Angela Primachenko, 27, was tested for the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus, on March 24, 2020, after coming down with a fever two days previously. Just over a week later, Angela was placed in a medically induced coma on a ventilator at Legacy Salmon Creek Medical Center in Vancouver, Washington, the very same hospital where she works as a respiratory therapist.
To improve her chances of survival, Angela’s doctors decided to induce labor early in order to ensure the baby’s safety. On April 1, Angela delivered a healthy baby girl. The new mom woke up from a coma on April 6 to find that her baby bump was gone.
While Angela’s condition remained critical immediately following her delivery, the new mom soon began to show signs of improvement. On April 6, doctors had taken her off the ventilator.
“Thank you so much for everyone for helping me overcome the most challenging [time],” Angela wrote. “For everything. The gifts, the support. My life [is] only here because of God and the community [...] I’m alive!”
“Obviously nobody expected that I was going to get that sick, so no, absolutely not, I did not expect to deliver my child,” the new mom explained. “After all the medication and everything I just woke up and all of a sudden I didn’t have my belly any more. It was just extremely mind-blowing.”
Angela and her husband, David, named their baby girl Ava, meaning “breath of life.” Angela was introduced to her baby girl via FaceTime and photographs as she was whisked to the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit for monitoring and care after her birth.
Oksana described witnessing her sister’s battle as “rough,” adding that it had been both emotional and exhausting to see Angela struggle with her health and miss the birth of her daughter. “I wish this was a bad dream I could wake up from,” she told KVUE.
When Angela was released from the intensive care unit on April 11, she received a standing ovation from hospital staff.
“Also huge,” the mother of two added, “I finally showered after being intubated. For 11 days!”
Luckily, baby Ava tested negative for the CCP virus. As of April 14, Angela is back at home but needs to pass two negative tests before she is allowed to hold her baby. However, the new mom remains grateful for the outcome of her extraordinary journey.
Sharing her story with the world, Angela wants to remind people “that there’s hope.”
“That even in the hardest days and the hardest times that there’s hope and you can rely on God and people and community,” she said.