- Media personality Jeridah Andayi has opened up about child loss, something she has never fully healed from
- Jeridah recalled losing her daughter in 2008 after spending a full week in the ICU looking after her young one
- The former radio host narrated how her husband did not move from her side, scared that she would collapse
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Media personality Jeridah Andayi has recalled losing a child in a heartbreaking post on social media.
Source: Instagram
Jeridah, who relocated to the United States with her family, recounted watching her daughter in the ICU with a half-shaved head in 2008.
“On April 1, 2008, I stood next to my daughter’s bed. I looked at her lying in bed with a half-shaved head, her eyelids loosely closing her eyes. Her thick eyebrows perfectly aligned. She had no clothes on, just a diaper. Her skin was radiant, baby soft.”
The journalist revealed that her husband was by her side, worried that she would collapse because she had not eaten.
She recalled looking at her child and murmuring ‘yes’ to the chapter the pastor had declared over her baby.
“Her dad was by my side. He held me close. He worried that I would collapse. I was not eating. Seven days of water and minimal anything else. I asked him to call the pastor. The pastor came fast. The 3 of us stood next to the bed. The pastor read a Bible verse or a Bible story. He prayed. And declared that story to my child. After the pastor left with my eyes cast on my child, I said; ‘yes’. Her dad, standing close by my side, held me even tighter. I was not emotional. I was not crying. I was not shaking. I just said yes. Everyone was waiting for me to say something, yes or no. I said yes. It was a ceremonial yes. We had gone through processes, sessions, and conferences. All that was left.”
She recalled watching her child helplessly sleeping, and she applied oil to her entire body and talked to her. The baby’s breathing improved.
“I don’t know. Really, I don’t know what else was left. That yes is the most difficult yes a parent should ever have to say over their child. Things happened. Slowly I watched closely. The machines went quiet. Tubes were removed from her nose and mouth. IV sites cleared. I wiped her down. Applied oil to her entire body, talked to her. Her breathing improved. Her body temperature started rising again. Her face brightened up. She opened her eyes periodically. She moved her limbs just a little for mama to see that she was there,” she said.
After seven days in the ICU, she went home, and just when she left, she was called and informed that her baby had passed away.
Source: Facebook
She sympathised with those dealing with child loss, admitting that she was learning how to carry love and loss at the same time.
“I stayed in that ICU room and watched her for as long as I could. Then I just could not do it anymore. Seven days of physical, emotional, and spiritual fatigue set in. I needed sleep. I needed a break. It was about 4 in the afternoon. We informed the nurse that we’d return later in the night. Maybe 8 or 9. Even 10, depending on traffic. Nairobi traffic. The hospital called. That call woke me up from the deepest, most peaceful sleep. To anyone grieving a child… I see you. 18 years later, I’m still learning how to carry love and loss at the same time,” she shared.
Why did Jeridah object to daughter visiting friend?
In other news, Jeridah and one of her daughters were involved in a heated exchange.
This was after she requested permission to go for a sleepover at a friend’s house.
Jeridah cited reasons why she was strict with her daughter.
Proofreading by Jackson Otukho, copy editor at TUKO.co.ke.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
