3, 8 and 5.

While these numbers may not mean anything to most, to me, they mean everything.
THREE is the number of babies I had directly affected by HDFN – my identical twins were my
second pregnancy and my first affected, no intrauterine interventions were needed but a lot of
post-birth care was including IVIG, two blood transfusions and a blood exchange. Together, at
38 weeks they came home to join their one-year-old brother. EIGHT – that’s the number of
intrauterine transfusions their little sister required starting as early as 18.5 weeks. And FIVE is
the number of post-birth transfusions.

Sounds a little scary, but what would’ve been even scarier is having to do it alone without knowledgeable people in your corner. The Maternal Alloimmunization Foundation gave me the courage and hope that a successful fourth baby was possible, and when my baby became sensitized to my antibodies at only 18 weeks along, they sent me love, guidance and pointed me in the direction of a well-educated and experienced medical team at Tufts.

I’ll be forever grateful to this organization and their mission.

Best,
Arielle