Los Angeles Dodgers star Freddie Freeman has given a health update on his son Maximus after the 3-year-old was rushed to the emergency room last week.
Freeman, 34, and his wife, Chelsea, made a joint Instagram post on Thursday, August 1, revealing their son is “battling a severe case of Guillain-Barré syndrome,” which they called “a rare neurological condition that is especially rare in children.”
According to the Mayo Clinic, Guillain-Barré syndrome is “a condition in which the body’s immune system attacks the nerves. It can cause weakness, numbness or paralysis.” Though an exact cause for the condition is not known, Cedars-Sinai says most children “recover fully with no complications,”
“These have been the hardest and scariest days of our lives,” the post continued. “Maximus is such a special boy and he has been fighting SO hard. This is going to be a journey to recover, but we have faith that he will be completely healed.”
MLB Star Freddie Freeman’s Family Guide: Meet His Wife and 3 Kids
Freeman was given a leave of absence from the Dodgers last week, traveling from the team’s road trip in Houston back to Los Angeles.
“We have been blown away by his improvements in the last 48 hours,” the Freemans wrote. “Maximus was excavated from his breathing tube and taken off of the ventilator yesterday, which is a huge win for us.”
The couple “believe in the power of prayer” and said “we have been witnessing a miracle in his recovery.”
“Please continue to cover Maximus and our family in your prayers,” the post concluded. “We really appreciate and have felt all of your support.”
The Freemans — who also share sons Charlie, 7, and Brandon, 3, who was born three months before Maximus via surrogacy — first updated their followers about Maximus’ condition on Wednesday, July 26, revealing he had been diagnosed with transient synovitis, a condition that causes hip inflammation.
Baseball Is Back — and Fans Can’t Get Enough of These Hot MLB Dads
Chelsea wrote via Instagram Stories that Maximus was not “able to sit, stand or walk.” They stayed in the hospital overnight before Chelsea shared another update on Thursday, July 27, shortly after Maximus was discharged.
“[Maximus] stopped eating or drinking and was very lethargic,” she wrote. “It took 2 attempts to get IV in and Max was so brave he didn’t even cry. They ran a ton of tests & blood work panels that thank God they all came back negative. No infection or active virus. They hydrated him and gave him inflammatory medicine through IV. They took x-rays & ultrasound.”
She said that if Maximus’ condition did not improve in the next 48 hours, they would have to return to the hospital.
The post concluded, “There is really nothing worse than seeing your child in pain. My heart breaks for all the families that have it worse. Thank you so much for the prayers.”
