Local 4′s Jason Colthorp and his wife Ida opened up about their experience with their newborn who was in the hospital with RSV.
Jason and Ida Colthorp spent days in the hospital with their baby, Sonny, who got RSV, and on Monday they shared their story.
Sonny spent four nights in the hospital fighting RSV at just six weeks old.
“Well first he developed the congestion, then he started getting more of a dry cough, which turned into more of a phlegmy cough. Then I made a pediatrician appointment that day because it definitely sounded concerning,” Ida explained.
The pediatrician did a breathing treatment and sent Sonny home. Jason and Ida were told to go to the emergency room if he wasn’t better.
Related: Michigan doctors urge parents to be vigilant as RSV is on the rise
They ended up taking him to the hospital, but with no fever, normal oxygen levels, and a normal appetite, the hospital also sent them home.
But things took a turn the next day.
“We had another follow-up appointment, so we were getting him ready for that. She handed him to me and I said, ‘his breathing is going downhill almost by the second,’ and as I was loading him into his car seat, he almost couldn’t breathe at all. I yelled, ‘we either need to leave right this second or we have to call an ambulance,’” Jason said. “It was just scary because he couldn’t breathe.”
The ambulance arrived at the house in less than two minutes and Ida says it was the scariest moment of her life.
“Seeing them take him out of our arms, to that ambulance was the scariest moment of my life. I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy,” she said.
The family believes Sonny contracted the virus from his older sister, Rosie.
“Definitely from her. Even though she was never tested. It was almost a running joke at the hospital with the staff. They would say, ‘I’m guessing he has an older sibling who’s also sick?’ And they said 90%, at least, are getting it from an older sibling,” Jason explained.
When asked about advice for parents, Jason said to just be extra cautious.
“I think you just have to be extra cautious. We’ve heard this a few times, but RSV, especially with the younger ones, just before you go to the family gathering, make sure everyone is good to go. I think you just have to be extra, extra cautious right now for the kids who are most vulnerable,” he said.
Watch the full interview:
Read: ‘I’m a miracle’: Eastpointe family shares experience with long-term effects of RSV