The Power of a Hug
As Valentines Day draws near, I am reminded of a story I read in 1995 of two twin baby girls. When they were born, Oct. 17, 1995, they were premature by 12 weeks and put in the neonatal intensive care unit of the Medical Center in Central Massachusetts in Worcester. As a standard practice of the hospital, the babies were placed into separate incubators in order to reduce the risk of infection. One baby, Kyrie, was much larger than her sister Brielle, who only weighed two pounds at her birth. The larger baby, Kyrie, slept well and was healthily gaining weight, but her smaller sister, Brielle, was having trouble breathing and had low levels of oxygen in her blood, as well as low weight gain and problems with her heart rate. Everyone was deeply concerned, especially a particular nurse named Gayle Kasparian, who was trying everything that she could think of to help Brielle. Then, on Nov. 12th, Brielle had an emergency health situation. She started gasping for air and started turning a gray-blue color; then she got hiccups and her heart rate went way up. Everyone was so afraid Brielle would not survive.
In desperation, nurse Kasparian remembered a common procedure a fellow colleague had mentioned to her once, that was common practice in most of Europe, but not done here in that country. It was the practice of placing newborn baby multiple births in beds together. They called it double bedding. Even though she could not ask permission from her manager, because she was away and not able to reached, she asked the parents permission to put the girls together in one bed to see if it would help. They agreed. So, nurse Gayle, broke the rules and place the larger baby sister with her smaller, now in extreme danger of dying.
The moment they were together, Brielle immediately snuggled up to her sister and within minutes, Brielle’s readings for her blood and oxygen were better than they had been since her birth. Kyrie gently put her arm around Brielle. It was such a beautiful hug. In the article I read, they called it a rescuing hug. It was a very powerful hug. Being together had quite literally saved Brielle’s life. It wasn’t much later that the parents were able to take the girls home, because they both were thriving. Nurse Gayle did not get in trouble. In fact, the practice of double bedding multiple births is now a standard practice at the hospital. Sometimes, breaking the rules can lead to changes in old antiquated practices. It takes courage and a strong heart to do what you believe in.
So, as we lead our busy lives, remember that our connectiveness and our ability to love are so precious, that we can literally save another’s life by just being there for them. So, share those
wonderful hugs with your loved ones. Take the time to truly listen, be present and reach out with the most precious gift you can give. That is the precious gift of you. You may never know how much of an impact that hug smile might have on another’s life, but it is something you can give everyday without spending a penny.
I am mentally sending hugs to you all!
Much love and have a joyful and loving month of February. Love, Nancy
