Meghan King Edmonds of "The Real Housewives of Orange County" has revealed in a blog post that her 13-month-old son, Hart, has irreversible brain damage.
Edmonds explained in an essay entitled "My Hart" that she always knew "something was different" about the child, but struggled to get a diagnosis from physicians.
Last month, however, an MRI revealed that Hart has minor periventricular leukomalacia, a disorder characterized by the loss of white matter of the brain tissue, on both sides of his brain.
According to The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, children who have periventricular leukomalacia are at risk for motor disorders, delayed mental development, coordination issues, vision and hearing impairments, and cerebral palsy.
"Like I said, I already knew. I immediately called [my husband, former professional baseball player] Jimmy [Edmonds] to tell him. He was surprised, which surprised me," she wrote. "[Later] I explained to Jimmy how we are not somehow compromised or punished for having a child with special needs (whatever that may or may not mean!), we are BLESSED. I will go on about this another time but just know that I do not see his diagnosis as anything but a gift: we were chosen to take on this special person. I truly feel as if we’ve doubled down and won the underdog hand. Truly."
Edmonds, 34, welcomed Hart and his twin brother, Hayes, last June, more than 18 months after she gave birth to her daughter, Aspen. In both instances, Edmonds was open about undergoing in vitro fertilization to conceive.
In her essay, the reality TV star wrote that since receiving Hart's diagnosis, she has enrolled him in an early invention program, and called loved ones "to give them the respect to grieve."
"I pray for a miracle and I grapple with how to navigate his life. Thirteen days after his diagnosis I finally put these thoughts to paper. This is a heavy challenge as a mother: where do we go from here? This is where: one foot in front of the other," she concluded. "God, you’re talking to me. I hear you. Let’s do this. All of it."