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RIVERTON — It was his first birthday, but Maverick Carpenter spent the day in the hospital fighting for his life.
The little boy was showing signs of not feeling well, so his father, Cody Carpenter, took him to the doctor on January 11th. Taking my young son to the doctor was a daily routine because my young son was born with a rare genetic disease called Soto Syndrome, which causes a weakened immune system. The youngest of the triplets, Maverick (born January 18, 2023), was also born with undeveloped hands due to the amniotic sac being wrapped around him and cutting off blood circulation.
His mother, Ashley Carpenter, said her son’s hospitalizations were common and frequent during his short life, but she was not prepared for the challenges that were to come.
“Around January 11th, Mav stopped eating and became pale,” Ashley Carpenter said. “Her husband made a doctor’s appointment to make sure everything was okay. The doctors said we needed to take him to the emergency room right away. ”
After several tests, including a lumbar puncture, it was determined that Maverick had type A bacterial meningitis, which doctors tried to treat with various antibiotics. Despite these treatments, the infection continued to spread to the boy’s brain.
“At one point, I was told that surgery was not possible because the infection was in the subarachnoid space,” Ashley Carpenter said. “At this point, the seizure began and Mr. Maverick was rushed to the ICU because he was unable to breathe on his own.”
She said she and her husband witnessed the trauma their son was enduring and they both feared the worst. Maybe I’ll lose another child.
longing to have children
The Carpenters married in 2017 and knew expanding their family would be difficult due to their mutual circumstances.
“I don’t produce enough hormones to sustain a pregnancy, and my husband has an autoimmune disease that requires chemotherapy,” Ashley Carpenter explained. “These two problems made her need IVF.”
She started infertility treatment immediately after getting married, and in 2021 she found out she was pregnant with triplets. But shortly thereafter, the couple received heartbreaking news.
“Our first IVF success was with triplets, two of which we lost at 14 weeks, but the one who is now 2 years old was successful,” Ashley Carpenter said. “We had several failed IVF attempts, but when we found out we were pregnant with triplets again in 2022, we never thought they would all be successful.”
However, this time everyone passed. Then, on January 18, 2023, the family had four children under the age of two.
touch and go
When antibiotics didn’t work on Maverick’s infection, doctors inserted a drain to relieve the pressure. This started draining enough to try a craniotomy. Ashley Carpenter said the surgery involved doctors cutting into both sides of Maverick’s skull to access the subarachnoid space and cleaning the area with a saline spray.
“The whole idea was to give the antibiotic a chance to kill off any remaining infection,” she explained. “At that point, we didn’t know exactly what was right because there was no guarantee it would work.”
Shortly after the surgery, the couple’s greatest fears began to emerge as their son’s condition began to deteriorate. He started having seizures more often and his eyes couldn’t track anymore. As the seizures caused little Maverick to frequently run a fever and quickly become unwell, his parents began preparing for life without their youngest child.
“We said goodbye on the 28th because we thought he was going to die that night,” Ashley Carpenter said.
But Maverick did not die that night. And as the days passed, his condition began to improve.
“After a few days, my son’s eyes started to focus and he started moving,” the bereaved mother said. “He still has some infection in his brain, but the symptoms are minimal. He has had his feeding tube removed and is feeding himself. Unfortunately he does have some hearing loss, but that’s the nature of meningitis. He is legally deaf.” He has one ear and is barely hearing in the other, so he plans to receive a cochlear implant soon to eventually help his hearing. ”
Ashley Carpenter said it was hard to watch her son endure everything, but he was a soldier who made it through it all.
“Honestly, Maverick is just a master of life and I’m so happy,” she said. “He’s got a lot of mountains, but he’s added another one. He’s getting a lot better, but I know he’s going to face a lot going forward.”
Maverick is still in the hospital and will likely be there for several more weeks. She said her parents are grateful for all the help she has received over the past few weeks.
He has a lot of mountains, but he just added one more. He’s getting a lot better, but I know he’s going to face a lot going forward.
– Ashley Carpenter
“My husband and I both work from home and we have a nanny to help out. My parents also help out as much as they can,” she said. “We have a neighborhood that’s like a godsend. They sign up for two-hour slots here and there and bring us food and random groceries. Especially when you’re at work. It’s definitely tough when you’re here and your kids need you. It was rough.”
With medical costs mounting, Ashley’s sister founded a hospital. GoFundMe* This is an account to lighten your burden.
*KSL.com does not guarantee that funds deposited into an account will be applied to the benefit of the person named as a beneficiary. If you are considering funding your account, please consult your own advisor, otherwise proceed at your own risk.
