WARNING: Distressing content
Mum-of-four Abi Brown quietly tip-toed into the nursery to check on her napping eight-week-old baby boy, Ezra.
Tucked safely in his bed, her boy lay silent, blue and faintly breathing.
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The image of her tiny newborn, still and almost lifeless, is forever in her mind.
It was the instant that changed the Queensland family’s life forever.
Doctors told the family their little boy didn’t have long left, but although, with many complications and a bumpy journey ahead, Ezra continues to fight on.
“The doctors told us to prepare for his death,” Abi told 7Life.
“Here we are, week 20 of being earth side.
“Ezra has chosen to stay with us.”
When Abi and Brad Brown welcomed Ezra into the world on January 23, 2024, they said their family was instantly complete.
Already with three adventurous boys, Karter, nine, Nixxon, seven, and Tyr, two, Ezra was born in the family home in Kenilworth, 60km west of the Sunshine Coast.
“His brothers were home to witness their newest brother being born and fell in love immediately,” Abi said.
“It was astounding to watch them be in awe and filled with curiosity.”
Despite being outnumbered by her boys at home, Abi loved being a mum and the family quickly started planning their dream homestead.
Juggling animal rearing, child raising and both with full-time jobs, Abi and Brad loved the chaos of their busy lives.
And then, on a seemingly mundane Thursday, everything changed.
It was March 21, 2024, when Abi gently placed a nearly eight-week-old Ezra down for his afternoon nap.
As Ezra slept, Abi raced around cleaning and organising the house.
Before she knew it, it was 5pm and Brad was walking in the door, home from work.
Abi darted upstairs to check on her sleeping bub as the dinner rush hour was about to begin.
There, she discovered Ezra. His skin flushed blue. His chest barely rising. His limbs limp.
“My heart stopped and Brad and I rushed outside to give him the best air circulation possible,” Abi said.
Outside, the pair phoned triple-0. An ambulance was quick to arrive and by midnight, Ezra was on life support.
“This nightmare was only beginning. I couldn’t wake from it,” Abi added.
Doctors raced around Ezra to find the cause of his quickly deteriorating condition.
He was having constant seizures and no one knew why.
“His tiny little body was so swollen and lifeless and connected to so many transfusion lines,” the brave mum said.
“I’ve never seen anything like this before.
“I couldn’t hold him or feed him. I could only just sit back, sing and love him from afar. It was brutal.”
Days ticked by as Ezra underwent numerous blood tests and scans.
On day four, an MRI unearthed the worst.
Ezra’s brain had been deprived of oxygen for so long, doctors revealed that without life support, he was unlikely to survive.
“Our hearts felt like they shattered. Even after I thought my heart couldn’t break much more,” Abi said.
Days later, the couple made the decision to take their baby boy off life support.
Doctors prepared the parents for his death.
On Wednesday, they asked family and close friends to come by to say their goodbyes.
And then it was Thursday.
Ezra was placed on Abi’s chest and his life support was turned off.
Nurses gently removed his IV and left the parents alone to grieve with their boy.
“(We) saw him take his breath back,” Abi said.
“Expecting at any minute this could be his last, Brad and I just stared at him.
“He laid on me and hours went by.”
Then Ezra let out a tiny, muffled cry.
Doctors were amazed at his strength and hours turned into days and nearly a week later he was still breathing on his own.
Ezra was transferred to Hummingbird House, a children’s hospice in Brisbane, where he was reunited with his brothers.
The parents said having the family unit together again strengthened Ezra’s will to fight.
Within the week, Abi and Brad noticed the positive changes in Ezra.
So they made the decision to take their boy back home.
“Our mindset was, if he were to die, let him be on his land surrounded by nature where he drew his first breath,” Abi said.
So the Browns went home.
And Ezra continued to thrive.
Every 48 hours, home palliative care nurses would attend the home to change his IV and offer any support the family needed.
“A month of home palliative care and Ezra was still kicking goals, proving to everyone that he just wanted to keep hanging out with us,” Abi says.
“No seizures.”
While the mum confesses some days are tough, she will not stop fighting.
Watching Ezra continue to kick goals brings a smile to her face, and watching him play with his brothers warms her heart.
“His giggles are beautiful to hear, and I fall harder in love with him every day,” she said.
Abi and Brad are forever grateful for the ongoing medical care and support they are receiving while at home.
Currently, paediatricians say that Ezra is showing signs of early onset severe cerebral palsy — a condition impacting muscle movement — and have recommended therapy to help ease symptoms.
“He may never crawl or walk. He may never talk or even be able to put words together,” Abi explained.
“His intelligence is left unknown and his gross and motor skills are severely impacted as he’s lost all spasticity in his limbs.”
But for the adoring parents, they aren’t focusing on what the future may hold.
Right now, they are throwing every ounce of energy into giving their boy the best life he can have.
They have decided to sell their property to purchase a more suitable home for a high-needs child to grow up in.
With time off work, and the mounting costs of Ezra’s care, a close friend has started a fundraiser to help ease the financial burden.
“Ezra is deeming to surpass all the doctors’ expectations and is proving miracles can happen,” Abi said.
“Though, his life can take a turn at any moment, and his future perceives to be a tough road for us all to journey onto.
“All we can do is be present in the moment of right now.”
If you or someone you know has suffered pregnancy or infant loss, you can contact Pink Elephants Support Network or Red Nose Australia.