For more than seven months, Melissa Burback had a very smooth pregnancy. She was expecting twins and planned to start childbirth preparation classes in the near future.

Then, as she walked to the kitchen one evening, her water broke.

What had been a standard pregnancy came to a rearing halt as Melissa was rushed via ambulance to a nearby hospital. Her body was trying to reject the twins because of their differing blood types, she says. The care team did everything they could do to extend the pregnancy, but it quickly became clear: Melissa’s babies were coming now.

Supporting Premature Life

When Victoria and Patrick were born at seven and a half months’ gestation in June 1998, they each weighed less than two pounds. They went straight into the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), and they were so small, Melissa says, that the hospital team had to cut premature-sized baby diapers in half just to fit them.

Melissa was not able to hold her babies for several days — Victoria after three days, and Patrick after five. In their fragile state, they needed help breathing and had to be fed through a tube. But to feed and breathe on their own, they had to first become stronger. For that, they needed nutrition.

“The doctors and nurses recommended that we supplement breast milk with Similac,” Melissa explains. “I had been working at Abbott as an administrative assistant at the time, and my parents and grandparents also worked at Abbott. It was a proud moment for me, for my babies to get help from Abbott products.”

Under the guidance of their medical team, Victoria and Patrick were tube-fed  until they became strong enough to leave the hospital. As part of the care plan, Melissa also did short skin-to-skin contact periods where she held both twins’ tiny bodies at the same time.

Growing Healthier and Going Home

Over time, and under expert care, the twins grew stronger, and they eventually came home with their parents. They each weighed around four pounds when they left the hospital, and they continued feeding breast milk and Similac formula.

“I was so young, but I felt comfortable that the doctors and nurses knew what to do,” she explains. “There are so many mothers out there that might not be able to produce enough milk or that need help feeding their babies. Without something like Similac, so many babies would not survive.”

Melissa is still with Abbott and has more than 20 years of experience with the company. Victoria and Patrick are healthy, working professionals in their mid-20s, and Victoria even worked at Abbott for a few years as well, Melissa says.

Now, Melissa celebrates the twins’ birthday in a special way with them each year.

“I always do it up real big,” she explains. “They really are my miracle babies.”