Theo & Barrett’s Story
Meet the Harrisons! Nine days before Theo’s third birthday, he was taken to the ER with symptoms of respiratory distress. Within twelve hours, he was in the PICU with a diagnosis of Parainfluenza, but he continued to get sicker and have additional terrifying symptoms with no explanation. After several days and tons of lab work, it was determined that Theo had developed myocarditis (inflammation of the heart) and rhabdomyolysis (breakdown of his muscles throughout his body), both being rare complications of the virus. Due to his respiratory distress, Theo was intubated to allow his body to rest and he remained that way for five days. During that time, the family pleading with God for healing and felt every prayer surrounding them from family and friends. They leaned of the Lord’s promises, trusting that He alone would carry them through. After extubation, Theo had to relearn the most basic functions: holding his own head up, swallowing, sitting on his own and eating. During this time the Harrisons witnessed miracle after miracle. Theo’s kidneys were expected to shut down because of the muscle breakdown clearing through them. But God. His heart was expected to take months to recover. But God. Miraculously, he is back to running around and playing as a three year old!
Following Theo’s discharge, some pending genetic testing was sent off due to the severity of his illness. The result of that testing was a diagnosis of a double deletion on the LPIN1 gene. This led to follow up family testing for Theo’s younger brother Barrett, who also tested positive for the mutation. LPIN1 is extremely rare, with very minimal cases documented worldwide. A double deletion on LPIN1 predisposes a child to being at high risk for rhabdomyolysis episodes triggered by various factors, such as illness, fever, heat stress, and strenuous exercise. There is currently no treatment or cure for this diagnosis.
In March 2024, both boys ended up in the hospital after strep and stomach bugs. Thankfully, they were both able to be monitored and only had mild cases of rhabdomyolysis, thanks to the protocols that have been put in place by their awesome team! While this isn’t something the Harrisons would have ever envisioned or hoped for their life, they were together as a family and able to weather another storm together. This is certainly not the testimony they expected to have as a family but it is a powerful one as they share about how the ongoing challenges of this diagnosis for both boys have strengthened their faith as they have watched the Lord continue to show up in miraculous ways, carrying them through each hurdle.
About their family’s shirt design, Carrie (the boys’ mom) says, “Standing on the Promises has always been a family favorite song and during Theo’s extended hospital stay it became our motto of sorts, always lifting us up on a hard day and bringing a smile for Theo when things were scary. It became so much more than a song as we have lived out and seen that at the end of the day, no matter our circumstance, we can stand on God’s promises for our life and know and see that He is GOOD!”
