Seth’s sparkle
By Brianna
Our son Seth was just over eight months old - his usual happy self as we soaked in a beautiful day outside, his favourite place to be. I had just finished giving him a bottle when I noticed something strange - his right cheek looked red and slightly swollen. As I went to sit him down on the rug, he couldn’t hold himself upright. Within moments, Seth became distressed. My gut told me something was wrong. I told my partner to call an ambulance.
Those ten minutes waiting felt like a lifetime.
Then, suddenly, he was back to normal - cheeky as ever, crawling happily across the front yard. When the paramedics arrived and began asking questions, I started to doubt myself. Did I really see something? Was his face actually swollen? Maybe it was just pins and needles? Still, we followed our instincts and took him to Queensland Children’s Hospital, just to be safe.
At the hospital, Seth was his bubbly self. After examining him, the doctors reassured us: his vitals and reflexes were all normal. After an overnight stay for observations, we headed home.
About a month later, Seth was crawling after a ball when he suddenly collapsed. He tried to get back up but fell again onto his right side. His face began to droop, and he was clearly distressed. We knew instantly. This wasn’t normal - we’d seen this before. Remembering the advice to record any symptoms, we captured it on video and rushed to the hospital.
This time, Seth also had a tremor in his right arm. Trying to stay calm for him, our hearts raced as a flood of fears and questions rushed through our minds.
After admission, an MRI under general anaesthetic confirmed Seth had experienced a Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA), also known as a mini-stroke. The doctors told us it was likely the same thing that had happened a month ago - what I saw was real. The cause was inflammation of an artery on the left side of his brain, called Focal Cerebral Arteriopathy. It was terrifying, but we were so proud of Seth’s bravery. He began steroid treatment, started daily aspirin, and thankfully, there was no brain damage.
We believed this was the end of it. We just had to get through the next six months - the riskiest period - and things would settle.
But a week before Seth’s first birthday, it happened again.
While playing outside, I noticed a tremor in his right leg. Inside, we checked his arm - he wasn’t using it. His face began to droop. We stayed calm and took him straight to hospital. As we arrived, his facial droop worsened and we were taken through as a code stroke.
The room filled with doctors. Seth was severely distressed and unable to move the right side of his body. It lasted much longer this time. Those moments were filled with fear like I’ve never known. Eventually, he slept on me, and when he woke up over two hours later, he could move his arm again. Since most of the symptoms had resolved, the team decided to schedule another MRI a few days later.
Then came the news that changed everything.
After the scan, while we were trying to soothe Seth post-anaesthetic, a neurologist came into the room. She sat down and gently told us that Seth had suffered a stroke. This time, it had caused damage to his basal ganglia.
I felt sick. My partner, held Seth, and we just stared at each other - shocked. How could this happen? He was on aspirin. Can babies even have strokes? So many questions, so many unknowns. All we could do was wait for more answers.
Our little boy is now three years old and is thriving.
He has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy and flaccid dysarthria which affects his speech but nothing holds him back! He is a full force, adrenaline loving little boy who lights up a room with his cheeky smile! He continues to hit his milestones, but I feel we get to appreciate the smaller things (like him doing a thumbs up!) a whole lot more.
This journey has taught us that sometimes, all you can do is wait, love with your whole heart, and trust your instincts. We know there’s still a path ahead for Seth, but we are so incredibly grateful for how far he’s come. He is a joyful, curious, cheeky little boy who we know will grow into whoever he wants to be - with a little extra sparkle after everything he’s been through.
We feel compelled to share our story - because we’re so thankful we trusted our instincts when Seth needed us most. If our journey gives hope to even one other family navigating similar challenges, then sharing it is worth it.