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Our Miracle Needed a Miracle
The images below have been watermarked for Sebastian’s online safety.
At birth, doctors discovered Sebastian had a heart murmur. After being referred to a Pediatric Cardiologist it was determined this murmur was due to a congenital heart defect that would require surgery.
Nearly 1 in 100 babies are born with a heart defect in the United States each year. About 1 in 4 babies born with a heart defect has a critical CHD which will require surgery or other treatment within the first year of life.
Some heart defects can be monitored and others need to be corrected. In our case, our son Sebastian would need corrective surgery.
At just shy of four months old, on February 12, 2023, our family traveled to UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital in San Francisco, CA for Sebastian’s open heart surgery.
Sebastian underwent preliminary procedures, experienced challenges andmiraculous triumphs.
Sebastian was on life support for four days and was ultimately cleared for his open heart surgery on February 16th. His surgery, performed by the world renowned Pediatric Heart Surgeon, Dr. Vadiyala Mohan Reddy was successful!
Next came recovery. We spent all day and night looking after Sebastian alongside his nurses. We attended “rounds”, took notes and asked questions. We were active in all activities during Sebastian’s recovery including bathing and feedings.
Doctors, nurses, anesthesiologists and other specialists who heard about Sebastian and his extensive surgery visited his bedside astonished by his recovery and all he had overcome. After spending a little over 2 weeks in the hospital, Sebastian was released to go home.
Sebastian has a scar on his neck, and a scar down his chest where the life saving heart surgery took place. He will grow into these scars, they may stretch, change, or fade and he will know that we all have scars, some of us just get them earlier than others.
February is Heart month, and this month is especially important to parents of children born with Congenital Heart Defects (CHD). February is especially important to our family because it’s the month that Sebastian had his open heart surgery and proved he is a true miracle. We will celebrate Sebastian’s first “Heartiversary” on February 16, 2024.
As we look forward to what’s ahead, we were led to reach back to comfort others going through a challenging season in their lives. Thus, “Bearing a Selfless Heart” was born.
Our son Sebastian, affectionately called Bash is the inspiration for our name “Bearing A Selfless Heart”. Our mission as an organization is to be selfless in all we do and that our efforts may make an impact and touch hearts.
Bearing a Selfless Heart, Inc.
In 2023, our family spent Valentine’s Day in the hospital while Sebastian was receiving medical treatment. We were among hundreds of other families who spent this day at our child’s bedside.
This Valentine’s Day, consider supporting Sebastian’s Teddy Bear Dinner or sending a Teddy Bear to children who are in the hospital receiving critical care.