By Heaven's Grace: The Mother Who Lost Her Triplets Now Holds a Healthy Son

I always love to hear miracle stories, but I was especially glad to hear about this one. Exactly a year ago, I interviewed Ahuvah Or Bukovza, who had lost her three children. Two years prior, she became pregnant after fertility treatments and gave birth to triplets in the 24th week of her pregnancy. One day after birth, one of the girls passed away due to organ failure. Two weeks later, her son also died, again from organ failure. Sadly, her daughter, who had already been named 'Esther', died after a month in the NICU. What amazed me about Ahuvah Or was her ability to see the good even after such a tragedy, and it seems that her strong faith in Hashem ultimately blessed her with a good ending. Two months ago, Ahuvah Or and her husband welcomed a healthy baby boy, *b'ezrat Hashem*, and are now getting used to the new parenthood.

So, what happened since we last spoke?

"We wanted to start fertility treatments again, and the rabbi sent us to a private doctor. We got an appointment immediately, and everything moved really fast. Even the treatment succeeded on the first try."

And how did you feel? Were there fears?

"Of course. The last birth happened at the 24th week, so during this pregnancy, until week 24, we were all on edge. We just waited for that week to pass, and once it did, everything was calmer. Both I and the doctors were worried about another preterm birth due to the first one, so I felt relieved. Since I was on pregnancy watch, I had an ultrasound every two weeks, which also reassured me—the knowledge that everything was okay."

By heaven's grace, Ahuvah Or didn't arrive at the delivery room earlier than expected but was slightly delayed. But as we've seen in this story, everything worked out for the best. "I gave birth in the 40th week and 4 days. I went to Soroka Hospital for a check-up, and the doctors saw a slow pulse on the monitor. Although it seemed that the monitor was faulty because afterwards, all the metrics were normal, they didn't want to take an unnecessary risk and decided to induce labor." Ahuvah Or didn't spend much time in the delivery room and *b'ezrat Hashem*, gave birth to a healthy baby boy in a completely normal delivery.

So now that you're holding a son, how does it feel?

"At first, it's a kind of shock. Like, there's a baby here, what do you do with it? (laughs) Even my husband was afraid to hold him because he's so small and fragile. But *b'ezrat Hashem* we went with the new situation, and it just happened naturally. The first weeks were hard, really survival-like. I slept barely two hours a night. But that's how it is when everything is suddenly new. You learn to get used to the fact that there’s a crying baby at home."

The previous interview with Ahuvah Or was hugely successful on the Hidabroot website. Tens of thousands of people read the article about her, were moved along with her, and found strength thanks to her. She received numerous contacts from women who had gone through similar experiences and even received requests to open a special forum for women who lost their fetuses or newborns. "This is a topic that's not talked about much in the community, so many women felt the need to open such a forum," she says.

What would you advise a woman who went through a similar experience?

"First of all, survive the first month, which is the hardest. Secondly, I would advise strengthening faith or taking on a special commitment, because without it, you just fall into sorrow. I remember that after the first birth, I didn't stop listening to lectures by rabbis, all day on loops. You need a lot of faith, you need to believe that everything is for the best, and it's really true. So many things happened after the first birth. Today, *b'ezrat Hashem* we live in our own apartment in Be’er Sheva, which we didn't have before. I really feel like after all the hardships we went through, we received a kiss. That's how life works. In the end, what needs to happen, happens, and it always happens at the right time."

For the previous article on Ahuvah Or, click here.