Real Miracles, Healing Stories
Nayeli Alvarado—A Miracle of Life
At first glance, you are drawn to baby Nayeli by her big brown eyes…and then her smile captivates you, and soon she becomes the focus of your undivided attention. Of course, her natural beauty and seemingly endless energy belies the stark reality of her health challenges and life-threatening difficulties faced at an early age. For her parents, Yasmin Alvarado and José Moncada, the news from the first pre-natal ultrasound and subsequent tests confirmed their worst fears: that their baby may not survive the pregnancy or the impending birth. Doctors feared for Nayeli's survival based on the tests that noted medical problems that jeopardized her young life.
For Yasmin and Jose, what started out as a time to celebrate the upcoming birth of their first child together, turned into sadness and emotional turmoil. Throughout her pregnancy, Yasmin was often overcome by grief and sadness. She wept often. In the months leading up to the birth, but she found solace in her husband. As she recalled, “Jose was my strength during this difficult time, and he kept a positive outlook, often reassuring me with the simple words ‘She'll live’."
On September 6, 2003, Yasmin gave birth to Nayeli, a full-term 7lb. 14oz. girl at a hospital in Oregon, near their hometown. But, the joy of seeing her newborn was shattered as Nayeli was quickly taken from her mother’s arms, as she was struggling to breathe. Her medical challenges had just begun and it took the quick action of the team of skilled doctors and nurses to save her life. While an intubation performed on a tiny infant is difficult, the feat was made more difficult by Nayeli's other medical problems - an extremely small lower jaw, small upper airway, and cleft palate.
Transported via Life Flight to Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center, baby Nayeli continued her miraculous struggle for life. The medical team performed a surgical reconstruction of her jaw and airway to expand the baby's lower jaw to meet her upper jaw and alleviate the airway problem. It would be the first surgery of its kind to be conducted on a newborn in Idaho.
During her weeks of slow and steady progress to recover from her surgery, this "Miracle Child" became a favorite of the hospital staff. Many of the staff would stop by to visit and pray for the little one, as would Jose and Jasmin, their family, and friends.
Today, Nayeli is a happy baby girl, even as she and her parents face a long road of additional surgery, therapy and doctor visits. When she is older, she will be told the story of how her strong will to live was joined with a doctor in Oregon and an air medical transport team, surgical staff, and medical team in Idaho, to give her the miracle of life.