A brave father miraculously recovered from brain surgery to be by his wife’s side and help her give birth to their fourth child.
Ryan Steinbeck, who lives in Cooroy on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast with his wife Astrid Schirnack, received the shock diagnosis before Christmas last year that he had a brain tumour.
The 43-year-old needed emergency surgery to remove the tumor on the right side of his brain caused by a category one meningioma, which causes a buildup of abnormal cells on the outside of the brain.
But her surgery had to be delayed after Schirnack was nine months pregnant with the couple’s daughter.
Mr. Steinbeck, who suffered severe headaches, nausea and loss of feeling in his arms and legs, was left unable to work or care for his family.
Doctors said he needed urgent treatment as his condition could lead to a fatal stroke.
The tumor had grown so large that it had displaced Mr. Steinbeck’s brain.
Ryan Steinbeck (pictured right) made a remarkable recovery from emergency brain surgery to be at his wife’s (pictured left) side when she gave birth to the couple’s fourth child.
Schirnack feared that her husband would not be by her side to help her deliver her baby, since her surgery was scheduled for January 29, the day Schirnack was due to give birth.
The 34-year-old, who has run a business with her husband for seven years, took a few days on Facebook after giving birth to post an emotional message.
She said the past few weeks had been “stressful” and the family had been forced to turn to loved ones and the community for financial help to cope with her husband’s impending surgery and the birth of their son.
“We have been privately dealing with a lot of stress, grief and anguish over Ryan’s health and the timing of it all,” she wrote.
“We’ve been busy trying to get our lives together to help us get through this time.”
Steinbeck then underwent successful surgery and made a remarkable recovery to return home the night before Schirnack went into labor.
The couple welcomed their daughter Francesca Maria Steinbeck into their home on February 3 at 1:10 a.m., two weeks after giving birth.
Schirnack said her husband went through a difficult period in the final stages of her pregnancy as he fought his health battle.
‘As a father and partner he went through a really dark time. (It) helped (it) feel like a huge burden,’ he told the mail.
Astrid Schirnack (pictured) gave birth to her daughter Francesca in the early hours of February 3 with Mr Steinbeck there to see his daughter enter the world.
The father of four (pictured center) was due to undergo surgery on the day his wife was due to give birth.
“He had to quit his job and couldn’t show up like he wanted to as a man when he’s normally the most incredible partner, father and provider.”
Schirnack said she was relieved when her husband walked through the door on Feb. 1 around 11 p.m.
Steinbeck was briefly in the ICU and has some paralysis in his left foot as he awaits months of rehabilitation after his surgery.
He was at his wife’s side when she went into labor after Schirnack finished his morning swim in the Noosa River on February 2.
She described baby Francesca’s birth as a rollercoaster, but said the feeling of looking into her daughter’s eyes after her birth is priceless.
‘This is our baby unicorn. “She waited so her dad could be there and she has been very gentle, calm and collected.”
Mrs. Schirnack’s mother Jo had previously created a GoFundMe page to help provide financial support to the family.
So far about $11,000 has been raised, exceeding the goal of $10,000.