Bianca touched my life in a way I will never forget. This baby was my first after losing a pregnancy earlier this year. I carried that grief and fear with me every single day. I had dreamed of the moment I would finally hold my baby, the moment that would make all the heartbreak worth it. I imagined skin-to-skin, tears of joy, and the feeling of finally having my child in my arms.

But that's not what happened. I developed preeclampsia, and everything changed so fast. I was put on magnesium and became bedridden. My baby had to go straight to the NICU, and the moment she was born, she was taken away from me. I couldn't follow her. I couldn't hold her. I couldn't even sit up. After being stitched up, I was left alone in a quiet room, the reality crashing down on me.  The emergency induction, the fear, the memories of my miscarriage, and now not being able to see my baby. It felt like my heart was breaking all over again.

And then there was Bianca. She didn't just see a patient. She saw a mother who was terrified and hurting. She became the emotional anchor I needed when everything else felt out of control. Since the beginning of the induction, she explained my care with such gentleness, reassured me when she saw I was scared, and truly saw me when I felt invisible.

Then she did something that changed my entire birth experience. She came into my room and told me she had called in a favor to the NICU. She asked if she could bring me, on a stretcher, still on magnesium, still vulnerable, just so I could see my baby before I was sent to postpartum recovery. She did this on her own, out of pure compassion, because she knew how much it meant to me. That moment, I was being wheeled into the NICU to see my tiny daughter, is etched into my heart. I didn't get to hold her, but I got to see her. I got to whisper to her. I got to be her mother in a moment when I felt robbed of everything I had dreamed of.

This meant even more because my blood pressure never stabilized. The magnesium had to be extended, and I couldn't see or touch my baby again until nearly 24 hours after she was born. Without Bianca, I would have had nothing, no first moment, no first memory, no connection to hold onto during that long separation. Bianca gave me something priceless. She gave me my first moment with my baby. She gave me hope. She gave me compassion when I needed it more than ever.

I will never forget how she cared for me, not just medically, but emotionally, at a time when my heart was in pieces. She is the definition of what the DAISY Award represents. Her kindness, her intuition, her advocacy, and her heart changed my life.