hospital

Meet Lakin

Lakin was brought to Nationwide Children's Hospital shortly after birth. Here, she worked hard to overcome obstacles associated with cerebral palsy, a developmental condition that develops before birth, affecting the parts of the brain that control muscles, leading to difficulties with coordination, muscle control, and movement.

On the day Lakin was born, her parents entered their delivery hospital expecting to have a traditional birth. However, the first 12 minutes of Lakin’s life were not the joyous celebration her parents anticipated. She was breathless and experienced multiple seizures. Doctors discovered severe bleeding and water on her brain, known as hydrocephalus, which resulted in a shunt being placed to help drain the extra cerebrospinal fluid.

Levi

Lakin was then transferred to Nationwide Children’s Hospital where she spent the next 44 days fighting. Jon and Stephanie, Lakin’s parents, stayed nearby at the Ronald McDonald House while the team worked to save their daughter’s life. Over time they saw improvements in Lakin’s health, and she was able to go home for the first time.

Once home, Lakin faced more obstacles. She had a difficult time digesting the minimum necessary for her nutritional intake, but Lakin, her parents, and her care team made a nutrition plan, and though it was not easy for her, she began to reach the proper growth milestones. After further testing to determine the cause of Lakin’s issues at birth, it was determined she had Cerebral Palsy, a condition that develops before birth, affecting the parts of the brain that control muscles, leading to difficulties with coordination, muscle control, and movement.


“Every nurse, doctor and staff member went out of their way to not only care for our daughter, but to ensure that my wife and I were doing okay as well,” Jon says. “We were always comforted knowing that our daughter was in good hands with the staff at Nationwide Children’s.”

Currently, Lakin is one of the happiest children around. She is now walking without the assistance of a walker. She loves going to school where she plays and learns with her friends and teachers. She has played All Abilities baseball for the past two summers and loves going to dance class. Lakin is the best big sister to her little brother who just turned one, enjoys going on stroller runs with Dad and is a great helper for Mom.

Make a Donation