© Seay family
Brilio.net/en - Welcoming a baby begins at the hospital but continues in the home for most parents. But what would happen if the babys heart wouldnt allow him to stay with the parents after arrival?
Sadly, that's what happened to Mindy and Rob Seay from Anchorage, Alaska.
Baby Lincoln was diagnosed with severe heart defects when his mother Mindy was 20 weeks pregnant. Not too long after his birth, he needed an open-heart surgery to install a cardiac shunt, a life-support device to keep him alive.
Image by Seay family
But when Lincoln turned 3 months old, he outgrew his shunt and the couple heard the words that shook their world like thunder shakes the sky: their baby needed a heart transplant.
Mindy was ruined. She couldnt bear the fact that the adorable baby she fell in love with could be taken away from her at any time.
If there was ever a time for me to step up as dad and husband, that was the time, said Rob.
He was in pain as well, but he knew he has to play strong because his family needed him more than ever. So he did, and he deserves a trophy for that.
Image by Seay family
He resigned from his then job and moved the family (including the couple's older children) to reach closer to the Seattle Children's Hospital.
He said he was scared, too, for the first time, but then managed to dig deep for more strength to keep everyone in the family positive.
I refused to let my family suffer, said Rob, as reported by Upworthy. I made sure that every action I made was intentionally directed towards giving them the support they needed.
Rob took all the burden so Mindy wouldnt have to. He wanted her to focus only on two things: taking care of herself and taking care of baby Lincoln.
He did all the parenting, including enrolled the boys in school, shopping, cooking, cleaning, laundry, and he ran the kids all over the place.
He also wanted the kids to be happy and emotionally okay while they were in Seattle. Having fun was not the reason the family was in Emerald City, but somehow it injected a greater dosage of strength to the family.
I made sure to ask them questions about their feelings concerning Lincoln, Rob said. I didn't want anything bottled up. They needed to know they could talk to me about anything.
He didnt complain, he didnt want anyone to feel sorry for him. This father deserves a medal of Grade-A caregiver.
But even though Rob was doing his part to keep his family happy and he played it well, little Lincoln was fighting for his life in the hospital.
After two episodes of cardiac arrest, Lincolns parents finally had some good news: their baby was going to receive a new heart!
It was the happiest day for the Seay family. In happiness and gratitude, Mindy wrote a powerful letter to the donor family on Facebook.
But the happiness wasnt there for long. As Lincoln was being prepped for the transplant, his little heart stopped beating. He died.
The doctors, however, refused to give up.
Image by Seay family
They opened up the babys chest as they raced against the time, manually compressed his heart, and successfully connected him to a heart bypass machine.
In many cases, this process can take up to two hours to complete. The doctors, however, did it in 12 minutes. And it brought Lincoln back to live. And then, a few hours later, Lincoln got a new heart.
After having a new heart, he suddenly was a brand-new child, filled with energy and happiness. Lincoln was set to be discharged from the hospital this past week, and Mindy wants to ensure that the unsung hero gets his due praise.
Finally, the happy ending is here. The baby who died in the hospital a few weeks ago is now alive and able to go home.
Image by Seay family
There are many heroes in this story: the team of doctors, the mother who stayed by her babys side, and the baby who endured so much to survive. However, the first person Mindy thinks of is her husband.
"I could not imagine getting through this without Rob's support," Mindy said. "He gives his all to our family and he often sacrifices his own needs to take care of ours."
Image by Seay family
Maybe Rob thinks that all that he did his job as a dad. But for Mindy, hes her true hero.
And while little Lincoln smiled to the camera with his parents great love, one thing we can learn with this story: God never sleep.
(brl/red)
