A 1-year-old girl’s big brother is now her family’s hero after he saved her from drowning while they played in the backyard.
According to the GoFundMe set up to help raise money for her medical bills, Lillian was playing in the backyard with three of her brothers the morning of December 20, “when she slipped and fell into the pool.”
“The eldest son, a hero, was just inside the outside door downstairs and heard our other boys screaming. He ran outside, saw Lillian floating on her back and jumped into the 38-degree water and pulled Lillian out. He firmly smacked her back and ran inside screaming for his mother who was coming down the stairs.”
That’s when Lillian’s mother began performing CPR on the 1-year-old. While doing chest compressions, Lillian spit-up some of the water she had ingested but remained unresponsive.
Mom of 1-Year-Old Girl Refused to Accept She Died, Came Back to Life Twice
After the brother who saved her called 911, “Mesa Police showed up within a matter of minutes and took over CPR.” Lillian was then rushed for a local Children’s Hospital where she was pronounced dead for the first time.
But as the GoFundMe explained, “Her mother thought she still felt a faint heartbeat and the hospital staff again tried to continue to revive Lillian. She was pronounced dead for the second time before noon.”
However, Lillian’s mom knew her baby girl was still alive. After being moved into another room to wait for the medical examiner, the mother refused to accept that Lillian was gone.
“Her mother insisted that she had a heartbeat, as she instinctively placed her hand on her baby’s chest and felt a beating heart. She even snapped a picture that showed Lillian’s color returning from pale to a pale pink. Lillian grasped her mother’s hand and moved slightly.”
Despite medical professionals insisting that Lillian had passed, effort to resuscitate her continued. She was then placed on a ventilator, as well as a heart and lung bypass machine after they were able to get a steady heartbeat.
Lillian’s father, Nathaniel, who wrote the GoFundMe update, then asked people to “please keep her in your prayers as well and consider donating to help her family with medical costs.”
By Christmas, Lillian improved so much that her heart started to beat on its own. However, while her lungs also continue to improve, they still need help from the ventilator.
“Today was a very good Christmas for Lillian and the Talboys family. We are truly blessed because of the skill and hard work of the PICU staff and everyone’s prayers. […] Lillian is truly our blessing and Christmas Miracle. We cannot express the words of gratitude for the support from everyone and the amazing PICU staff we have been blessed with to care for our daughter. We thank God he chose our Lillian to be such a fighter.”
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The last update came on December 28. While Lillian is still fighting, an MRI revealed that the 1-year-old has suffered some brain damage from the accident. However, “her physical reflexes and sensory responses are very promising.”
Lillian is still on the ventilator, and therefore, still sudated but, as her father wrote, “every day with her is a blessing.” Keep on fighting, Lillian!