Emmanuel Brings a Fighting Spirit to a Tough Battle
Fierce persistence and a nagging mother’s intuition that something wasn’t right led newborn Emmanuel to the Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Heart Center on Christmas morning two years ago. His mom, Brielle—a veterinarian—noticed that he looked and sounded different from her older son, Gabriel, when he was born. After exploring several possible viral causes for his symptoms, Brie and her husband Trent took their baby to Children’s, where he was eventually diagnosed with left-sided dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) and unspecified heart failure.
“The signs were there, but he also just seemed like a regular newborn,” Trent said. “Every child is an individual, and you can’t necessarily compare them. Brie knew something was wrong, and she just kept trusting her gut and pushing until we got an answer.”
DCM is a condition in which the heart chambers become enlarged, affecting the heart’s ability to pump blood. When Emmanuel arrived at Children’s that December night, he had extremely high blood pressure and his organs were failing. He was a very sick little boy, but his parents say he showed himself to be a fighter, even then.
“Emmanuel has a lot of personality and a stubbornness that he gets from both parents,” Trent said. “The fighting spirit we saw in the hospital is who he is. He doesn’t take no for an answer. Sometimes the strongest people come in the smallest packages.”
Brie said they were familiar with Children’s through their experiences taking Gabriel there, and she trusted they would provide Emmanuel with excellent care.
“The doctors at Children’s are very forthcoming and honest,” Brie said. “They put everything on the table and tell you all your options. We also admired how the nurses in the hospital show up day after day to provide that high level of care in the cardiac ICU. God and CHOA healed our baby, and we are forever thankful.”
Although Emmanuel’s experience was traumatic and critical, Brie and Trent say he now looks and acts like any other typical 2-year-old—and that’s exactly how they treat him. While he takes medication twice a day, he otherwise lives a normal, active life.
Brie said Emmanuel loves reading books, coloring, dancing, playing, climbing, and just being a busy kid. His favorite artist is Danny Go, and his favorite toys are dinosaurs, blocks, and King Kong. Big brother Gabriel’s favorite is Godzilla, and the fights between them are epic. Emmanuel also loves to eat, which Brie said is both heartwarming and ironic—they remember watching him relearn how to eat in the hospital.
“Emmanuel reminds us that God still does miracles and that we’re blessed,” Brie said. “We don’t limit him, and he has no restrictions. We let him live life because we only get one! It means a lot to watch him grow up, and every day is truly a gift. He may not remember what he went through, but as parents, we never forget. My kid and the others like him are the strongest people we will ever meet, and I admire them for that.”
Emmanuel is followed by the Heart Transplant and Heart Failure Clinic at Children’s Cardiology, based at Arthur M. Blank Hospital. Emmanuel sees William Mahle, MD, at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Cardiology’s Marietta clinic.
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