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Harlow Angela Falvey was born with a congenital heart defect. 1 out of 100 babies are born with this type of defect. However, at her birth there was no indication or suspicion that she had any issues at all. It wasn’t until she was 4 months old when she fell off of her growth chart completely, had trouble gaining weight/growing and a loud harsh heart-murmur was audible. By 6 months of age, she was declared “failure to thrive.” She was sent to the children’s hospital in Mississippi over the next several months for testing and trimonthly Echocardiograms.
It was there we learned the seriousness of her condition. Harlow was born with a large hole in her heart, taking up 1/3 of her entire heart’s size. The medical term is an Atrial Septal Defect or ASD. We were told this size of ASD would definitely need surgical closure, sometime before her second birthday. She was also diagnosed with Pulmonary Stenosis. This is when the pulmonary valve connected to the pulmonary artery is too narrow and needs to be opened up for blood to flow more easily.
Her ASD is the main concern at this time, although her surgery will correct both of these defects at the same time (hopefully). The large hole (ASD) causes oxygenated and deoxygenated blood to mix, and “shunting” to occur, shifting all of her pressures into the right chamber of the heart, and enlarging the right side of the heart completely. Right-sided heart enlargement as Harlow’s, is considered to be early heart-failure. We have been told by the time she reaches her twenties, her lungs would give out and her heart would eventually fail.
With all of this being said, we have now reached the point in our journey, where surgery is more necessary, and waiting for her to grow is simply not an option anymore. We have pushed it as long as we could’ve and we are so thankful she made it to 18 months before becoming symptomatic.
We will be traveling from Mississippi to Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston for the surgery, as they are more specialized in this particular area. Harlow’s surgery will most likely be open-heart surgery. It will be very debilitating on her body and we could be staying in Houston for up to two weeks, depending on her recovery. We are also facing Covid still, and are looking into safer methods of travel during our stay and after we leave, to better protect her. Any and all donations will go directly to our travel expenses; gas, lodging, food, necessities, etc. To safely transport her to Houston, stay with her there and bring her home safely after.
Confused, sad, anxious. These are just a few of the many emotions we have felt since her diagnosis and continue to the closer we get to her surgery date. But we know God created Harlow, He loves Harlow, He already knew this day would come, and He already knows the outcome. Truly, if you feel led to give ANY amount at all, it does not go unappreciated. And we consider it a blessing. Thank. You. *Note: any extra funds we receive past our travel expense goal will be used for Harlow’s medical bills.* You can also donate via PayPal or Venmo. PayPal:mccallgrace 11 @ yahoo.com (without the spaces) Venmo: @Breanna-Falvey
It was there we learned the seriousness of her condition. Harlow was born with a large hole in her heart, taking up 1/3 of her entire heart’s size. The medical term is an Atrial Septal Defect or ASD. We were told this size of ASD would definitely need surgical closure, sometime before her second birthday. She was also diagnosed with Pulmonary Stenosis. This is when the pulmonary valve connected to the pulmonary artery is too narrow and needs to be opened up for blood to flow more easily.
Her ASD is the main concern at this time, although her surgery will correct both of these defects at the same time (hopefully). The large hole (ASD) causes oxygenated and deoxygenated blood to mix, and “shunting” to occur, shifting all of her pressures into the right chamber of the heart, and enlarging the right side of the heart completely. Right-sided heart enlargement as Harlow’s, is considered to be early heart-failure. We have been told by the time she reaches her twenties, her lungs would give out and her heart would eventually fail.
With all of this being said, we have now reached the point in our journey, where surgery is more necessary, and waiting for her to grow is simply not an option anymore. We have pushed it as long as we could’ve and we are so thankful she made it to 18 months before becoming symptomatic.
We will be traveling from Mississippi to Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston for the surgery, as they are more specialized in this particular area. Harlow’s surgery will most likely be open-heart surgery. It will be very debilitating on her body and we could be staying in Houston for up to two weeks, depending on her recovery. We are also facing Covid still, and are looking into safer methods of travel during our stay and after we leave, to better protect her. Any and all donations will go directly to our travel expenses; gas, lodging, food, necessities, etc. To safely transport her to Houston, stay with her there and bring her home safely after.
Confused, sad, anxious. These are just a few of the many emotions we have felt since her diagnosis and continue to the closer we get to her surgery date. But we know God created Harlow, He loves Harlow, He already knew this day would come, and He already knows the outcome. Truly, if you feel led to give ANY amount at all, it does not go unappreciated. And we consider it a blessing. Thank. You. *Note: any extra funds we receive past our travel expense goal will be used for Harlow’s medical bills.* You can also donate via PayPal or Venmo. PayPal:mccallgrace 11 @ yahoo.com (without the spaces) Venmo: @Breanna-Falvey
And if things are too tight for a financial contribution, (we totally understand) please lift up a prayer for her instead ❤️
Sincerely,
Cayce and Breanna Falvey
(Harlow’s parents)