CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. — A mother whose infant son died from complications with RSV is sharing her story in hopes of making other parents aware.
"It's super hard to talk about. But, every time, I think this is my way of loving my son. Like, if I can save one parent from this heartache, then I will walk through fire," said Jessica Myers.
William Myers died on November 15th. He was just six weeks old.
"He was just as sweet as he could be. From the time he was born he was so beautiful," said Jessica.
William was born six weeks early and spent nine days in the NICU. He came home healthy, but after three and a half weeks, Jessica noticed something was off.
"He was really congested, so we were using the Frida, the boogie sucker, a lot more than the recommended two to three days. We were probably having to help him every hour, hour and a half," said Jessica.
That same night, William's breathing became labored, so Jessica and her husband took him to the hospital. "Because the hospitals are overtaxed and the emergency rooms are crazy busy, it took six hours of waiting before they tested William for RSV," said Jessica.
William was transported to Children's Health of Orange County, where he was initially given oxygen, and then had to be intubated.
He died just three days later.
"They worked on him for quite a bit so they administered CPR for an hour and they brought him back, so I was present when he died the first time essentially, and then they brought him back and there was so much hope. I heard his heartbeat and I'm so hopeful my nightmare was over, and it wasn't. It was just beginning," said Jessica.
Through her grief, bringing awareness to RSV has now become a priority for Jessica.
By the age of two, most kids will have had the respiratory virus. It usually masks itself as a cold, which goes away on its own. But, for babies, it poses different risks.
Jessica wants parents to trust their instincts. "If your baby is less than three months old and they have that much congestion, it is not because the air is too dry, it's because something is wrong and young infants should not cough, so if you hear them cough once, go to the doctor," said Jessica.
Also, advocate for your kids and ask that they be tested for RSV immediately during triage.
Finally, wash your hands thoroughly, avoid touching or kissing babies on the hands or face, and reconsider going to large gatherings.
Jessica doesn’t know where William got RSV. Looking back, she and her family thought they did everything right, never anticipating a loss like this.
“I know the holidays are coming up and I know people are gonna guilt trip you into doing all the family functions and go to all the things, but there will be other Christmases because for my family we didn't get one. Just keep your babies safe,” said Jessica.
Jessica's husband served as a Marine stationed at Camp Pendleton. They moved from San Diego to Cathedral City five years ago, and have two other children.
Their friend from San Diego has set up a Go Fund Me page to help Jessica and her family during this difficult time.
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