Jaxx's Stocking Fundraiser

Every year, mothers and babies around the world face a rare, life threatening condition called HDFN; when a mother’s blood creates antibodies that attack her baby’s red blood cells. With the right care, babies survive HDFN and thrive. Without it, the outcomes can be devastating.

That’s where the Allo Hope Foundation (AHF) comes in. AHF provides education, specialist referrals, global access initiatives, and research so that mothers and babies receive the lifesaving care and support they need during their HDFN diagnosis.

Throughout the Holiday season, we are raising money for AHF to honor Jaxx's battle with HDFN and to help protect other babies from preventable harm. Please join me in sharing hope with those who need it most by contributing to Jaxx's Stocking Fundraiser.

Your donation today helps:

• Put a support booklet in the hands of a newly diagnosed mother so she can advocate for her baby

• Fund a blood-type test or Rh immunoglobulin dose for a mother in a low resource country.

• Connect a family with a maternal–fetal specialist experienced in HDFN.

• Advance research and education to prevent stillbirths and infant deaths caused by alloimmunization and HDFN.

My Alloimmunization Story

At 28 weeks, I went in for my routine RhoGAM shot, expecting it to be a simple appointment. Instead, I developed a fever and shaking later that day. It was unnerving, but I didn’t yet realize how significant it would become in the rest of my pregnancy.

Around 37 weeks, Jaxx, who had always moved consistently, became noticeably quiet. His movements weren’t what I was used to, and I felt strongly that something was wrong. When I called, I was told decreased movement could be “normal,” though nothing about it felt normal to me. My own OB wasn’t on call, and the doctor who answered seemed to brush off my worries. Even so, I trusted my instincts and went to the hospital to be monitored.

At the hospital, the monitors showed that Jaxx was having heart rate decelerations. After a few hours of observation and an NST, things appeared to settle, and I was told he might have been “playing with the cord.” As a first-time mom without any warning that the RhoGAM might not have worked, I went home believing everything was okay.

At 39 weeks, I returned—this time with contractions that lasted five minutes each, coming only one to two minutes apart. Despite being in clear pain and showing obvious signs of labor, I was told I wasn’t in labor yet. Hours passed while the contractions continued and Jaxx had more heart rate drops. They broke my water and had me change positions repeatedly. For a while things stayed calm, but then everything shifted quickly. The room filled with staff, my husband was handed scrubs, and I was rushed for an emergency c-section.

Jaxx wasn’t breathing on his own at birth. He was resuscitated, placed on 100% oxygen, and taken out of the room immediately. We didn’t get to hold him. Jaxx was severely anemic and spent a week in the NICU. We were told he might need a transfusion, though he never received one. His bilirubin was stable, so he didn’t require lights. During this time, I was told I had needed three times the standard dose of RhoGAM because my titers were high and my placenta had ruptured. Later I learned that Jaxx was born with antigens D and little c, and the RhoGAM I received at birth was unnecessary—I had already been sensitized.

I will never forget waking up on the second night in the hospital to a resident standing beside my bed saying, “Can we use your story in our morning report? The hospital has never seen this before.” That sentence stayed with me, long before I understood what it truly meant.

After discharge, we followed with a hematologist from July through January. His blood was checked several times a week at first, then twice weekly, weekly, and eventually every other week until we were cleared. Only later—when we began trying for a second baby and met with additional MFMs and hematologists—did we finally receive clarity. One hematologist reviewed Jaxx’s bloodwork, listened to our full story, and explained that Jaxx had been born with HDFN. She also shared that his decreased movement, the heart rate decelerations, and his severe anemia at birth were all signs that he had likely been anemic in utero.

Had I known the information I have now, Jaxx’s beginning may have been different. Jaxx was born lucky—but babies should not have to depend on luck.

Thank you for helping us honor Jaxx and for standing with families facing HDFN around the world. Your generosity brings education, treatment, and hope to those who need it most.

From our family to yours, we wish you a beautiful and peaceful holiday season.

Learn more about The Allo Hope Foundation here: https://allohopefoundation.org