The Long Journey Home — Shannan and Nyelle's Labor, Delivery and NICU Story

For Shannan Williams and her fiancé, Nicolas Perry, pregnancy came as a startling next step in their lives. Yet, the journey was even more surprising. What began as a normal pregnancy turned into a series of neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) tears and miracles.

A "Normal" Pregnancy to Start

Shannan found out she was pregnant in November 2024. At first, pregnancy progressed normally.

"I had morning sickness around the six- to eight-week mark, which I was told by friends was pretty normal."

She relaxed as she saw her bump grow. When entering the second trimester, her experience slowly shifted. Shannan began swelling throughout her body. While she initially tried to treat it as annoying pregnancy symptoms, she knew something wasn’t right.

She had been visiting a nearby urgent care for pregnancy support, and at this particular visit, she was guided to WakeMed Obstetrics & Gynecology for follow-up.

The Day the Pregnancy Changed 

An ultrasound screening revealed issues with her placenta and blood flow, so the care team told Shannan and Nicolas the baby was struggling, and Shannan needed to be admitted to the hospital right away.

She and Nicolas went to WakeMed Raleigh Campus — as the shock of it all gripped her, realizing her baby may not be able to wait for full-term birth.

Shannan also had another pressing issue: "Because I wasn't set up with a regular OB-GYN, no one knew what I looked like prior to pregnancy, so my bodily swelling went unnoticed, and I didn't mention it because I didn't know it was a big deal. Soon I found out it was a very big deal. I was diagnosed with preeclampsia — so not only my baby but I, too, was in a state of distress."

A Baby at 26 Weeks: Nyelle’s Arrival

At first, Shannan showed progress with medical intervention, but suddenly on the day Nyelle was 26 weeks gestation, Mom and Baby were in distress, and Shannan was rushed to the WakeMed Obstetrics Emergency Department for a rushed cesarean section. It was a Thursday morning, and Nyelle came into the world weighing one pound and three ounces with a length of just over seven inches. Shannan was hospitalized for several days to treat her high blood pressure caused by preeclampsia. 

Nicolas chimes in: "Nyelle was the length of my hand. Shannan was fighting to recover. It wasn't what we expected." 

Shannan recalls the moments leading up to surgery: feeling nervous, asking questions and receiving comforting words as the anesthesiologist prepped her. 

"Once the team got me numb enough, I calmed down," recalls Shannan — "not because my fear disappeared, but because I knew my job was to relax and trust them."

After birth, Nicolas awaited the opportunity to hold his newborn baby, while still remaining present for Shannan.

"I couldn’t hold Nyelle," Nicolas chokes up. "I was able to touch her hand though."

The Level IV NICU team moved quickly to save baby Nyelle, intervening with urgency in her fragile medical state. 

Shannan wasn’t able to see Nyelle until the next day — she held on to hope that waiting was part of healing.

Survival: The First Week and the Quest for Updates

After delivery, Shannan stayed in the hospital for about a week. Her swelling eased, but her blood pressure still needed time to come down safely.

Emotionally, she and Nicolas were not prepared for the NICU — yet they also felt immediately surrounded by loving supporters. 

Shannan recalls, "My mom had already started preparing for Nyelle's birth in my first trimester. She purchased a stroller and car seat earlier than expected even though I told her it was too early. My best friend came to the hospital and spent time with us, which made me feel less isolated." 

Other family and friends kept in touch through calls and FaceTime since travel wasn’t possible. In those early days, calm came from sharing the burden with family and between each other. Shannan and Nicolas talked, remained grounded and held on.

Nyelle's NICU Battle

The focus for the WakeMed NICU care team was helping Nyelle's body grow and mature outside the womb.

"She was so small, and they had to keep her in the hospital until she was at least full-term. Nico and I hoped she'd be home by my July due date, but she had good days and bad days, and we learned we just had to wait."

Because Nyelle was only 26 weeks, her body needed extra support:

• Monitoring her heart and breathing (including episodes that doctors described as bradycardia — times when her heart or breathing needed attention)
• Supporting lung maturity (the steroid shots Shannan received before birth helped prepare her lungs)
• Ensuring she got nutrition safely through lines and later feeds
• Protecting her from complications while helping her gain weight.

Shannan recalls, "Even though it was hard not having a normal delivery experience, the NICU team was so caring and amazing. They explained what was happening and included us in decisions whenever possible — even allowing us to be part of her care by feeding her, bathing her and changing her diapers."

There were also scary moments:

• The need for a blood transfusion
• Light therapy for elevated bilirubin

In looking back, Shannan is in awe of Nyelle's progress despite hurdles.

"Nyelle kept making it through one step at a time," recounts Shannan. "Nico and I kept showing up whenever we could. I was there a lot because I wasn't busy at work, and Nico joined me in the evenings after he got off."

Challenges, Breast Milk and the Next Hurdle

Shannan tried to pump and provide breast milk as soon as she could. She went through colostrum first, then milk coming in — but Nyelle wasn’t ready to breastfeed directly.

"Once Nyelle got a little bigger, I had to keep pumping my milk because I learned that my baby had a lip tie and tongue tie, which made latching difficult."

 Nyelle also needed a feeding tube.

Then another challenge appeared: Shannan realized Nyelle was having digestive issues related to her own diet rich in dairy — so her feeding plan changed again. 

When Nyelle’s tie issues were evaluated, the repair helped significantly. 

Shannan describes how the surgery and follow-up care improved her comfort: "She was always super gassy and cried a lot as a baby. I didn't know that because she had these lip and tongue ties, she was swallowing lots of air in order to get food, so my baby was in a lot of pain." 

Once the ties were resolved, Nyelle immediately had less painful gas, less intense reflux and better digestion — which helped Nyelle gain weight and move forward.

The Wait to Come Home

Shannan and Nicolas had to balance daily life with hospital reality — learning how to be parents without the comforts of home. Still, they found solace in their loving NICU care team, who shared knowledge and were determined to get Nyelle ready for discharge. 

When Nyelle finally drew closer to going home, Shannan and Nicolas felt a mix of joy and nervousness. They had been receiving training to ensure they could adapt to the needs of their tiny infant.

Shannan remarks, "We had CPR and first aid practice, we were training in how to administer her medications, we received insight on feeding her and we discussed how to recognize sudden changes."

Eventually, tiny Nyelle was finally in her car seat and heading home — about a month after her due date in August. For Shannan, it felt surreal — and a little scary too.

"Nico and I just couldn't believe they were letting us take her home. We suddenly felt so responsible because Nyelle now completely depended on us."

Today: A Little Girl Who’s Growing Strong

Today, Shannan shares that medically, Nyelle has dramatically improved:

"She's made so much progress," Shannan gushes. "Nico and I are proud of her. She was once on multiple medications but is now off them. Her reflux medicine is no longer needed. Recently, she even had her feeding tube removed. She’s now eating solids — bananas, eggs. She drinks milk less now and has progressed to drinking water. She’s pulling to stand, babbling and showing her personality — goofy and a little sassy." 

Shannan credits the WakeMed NICU care team for her preparation and bond with her daughter. 

"The WakeMed NICU team is the best. They trained Nico and I, so we felt ready. They also included us so much, that we never felt like strangers watching others care for our daughter."

Looking back, despite it all, they celebrate with indescribable joy the sweet, resilient life their daughter, Nyelle, has today, as well as restored health for a mother in distress — thanks to WakeMed.

---

About WakeMed Level IV NICU

When you have a critically ill newborn, you want and need the best possible care for your baby. WakeMed's Level IV Neonatal Intensive Care Nursery offers the highest level of care available to premature and critically ill babies in Wake County.

About WakeMed Obstetrics & Gynecology

At WakeMed Obstetrics & Gynecology, we provide a full range of services for women of all ages in Raleigh, Cary, Clayton, Holly Springs, North Raleigh, Brier Creek and Morrisville, North Carolina.

About WakeMed Raleigh Campus Emergency Department

As part of the Raymond L. Champ Centers for Emergency Medicine on our Raleigh Campus, the adult emergency department is available around the clock, 365 days a year to treat everything from minor cuts and broken arms to something more serious like stroke, a heart attack or major trauma.