovering close to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2123,"featured_media":42878,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[8,7],"tags":[4859,4860,9069,6839,4001,25,511,4010,212],"class_list":["post-42869","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-stories","tag-coronavirus","tag-covid-19","tag-covid-19-vaccine","tag-ecmo","tag-high-risk-pregnancy","tag-labor-delivery","tag-neonatal-intensive-care-unit","tag-pregnancy-childbirth-and-newborn-care","tag-womens-care"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.7 (Yoast SEO v27.7) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Pregnant with COVID-19: ECMO only option to save mom, baby - UCHealth Today<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A pregnant woman with COVID-19 became so sick that her lungs were failing. 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