We may go through many moments in life that are exciting and even life-changing, but being pregnant and having a child is perhaps at the top of the list. There are so many different emotions that we have to go through while we are pregnant and we know that as soon as the baby is born, our lives are never going to be the same. Of course, one of the most important things that we consider when we are pregnant is that the baby is healthy and happy. Unfortunately, it doesn’t happen that way for all parents.
Cheyenne Potts was getting ready to have a baby but she was told ahead of time that there was something wrong with her son. Michael, her husband went with her to the appointment and they were told that their son was ‘broken and breaking’. They said if he didn’t die during pregnancy, he would die shortly after he was born and it was a kindness to terminate the pregnancy. They decided to keep the baby boy and they saw just how much of a fighter he was nine months later.
“Our little man, Leo, has a disease called Osteogenesis Imperfecta… brittle bone disease,” explained Leo’s grandmother for Love What Matters.
The couple started to plan for their son’s funeral but then they decided that the doctors just could be wrong.
Doctors said that Leo, their son, would not live beyond one week.
”But then we decided to do our best to plan as though the doctors were wrong. Talk amongst ourselves about what life with Leo might be like. We spent the next 4 months in this manner”, Leo’s grandma said.
Two weeks before Leo was born, during Christmas, they got a lot of pictures thinking it was the last Christmas they would spend with their son.
“… [A]t this time the doctors still all agree Leo would not live beyond a week, and that week would be one of pain,” wrote Leo’s grandmother.
Leo weighed 5 pounds, 11 ounces when he was born in January 2019.
That is when he started to show the world just how brave he was.
“Crying, alive, and doing it on his own! The doctors were wrong,” wrote his grandmother. “Was he perfect? No, he was perfectly imperfect, and he was HERE. Alive, and a fighter. That day, Leo began to show the world that he would write his own book.
“Today, 6 months later, Leo is still holding the pen….”
Leo spent six days in the Stallman NICU and then was transferred to the children’s NICU for eight days.
His family had some frightening moments when the medical treatment was being given but he overcame the challenges he faced.
Doctors told the parents he would probably stay in intensive care for up to six months but he was home after 38 days.
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“We were asked about moments that stand out to us, and to be honest, I can’t think of just a few things that stand out,” wrote his grandmother. “He is an amazingly happy spirit and we see him touch and inspire people everywhere he goes. His family, most of all.”
Like any family in this situation, they are going to go through highs and lows. Leo has had his ups and downs in the nine months he has been around but mom and dad are happy that they have a precious son that is a fighter.
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Source: Newsner
