Miracle Kid Spotlight: Caleigh

This week’s Miracle Kid spotlight highlights Caleigh, a Children’s heart warrior. When Caleigh was just one day old, she was diagnosed with an atrial septal defect after being taken for some routine testing. Her parents, Chiandria and Khorey, had a hard time processing what they had just heard about their seemingly healthy newborn, but quickly became well-versed experts. Chiandria and Khorey learned that Caleigh’s condition concerned a large hole between the top two chambers of her heart, requiring her to undergo open heart surgery to repair the hole before she was three years old. In the weeks following her diagnosis, the dedicated new parents started to research and take in as much information as possible, and when Caleigh was two-years-old old, the family turned to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Heart Center for her surgery.

Despite her parents’ understandable worries, Caleigh came through her surgery like a champ. Chiandra remembers being awed by her daughter’s unbreakable spirit.

“The day after her surgery, still with her chest tube in, with an IV in her foot and in her hand, she is literally walking her unit, talking to the nurses, asking if we could get crackers. And all I could do was cry, because I was so proud of her,” Chiandria says, adding that she absolutely draws her strength from Caleigh’s resilience. Caleigh is now thriving and enjoying life as a normal, healthy three-year-old. She even has a special nickname for her scar, calling it her “Zipper.” Caleigh loves to attend many CMN events and will be a big sister very soon. Click here to hear more about Caleigh story.