Small but Mighty, Catharine Faced the Fight of Her Life

Expected to be her family’s Halloween treat, Catharine Aboulhouda instead made her arrival 16 weeks early on the Fourth of July, weighing 1 pound, 10 ounces and just 12 inches long. Born at 24 weeks, Catharine was in an extremely critical situation and was in for the fight of her life.

“Catharine was born at the lower limit of viability with babies born before 24 weeks having around a 10% chance of survival at that time,” says Marijo Zelinka, MD, neonatologist at Lehigh Valley Reilly Children’s Hospital. “From having severe lung disease and breathing issues to facing daily challenges caused by bleeding in her brain, jaundice and a heart murmur, Catharine conquered it all. She was a small little baby, but she was a strong one.”

After spending 113 days in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Lehigh Valley Reilly Children’s Hospital, Catharine finally went home with her family, still fragile enough to need monitors and oxygen.

Today, Catharine is a healthy 21-year-old, and amazingly, has no lasting consequences of her extremely premature birth. Now a junior in college at Penn State, Catharine loves singing, acting and hanging out with her friends. She is also fiercely committed to giving back, whether it’s through spreading awareness about premature birth or helping her university enhance the lives of children and families impacted by childhood cancer through its annual student-run philanthropy, THON.

“The nurses and doctors who cared for me while I was in the NICU are the reason I am here today,” Catharine says. “They watched over me 24 hours a day, seven days a week and cared for me like I was their own child. There aren’t enough words to express my gratitude for fighting alongside of me to make my life possible.”

You can find more about Catharine’s story and her family’s journey in the NICU in the video below: