Story Zoosiab Yang

She is my miracle baby, whom I had been praying for over the past 10 years. I yearned for her for so long, but I struggled with infertility for many years. Fortunately, in March 2026, my husband and I found out we were 6 weeks pregnant because of my awful morning sickness. After we found out, we started imagining our future together as a family of three. We began painting pictures of what our lives would look like and all the things we would do together. We started wondering who she’d look like and what characteristics she’d have. Would she have my fierce personality or would she be like my husband, reserved and calm.

However, as I entered my second trimester, we began discovering more and more complications with my health during the pregnancy. My platelet count kept decreasing to dangerously low levels, dropping below 10,000 and sometimes as low as 4,000.

The doctors recommended a high dose of prednisone, which contributed to me developing gestational diabetes later on. Unfortunately, the medication did not help raise my platelet count at all. We then moved on to IVIG, which also failed. After that, we tried platelet transfusions, but that also failed to increase my platelet count as well.

I was getting blood tests every week to monitor my platelets, yet these treatments only helped temporarily. My platelet count never increased to the goal of more than 40,000 for more than a week, sometimes not even a few days.

With my platelets so low, I also experienced significant blood loss from heavy nosebleeds that would not stop for hours. I went to the emergency room and OB triage several times, desperately trying to get the bleeding to stop. Along with the persistent nosebleeds and dangerously low platelet count, I bruised very easily and developed small, rash-like spots randomly throughout my body. Despite everything we tried, my condition was not getting any better.

I often stressed about how my low platelets could lead to a really scary delivery. What if I don’t make it? What if I hemorrhage because I won’t stop bleeding? I often sobbed imagining my husband and daughter coming home without me. I even started to think of writing goodbye letters.

In my third trimester, the doctors recommended a treatment called Nplate. I was extremely worried about this medication and hesitant to take it because animal studies had shown that it could cross the placenta and raised concerns about potential harm to the developing baby. However, I was reassured that my baby would be okay because I was already in my third trimester and that human studies had not shown issues with babies exposed to the medication. With those reassurances, I proceeded with the weekly injections.

I continued meeting with my doctors every week to monitor my platelet count and my baby’s growth. Everything appeared to be fine until after my third injection.

I went in for what I thought would be a normal, routine 35-week non-stress test (NST). However, my baby was showing signs of fetal distress. Her heart rate remained elevated, with a baseline of 180 beats per minute. After 20 minutes, her heart rate still had not come down, so I was admitted to OB triage. Even after several more hours, her heart rate remained elevated. The doctors decided that I needed an emergency C-section under general anesthesia.

My beautiful baby girl was born on October 6, 2026, at 4:46 p.m., weighing 5 pounds and 4 ounces. However, she was immediately admitted to the NICU because she could not breathe on her own.

The next morning, I received the devastating news that her condition was concerning and that she needed to be transferred to another NICU at a different hospital. Unfortunately, she would have to go there without me.

While I was recovering, she was transferred to the other hospital. A few hours later, once the hospital found a room for me, I was transferred there as well.

When I arrived, paramedics immediately brought me to the NICU to see her while my husband followed behind. As soon as Story heard my voice, she opened her little eyes to look at me. The nurse told me that she had not opened her eyes since arriving at the hospital. That moment meant so much to me. Even though she was so sick, I felt like she recognized her mommy’s voice.

I had a separate room from her, so the nurses had to wheel me back and forth between my room and the NICU so I could spend time with my baby girl.

The next morning, we received even more devastating news. After performing an MRI and X-ray, the doctors discovered three blood clots near the three chambers of her heart. According to the doctors, these blood clots had caused her brain to go without oxygen for an extended period of time. The MRI showed severe, irreversible brain injury to her frontal lobe.

Hearing this news shattered my heart. I immediately knew that her life would never be the same and that I might never get to take my baby girl home with me.

Afterward, I was transferred to her room so I could stay closer to her. While trying to process all this heartbreaking news, I continued pumping breast milk, hoping that my body could still do something to help her. I held on to a little hope and faith that she might get better. Unfortunately, the doctors could not give her my breast milk because she was unable to digest it.

My husband and I watched as her condition continued to worsen. We kept receiving more bad news, one after another.

Story could not breathe on her own, so she needed a breathing tube. She also needed suctioning to help clear her lungs because she could not cough on her own. Every time the nurses cleared her lungs, I watched her move in discomfort. Seeing my baby go through so much pain broke my heart in ways I cannot explain.

The nurses also let us know that the EEG was not providing much helpful information, so we decided to have it removed.

When they removed it, acetone was rubbed against her head and came into contact with her little face. The smell was incredibly strong. Even standing beside her, I could barely tolerate the stench. She was surrounded by the equipment and supplies needed for the procedure, including the acetone.

My heart ached so much. All I wanted was to take her out of that environment, hold her close, and protect her from everything she was going through. But she was connected to so many machines, and there was nothing I could do to make it all go away. I watched my precious baby girl endure so much, and I could no longer bear the thought of her continuing to suffer.

That night, my husband and I went to the chapel and prayed. Initially, we had planned to keep her in the NICU longer in the hope that she would get better. We wanted more time to hold her, touch her, and cherish every moment with her. After all, we had spent an entire decade praying and trying for her. We had waited 10 years to finally meet our miracle baby, and we were not ready to say goodbye.

But after praying and talking to God, we made the most heartbreaking decision of our lives. We decided to put our daughter first, even if it meant letting her go. We could not bear the thought of her remaining in that little space, connected to machines, with no hope of recovering from her devastating brain injury.

Although we desperately wanted more time with her, she was showing signs that her condition was not improving. We had to face a reality that no parent should ever have to face: our daughter’s life was now in our hands, and we had to decide whether to continue life-sustaining treatment or allow her to pass peacefully.

We made the incredibly difficult decision to let her go.

We were not ready to say goodbye. I don’t think we ever would have been ready. How could we be? She was our first baby, our miracle, and the little girl we had spent 10 years praying for. We had dreamed of watching her grow up, holding her first birthday parties, hearing her laugh, and experiencing all the beautiful moments we imagined sharing as a family of three.

Instead, we were preparing to say goodbye to her before we had even gotten the chance to bring her home.

The next day, we proceeded with end-of-life care. We cried so much, and our family members came to visit our precious girl. We gave her a bath, took pictures, and made memories with her handprints and footprints. We recorded her heartbeat so we would always have something to remember that beautiful sound by.

We did everything we could to preserve the precious memories we had with our baby girl, Story. Every little detail mattered because we knew these moments were ones we would carry in our hearts for the rest of our lives.

Story died peacefully in my arms on Saturday, October 10, 2026, at around 8:30 p.m.

After 10 years of yearning, praying, and hoping for a baby, I finally got to meet my miracle daughter. I got to carry her, hold her, kiss her, and love her. But I never got to bring her home. I never got to see her grow up.

Nothing could ever prepare us walking out of the hospital without our baby, no car seats or baby in our hands like we had always imagined for months. Going home in the car with a baby on board sticker on the back window, a car seat that was waiting for her behind her daddy’s seat. Coming home to her stuff we spent months preparing, and having to still go through postpartum as if I still have my baby Story with me is an unimaginable pain I never thought I’d experience.

Our time with Story was heartbreakingly short, but she will forever be our daughter, our miracle baby, and the most beautiful baby girl we‘ve ever had. We will always miss her so much and will always be her mommy and daddy.

We will carry her memory with us for the rest of our lives.

Visitation will be held at Sunset Funeral Home, 2250 St Anthony Boulevard NE, Minneapolis, MN 55418, US, on October 23, 2026, from 10:00 am to 11:00 am. The Funeral Service will take place at Sunset Funeral Home, 2250 St Anthony Boulevard NE, Minneapolis, MN 55418, US, on October 23, 2026, at 11:00 am.

A Committal Service will be held at Roselawn Cemetery, 803 Larpenteur Ave W, Roseville, MN 55113, US, on October 23, 2026, at 12:30 pm.