Zachariah and Michelle

Life definitely has its share of hills and valleys, but Zachariah and Michelle Liu had to negotiate an enormous mountain right out of the womb.

The twins were born about three months early. Zach weighed just one pound, ten ounces. Michelle was even smaller, tipping the scales at one pound, five ounces.

Like many Valley “preemies”, the Liu twins were sent to Children’s Hospital Central California’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) immediately after they were born.

“It was scary, seeing how frail they were,” says Al, the duo’s father.

Thankfully, the tiny twosome was in great hands. As a Level III NICU, Children’s Hospital offers some of the highest levels of neonatal critical care anywhere in the world.

Zach and Michelle are pictured here with fellow preemie twins Seth and Jacob Kazanjian

The twins symptoms were numerous. Zach had bleeding on the brain. He also had a problem with his heart, which, like the rest of him, wasn’t fully developed. An infection compounded the situation. Michelle, meanwhile, also had an infection and lungs that couldn’t fully support her.

The twins were placed under the care of neonatologists Dr. Vinod Bansal,
Dr. Kajori Thusu, and the specially trained NICU team. They were positioned in isolettes to maintain their temperatures and given oxygen to help them breath. Special medications were also administered to help get rid of their infections.

For a while, it was touch and go. But slowly, they started to get better. Zach’s infection cleared up and his heart benefited from the medication. Michelle’s lungs grew stronger by the day. All the while, their parents stood by anxiously, waiting for the day when they could take their twins home.

“The nursing staff was awesome,” says the pair’s mother, Joyce. “I could call anytime and they would let me know how they were doing. They were so supportive.”

After three months in the NICU, right around the time they were actually supposed to have been born, Zach and Michelle went home. Given how small and how sick they were, their recovery was nothing short of miraculous.

“They said most babies who are that premature do not go home that early,” says Joyce.

Success stories such as this are not uncommon in Children’s NICU. Having no children before Zach and Michelle, Joyce was aware of Children’s Hospital, but wasn’t informed about the hospital’s accomplishments. Joyce’s sister, a nurse at another California children’s hospital, did some background research on Children’s before Zach and Michelle were born.

“She called and she said, ‘Did you know that your hospital is one of the top children’s hospitals in the country?’ I didn’t know, because I didn’t have children at the time. But that was good to hear.”

Today, Zach and Michelle are a couple of healthy, happy 2-year-olds. Like all good twin teams, they work in tandem to keep their parents on their toes.

“Michelle is into analyzing things. Zach is her lookout and the brawn. He’ll knock stuff over just to get past it,” says Mom.

For this dynamic duo, it looks like the toughest part of the climb is behind them. Now they’re just enjoying the view.

Journey Sponsored by Payden & Rygel Investment Management
Adventure Sponsored by HealthNet Community Solutions