Maggie Bailey of Pamplico is an answer to her parents’ prayers

Nine-year-old Maggie Bailey of Pamplico is an answer to her parents’ prayers.

The daughter of Scott and Pam Bailey, Maggie was born on Nov. 18, 1998. She weighed only 1 pound 7 ounces when she arrived in this world prematurely at 27-and-a-half weeks.

“My wife’s pregnancy with Maggie started out better than her previous one with our son, Jeremy. Then, Pam’s health began to deteriorate,” Scott said. “She developed toxemia, or pregnancy-induced hypertension, and her blood pressure shot up. The doctor told me that I could lose one, or both of them, if they didn’t deliver Maggie immediately.”

After Jeremy’s birth in 1994, Scott and Pam began talking about having another child. Pam told Scott that if she wasn’t pregnant by the time she was 30, then she wasn’t having any more children.

“I prayed to the Lord that she would get pregnant before she turned 30. And, she did. When we were faced with a premature delivery, everyone in the family was scared we would lose her,” Scott said. “I wasn’t. I had asked for another child, a girl, and the good Lord answered my prayers. I just couldn’t believe he would take her from us right now.”

Following the emergency delivery, Maggie was immediately transported to the McLeod Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, where she spent her first three and a half months of life.

At 6 months old, she began receiving occupational, physical and speech therapy at the McLeod Rehabilitation Department. McLeod Occupational Therapist Joyce Blackwell began working with Maggie that first day.

“Maggie was facing some disabilities that were associated with her early arrival. She is weaker on the right side of her body than her left,” said Joyce. “In occupational therapy, we work on the ability to do a lot of things with your hands. In Maggie’s case, she also has a bilateral hand tremor. To control the hand tremor during rehab, we use weights on her wrists.

“We work on her handwriting ability and activities of daily living, including the ability to button, zip and tie shoes. Now, we’ve worked up to doing things a normal 9-year-old would want to do, like painting fingernails or putting hair up — a very difficult task for Maggie because she has trouble getting her arms high enough to fix the ponytail,” she said.

Blackwell works with Maggie to strengthen her upper extremities on a regular basis.

“One activity we do for strengthening is called ‘crab walking.’ This strengthens her arms because it forces her to shift her weight from one arm to the other. At the same time, she is propelling her body backward in motion, which is a lot harder to accomplish.”

When Maggie was 4, Scott said, they learned she had cerebral palsy, a disorder that affects body movement and muscle coordination, characterized by an inability to fully control physical movement.
To better control her physical movements, Maggie attends rehabilitation sessions at McLeod every Wednesday. She spends 30 minutes with each discipline: physical, occupational and speech therapy.
Recently, Maggie developed another side effect of cerebral palsy: seizures.

“The first time I ever saw her have a seizure, she had fallen asleep on the couch. It really frightened me,” Scott said. “When it is over, she just comes out of it; she doesn’t remember having it. Fortunately, Maggie has learned to deal with the seizures, and we have, too. Now, she takes medication to prevent the seizures and she hasn’t had one in a long time.”

“McLeod Rehab means a great deal to us. We’ve grown to see the staff as an extension of our family,” Scott said. “They’ve helped Maggie tremendously. I honestly don’t think she could have received help anywhere else that would have been any better. McLeod is the No. 1 place to bring someone for rehabilitation to help them getting going, and overcome their hurdles.”

Everyone involved in Maggie’s development says her future is bright.

“My hopes, wishes and prayers for Maggie are that she will continue with her goals in life and not use this as a crutch,” Scott said. “I want her to go on with life and be normal. Maggie does not let this disability get her down. She doesn’t let it get in her way of anything.

“She began playing T-ball when she was 4,” he said. “She runs and hits the ball well, and she catches great, too. Maggie’s had to overcome a lot of challenges, but today she is progressing right along. We are very proud of Maggie. She is our miracle child.”