On the 1st of September, 2022 our whole world was turned upside down when our 1 month old baby, Luca, became irritable and unhappy overnight. We took him to the doctor first thing thing in the morning where the doctor said he was becoming dehydrated and called an ambulance to take him to Geelong ED. 

At first the nurses and doctors weren’t too concerned and gave him some IV fluids, but things quickly took a turn as Luca began having periods of apnoea and then shortly after started having seizures. 

Within hours of arriving at the ED, Luca was quickly deteriorating and the doctors became very worried about Luca’s condition. They told us they believed he had an infection which had spread to his spinal fluid and brain, and he needed a breathing tube so his body could focus on fighting the infection. 

With so many emotions, and still no answers as to what was making our little boy so sick, Luca was transferred to the Royal Children’s Hospital Neonatal ICU (The Butterfly Ward). 

After lots of poking and prodding of our brave boy, so many antibiotics being fed into his 3 IV drips and 3 days on life support, we were informed that Luca had parechovirus virus, which had attacked his poor little brain and caused meningitis. 

After a few of the longest days of our lives, Luca’s condition began to improve and on the 4th of September, Fathers Day, Luca’s breathing tube was removed so he could learn to breathe on his own again. That afternoon Luca opened his eyes for the first time in 4 days. 

A couple of days later, after almost a week, Luca was able to be transferred back to Geelong. While staying at the RCH, we witnessed first hand the amazing work that every single person there does. The Royal Children’s Hospital is an absolutely incredible place and because of the wonderful doctors and nurses we are so blessed to still have our little boy with us today.

My husband, my sister Stephanie and I are supporting the RCH this year by doing ‘Run for the Kids’. We will be participating in this great event on the 19th of March 2023 and we would be so grateful for any support you can give to us and this wonderful hospital - a place where so much support is provided, so much care is given and where miracles really can happen.