Gunnar John McManaman was born November 17th at 12:49am weighing 7 pounds 3 ounces and 19.5 inches long.

Gunnar was recently diagnosed with a specific epilepsy related gene mutation that caused a brain malformation in early development. He spent 22 days in the NICU for seizure management and was discharged home December 10th.

He was thriving at home despite ongoing seizures, loving all the snuggles from mom and dad and letting us know we weren’t fast enough with his milk!

Unfortunately on December 22nd his seizure frequency increased and lasted long enough for an ER visit. Gunnar was rushed to Phoenix Children’s Hospital and was admitted to the PICU where he is undergoing further testing and aggressive medication changes with the neurology and epilepsy specialists to get his seizures under better control, this may require emergency brain surgery to remove the affected area.

It is unknown how long we will be in the PICU or facing multiple hospital stays, frequent appointments and aggressive therapies once we are home. We all have a long road ahead of us but are determined to get Gunnar what he needs to thrive.

We appreciate any donation that will help us get through this difficult time and are asking for prayers for our sweet boy as Gunnar continues to face all these ongoing challenges. He is one strong boy and is our biggest blessing.

Venmo: brenna-mcmanaman