The Story Board

Monty's Story

Submitted by: Cheryl Major

Hi! My name is Ramont, but I go by Monty. I was born on October 27, 2001. I was supposed to be born in early February of 2002, but I decided to make my debut at 26 weeks, weighing in at a whopping 1 lb and 7 oz. My mommy was so scared and the doctors weren’t sure if I was going to make it. I spent an entire four months in the neo-natal intensive care unit (NICU) at the Greenville Hospital System’s Children’s Hospital. During my NICU stay, I was on a ventilator for 3 months, had a grade 3 intraventricular hemorrhage (bleeding in the brain), a diagnosis of cerebral palsy, as well as several surgeries. My most serious surgeries included closing a valve near my heart, laser eye surgery for retinopathy, a G-tube for feeding and a trach to help me breathe.
By the time I was ready to go home, I weighed 8 lbs and my mommy had to undergo lots of training in order to know how to care for me. Even though I finally made it home, my room looked like a miniature version of the NICU. My room was filled with oxygen tanks, a feeding pump and various supplies that my mommy needed in order to take care of me. I had to see a lot of doctors as well as receive occupational, physical and speech therapies. I was also in and out of the hospital because of breathing problems and more surgeries, one of which consisted of having a VP shunt placed in order to help drain fluid from my brain.
During the times I was coming and going to the hospital, my mommy got really sick and had to leave me to go to the Medical University of South Carolina and get a new liver. Mommy was afraid to leave me because I was the one who was always getting sick, but she had to go to get better so she could continue to take care of me. Mommy finally came home the day after my first birthday after spending three weeks at MUSC. A few months after my second birthday, the doctor told my mommy and me some very exciting news. I would be able to have my trach removed!
After my trach was removed, I was able to hear myself cry and make sounds that I never knew I was capable of making. I also got to eat food by mouth for the first time. It took a long time for me to learn to say different words and get used to the texture of certain foods. Today I have a vocabulary of 40 words, and I’m learning new ones everyday. I recently got a walker to help me get around, and I’m getting better using it every day. My doctors, nurses and therapists are so proud of all the progress I have made over my five years of life, but my mommy is the proudest of all.

“During Monty’s stay in the hospital, I was visited by a representative of Family Connection and learned about the Family Partner program. The next day, I was contacted by a Family Partner who had a child with the same diagnosis as Monty. I was relieved that there was another parent out there to share the experience that they went through. Family Connection is a program that I am forever grateful for, simply because I know that I am not alone when it comes to all the struggles that Monty and I have to go through.” - Cheryl Major, now a Family Partner who does outreach in the NICU, as well as other areas of the Greenville Hospital System.