Breelyn’s brave journey: Overcoming heart and GI challenges at Manning Family Children’s

Ashley Rojas, 42, a registered dental hygienist, recently returned to work after a much-longer-than-expected maternity leave. Even as she kissed her precious baby girl, Breelyn Karen Ritchie, goodbye, knowing she would see her later that night, Ashley couldn’t help but recall the gnawing feelings she had leaving Breelyn at Manning Family Children's every night for over two months. 

Ashley and her fiancé, Benjamin, 38, know baby heartache all too well. The couple, who live in Marrero, La., suffered four miscarriages prior to getting pregnant with Breelyn. Very happy to be a stepmom to Ben’s two sons, Ashley wanted to give birth to a child herself and started to think a baby wasn’t in the cards for them. 

So when the couple found out they were pregnant for a fifth time, they were very cautious. They waited for the other baby bootie to drop. Everything was going well with the pregnancy – until it wasn’t.  

Ashley’s amniotic fluid started leaking on August 2 (her due date was October 1) and, despite efforts to stave off delivery, Breelyn made her way into the world on August 7, 2023 at 32 weeks. She weighed 3 pounds, 1 ounce.  

She looked perfect to mom and dad; they marveled at her 10 tiny fingers and 10 tiny toes and felt sincere gratitude that their dream of having a third child had finally come to fruition. 

After delivery by Cesarean section, Breelyn’s lungs were working better than doctors expected at her preemie age. However, she was not able to pass meconium within the usual 24 to 48 hours after birth. Concerned, Ashley and Ben agreed to have Breelyn transported to Manning Family Children’s for further testing.  

“We were told they needed to look more closely at Breelyn’s intestines. When they did, they discovered she had an intestinal blockage,” Ashley said.  

Evans Valerie, MD, a general surgeon at Manning Family Children’s, consulted with Ashley and Ben to explain the tests and the surgery he was going to perform. “He was so thorough and from the moment we met him, we felt so lucky to have him taking care of Breelyn. It was a Saturday night when we got to Children’s and Dr. Valerie performed the bowel resection surgery Sunday morning,” Ashley said. “It went very well and when he told us ‘everything went perfectly,’ it was music to our ears. We finally thought we were out of the woods. We would learn to care for a preemie and our family was finally going to be complete.” 

In the aftermath of surgery, with all eyes on little Breelyn’s bowel function, the ongoing “beep, beep, beeping” of the monitor diverted medical attention to her heart. She was diagnosed with supraventricular tachycardia (SVT), a condition that causes the heart to beat abnormally fast.  

“I was told many babies are born with SVT but the condition isn’t always diagnosed right away. In Breelyn’s case, she was already hooked up to monitors in the hospital,” Ashley explained, noting that Mandy Nasworthy, MD, a pediatric cardiologist at Manning Family Children’s, was able to diagnose Breelyn’s SVT and start a medical protocol to manage it right away.   

Ashley said she and her entire family are so thankful for Dr. Nasworthy’s quick action and loving care. “In fact, all of the doctors who cared for Breelyn deserve all the praise in the world,” mom said. “Neonatologists Jessica Patrick-Esteve, MD, and Jeffrey Surcouf, MD, were with us from the beginning. They were great, very comforting and very laid back so it made us feel like we could ask any questions we needed to ask. We never felt rushed. All of the doctors spent plenty of time with us.” 

The nurses made Ashley feel like her baby was the most important child in the world. “They were very attentive, very comforting,” she said. “I still can’t believe how well they cared for Breelyn. They even taught me quite a bit about how to care for a newborn – diaper changes, feeding, burping and more.” 

Breelyn will be monitored by cardiologists at Manning Family Children’s routinely going forward but Ashley said she has been told, for now, Breelyn is doing well. 

Post discharge on October 23, Breelyn was evaluated at the Intestinal Rehabilitation Clinic at Manning Family Children’s and the bowel issue has been completely resolved. They never thought they would say it, but Ashley and Ben don’t even mind changing diapers! 

And, now, the future seems quite bright for this little girl who is already putting her hands in her mouth, rolling a bit and lifting her head. “I pray she will be perfect and healthy,” mom said. “I want to see her off medication and growing into the beautiful, smart woman she is meant to be.” 

Soon after Breelyn was admitted to Manning Family Children’s, Ashley and Ben were introduced to the hospital’s Project Sweet Peas. It has become one of the most memorable parts of their experience with the award-winning children’s hospital. 

As part of the program, every baby is given a ribbon. For every milestone the baby achieves, she gets a pin attached to the ribbon. 

“You’d be surprised at how amazing it was to be able to celebrate small milestones with these pins. As parents with a baby in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Project Sweet Peas gave us something to look forward to. It’s another week, she gets a pin. She did this, she gets a pin. The pins provided us with a tangible way to look at what she had accomplished.” 

Ben said Project Sweet Peas helped to remind him of how far little Breelyn had come from her birth two months premature. “It gave us something to look forward to and helped us to feel like we were part of the process. When we read Breelyn her first book, she got a pin. When she had her first bath, she got a pin. When she moved from the incubator to a crib, we got to add another pin to her ribbon. The entire project helped with morale,” he said.  

Now, at home, he looks into Breelyn’s bright eyes and has unending hope for her future. “I want her to grow up, be great, and happy. I want her to have all the success in the world,” he said. “I want her to have a full, rich life!” 

For more information on the cardiology program at Manning Family Children’s, please visit: Cardiology | Manning Children's. 

For more information about the gastroenterology and nutrition program at Manning Family Children’s, please visit: Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition | Manning Family Children's. 

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About Manning Family Children’s: Manning Family Children’s is a 263-bed, non-profit academic pediatric medical center that offers comprehensive healthcare services, including over 40 pediatric specialties, just for children. With more than 600 pediatric providers, Manning Family Children’s offers a comprehensive array of specialized pediatric services in Louisiana and the Gulf South. In addition to its main campus located in New Orleans, Children’s operates a network of specialty clinics across Louisiana, including in Covington, Baton Rouge, Alexandria, Lafayette, and the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Children’s offers primary care at 17 convenient locations, along with a network of statewide pediatric affiliations. Children’s is a proud member of LCMC Health, a Louisiana-based, not-for-profit hospital system which also includes New Orleans East Hospital, Touro, University Medical Center New Orleans, West Jefferson Medical Center, East Jefferson General Hospital, Lakeview Hospital, and Lakeside Hospital. Learn more at manningchildren’s.org.