Sidelines National Support Network  / Volunteer Spotlight  / September_Volunteer

Volunteer of the Month
September 2007
Renee Hald

Sidelines volunteer Renee Hald, right, with her family—Annika, Dan, and Karsten

Name: Renee Hald
Home: Poulsbo, Washington
Husband's Name: Dan (AKA Dan the Man)
Children's Names and Ages: Karsten and Annika, 8 years old

"When I was put on bedrest it was a beautiful fall day; when my babies were born, spring was just around the corner."

Four-year Sidelines volunteer Renee Hald lost her first daughter, Annelise, at 22 weeks due to an incompetent cervix. Part of the placenta remained inside her uterus, and a week after losing her baby, she began hemorrhaging. Diagnosed with a dangerous infection, she was hospitalized for a week on strong intravenous antibiotics.

Four months later, Renee and her husband, Dan, decided to try again. She was warned that she would not be able to get pregnant again because scarring from the infection had completely blocked her fallopian tubes. Surgery was scheduled to see if the scarring could be removed, but without much hope, Renee said.

"My husband and I went on a trip to Cape Cod for our best friends’ wedding, and when we came back, I was scheduled for the surgery," Renee recalled. "However, I missed my period—which wasn’t odd for me—and because of that, the doctor ran a blood test checking for pregnancy the day before my surgery was scheduled. The test came back positive. Just around the four-week mark, I had my first ultrasound, and it showed two sacs. I cried great big alligator tears!"

Renee was put on progesterone suppositories and told to "take it very easy." A scare with bleeding made her think that she was losing one or both babies, but the bleeding stopped, and her doctor eased her fears. At three months, she began seeing a perinatologist on a regular basis.

"She was the perinatologist who was on call the night I went into the hospital with Annelise two years earlier," Renee said. "Without her, I don’t know how I would have made it. She remained calm, positive, truthful, and had such an incredible bedside manner throughout the pregnancy."

At 17 weeks, the doctor inserted a cerclage, and at 19 weeks, they found that Renee was three centimeters dilated.

"That was my last day of walking around and experiencing a 'normal’ pregnancy," Renee said. "During this same visit I told her about how the babies were moving around. They were moving so much, and it always felt like they were turning 'inside out.' Well, what I thought were movements from the babies turned out to be contractions."

Renee was put on bedrest at home and administered oral terbutaline. A friend put her in contact with another mom who experienced a loss and then a positive pregnancy experience on bedrest.

"I didn't know that person, and still haven’t met her, but she was a godsend," Renee said. "I talked to her on the phone many times. I didn’t know about Sideliens at that time, and she was my bedrest support buddy."

Renee said that she was very active prior to going on bedrest, and when her muscles started to atrophy, it was painful. Her doctor gave her exercise to do that were very limited "but made a big difference in my psyche," Renee said.

Dan brought old movies and musicals home for Renee to watch, which she described as "great fun." As much as she enjoys reading, she had no desire to read through books. Instead she enjoyed flipping through magazines and doing "mindless" reading, which helped take her mind off her situation.

"The hardest thing was keeping a positive attitude," she said.

A 50th-anniversary celebration for Renee's in-laws had been planned months in advance, and the entire family went to Washington to celebrate Christmas and the special occasion, which was a complete surprise for Dan's parents. Twelve people stayed in the Halds' two-bedroom, one-bath house during Christmas while Renee was on bedrest.

"At the time, we felt like it was too late to change the plans and move the party. Anyway, what a crowded, hilarious time that was!" Renee said. "The 50th anniversary party went off without a hitch . . . I was able to attend for 2 hours. I could not get up from my chair and had to have my feet propped up the whole time."

Shortly after Christmas, Renee was admitted to the hospital for two nights with contractions that could not be controlled by the terbutaline, the gallons of water she was drinking, and the bedrest. At 35 weeks, the doctor informed her that the cerclage was stretching and would need to be removed. Renee convinced her that she needed to wait for Dan, who was out of town, and promised to stay at the home of her sister, whose husband is an emergency room physician.

When the cerclage was removed two days later, Dan and Renee had lunch and then went shopping for the first time in four-and-a-half months.

"The looks I got were hilarious," Renee said. "I was huge—from a 26-inch waist before pregnancy to a 52-inch waist on this day—and people must have thought I was going to drop and have babies right there."

A few hours later, Renee’s contractions were 10 minutes apart, and Karsten and Annika were born 12 hours later. During the quick delivery, Karsten was born head first, and Annika feet first, weighing 5 ½ lbs. and 5 lbs., respectively. They stayed 10 days in the hospital due to high bilirubin counts, but spent no time in the neonatal intensive care unit.

"That 10 days was actually pretty nice for us—the staff and nurses at the hospital were incredible," Renee said. "We learned a lot from them, and they had Karsten and Annika on an awesome, every-three-hour feeding schedule which we continued at home."

Renee remembers how lonely and isolated she felt on bedrest as well as the wave of hopelessness that sometimes came over her. As a Sidelines volunteer, she has the "great opportunity to give back, to do a 'small' thing' that can really make a difference in a person’s life."

Renee is a busy stay-at-home mom who enjoys volunteering in her kids' class and working part-time helping a friend in his chiropractic office. She loves to read, both to herself and her children. In addition, she enjoys playing and coaching basketball, camping, traveling, and hiking.

Renee said that all of her referrals have been special, and she still keeps in touch with one mom who is busy with twin boys. Her advice to moms-to-be is this: "Stay positive! Bedrest is short-term and will end. God will carry you through and give you the strength and courage you need—have faith!"