Megan Smith and Eric Pegues finally took a sigh of relief after their extremely small premature baby was discharged on January 9, 2016 from a hospital in Charlotte, North Carolina. Megan, who gave birth to E’layah Faith on September 23, 2015, said that she was anxious as the moment she had been waiting for has finally arrived.

The baby girl was born 12 weeks prior to the normal delivery date when because of an emergency, Megan had to undergo a cesarean section. E’layah was born with a weight of only 10 ounces. The infant is being considered as one of smallest born child ever recorded and to survive. Several months have been given by the doctors to nurture the baby to gain strength, amid handling the fears regarding E’layah’s health or her growth impeding.

Carefully formulated feed was given to the baby, along with transfusion of blood. Megan recalled that she practically lived in the hospital for every single day. E’layah took birth at Carolinas Medical Center, where she was named ‘Tater Tot’ by the team of doctors at that hospital. The infant was then shifted to Levine Children’s Hospital.

“Even our equipment, even our diapers that we have for our smallest babies were too big for her. So, we had to be very creative in taking care of her,” said Dr. Jessica Clark Pounder of Levine Children’s Hospital. Premature babies might face neurological disabilities later in their life. In addition, premature birth has been the primary reason for deaths in infants.

Meanwhile, E’layah has now gained weight and is now five pounds and seven ounces. As doctors are satisfied with her advancement in growth, they still clarified that she has long way to go in terms of growth. According to Clark Pounder, E’layah now has the ability to breathe herself and look around.