Another Perrin

[cary]

Hi. My name is Cary and I have been a huge fan of Robert Jordan’s work since I was in highschool, which was a good ways back. But I’m not here to tell you about me. I want to tell you about a real-life Perrin who is nothing short of a miracle.

 

Chuck and Meva Kennedy sought the help of a fertility specialist when tradition methods weren’t delivering them the child they both wanted. Shortly after they did so, Meva discovered she was pregnant with triplets. The babies decided they were being born at the tail end of June, and their family was increased by three, Sarah, Ryan, and Perrin. Both Chuck and Meva love the Wheel of Time series so it came as no surprise that they would name their son after their favorite character from the books.

 

All the kids were premature, but from the very outset Perrin had difficulty. He was diagnosed with a blockage in the urinary tract, which caused some problems and worries soon after birth. He was also not breathing very well on his own owing to the fact that he and his siblings were born very premature and had a tube down his throat to allow him to breathe. Not the best of circumstances for anyone let alone a brand new baby looking to learn the things he needs to survive such as feeding and all.

 

As the days passed, the kids began to grow stronger, and Perrin made great strides in this area, giving the doctors and his parents cause for hope. At about two weeks old, things began to worsen in that Perrin was also diagnosed with a grade 3 intraventricular hemorrhage, meaning there was bleeding in his brain that was putting pressure on the surrounding brain tissue. This had the potential to cause all manner of brain damage as well as other severe complications for him, and the outlook was touch and go. The doctors agreed that there was nothing more they could do for Perrin but watch and wait for him to come through it, or not. Having kids myself, though more spaced out than what Chuck and Meva experienced, I can only imagine being told something like this on what should be one of the happiest moments of your life as you start your journey as a parent. Simply devastating. But Chuck and Meva stayed strong and resolved to spend as much time as they could with all their children, especially with Perrin because they had no idea how long that would end up being. Things like this bind a family together so strongly that nothing comes between them.

 

That was a month ago.

 

I can report to you now that Perrin Kennedy came home for the first time with his brother and sister in tow, and is making remarkable strides. The swelling associated with the brain hemorrhage seems to have self corrected, (something that happens in roughly 10% of the cases from what the proud parents were told by their doctors) and the outlook at this point is bright and positive. All three kids still have to be monitored for heart rate and such, but for a set of triplets that should still be in the womb for another couple of weeks yet, they are doing phenomenally well.

 

So there’s a real life Perrin out there who seems to have a bit of his own magic going for him. Being the namesake of a ta’vereen can’t be a bad thing.

[Victoria Gwyn]

I am glad to hear that the little one is well. :)

[Guest Egwene]

Pass on our good wishes to the whole family, Cary. And let's hope little Perrin is going to grow up as strong as his namesake :)

[padainfain]

What a touching story. It's really nice to hear something like that without being directly guilted into giving money. Really nice. Tai'shar (sp?) young wolfbrother perrin.

[gak]

wow.. having a 2 year old my self go through a bought of sickness (not as bad.. but scarey none the less) i can sympathise and say congrats on the triplets and hope they all do well and grow big and strong!!

[joeybsmash]

that is crunchy terrificness wrapped around chewy feel good nugat.

[goldeneys]

wow, thats awesome, really cool too.