CBS Local– Heartbreak has hit home for a newlywed couple as their 18-day-old baby contracted a virus and passed away.
A week after Shane and Nicole Sifrit gave birth to their daughter Mariana, she stopped eating and became unresponsive.
“It immediately went downhill from there. Within two hours she had quit breathing and all of her organs just started to fail,” Shane said, via WHO TV. “I always thought this stuff happens and it’s a shame and never thought it would happen to me. I was not prepared at all.”
Doctors diagnosed Mariana with viral meningitis, which was caused by a herpes virus. Both Shane and Nicole tested negative for the virus, meaning that Mariana would’ve contracted it from someone else.
Shane and Nicole had to leave their wedding early to take their daughter to the hospital. She was airlifted to another hospital where her condition got worse. She wasn’t expected to live more than a day after the doctors diagnosed her, but she fought for more than a week.
Sadly, on July 18, Nicole Sifrit gave a sad update on Facebook that her child had passed away.
Prior to their baby’s passing, Nicole warned other parents of the dangers of letting anyone near their newborns.
“Keep your babies isolated,” she said, per WHO TV. Don’t let just anyone come visit them. Make sure they are constantly washing their hands. Don’t let people kiss your baby and make sure they ask before they pick up your baby.”
Nicole reiterated that message on social media shortly after Mariana died.
“Our princess Mariana Reese Sifrit gained her angel wings at 8:41 am this morning in her daddy’s arms and her mommy right beside her,” Nicole wrote on Facebook. “Don’t let anyone kiss your baby.”
