Look Up "Fighter" in the Dictionary, and You'll See a Picture of This Baby Girl With an Open Chest

Updated on March 8, 2018 at 11:25 AM

World of Broken Hearts/Suha Dabit

Frankie Thompson was eager to learn the gender of her twins when she went into her 20-week ultrasound, but, unfortunately, she got some additional information that shook her to the core: one of her twins, Mary Ellen, had a serious heart defect. The mother of three told POPSUGAR how giving birth to Mary Ellen and Kahleesi was the least of her troubles.

"Kahleesi had a healthy heart, but Mary Ellen was born with a congenital heart defect, only one kidney, and a serious curve in her spine. Her first surgery was an emergency, so I was scared to death," she said. "I cried the whole entire time she was in surgery until I got to see her. When I saw her heart beating in her chest, it opened my eyes to the fact that I had to gear up for the road ahead. So I put on my momma bear shoes and have been wearing them every day since."

Although Frankie's sweet daughter is recovering now, the journey has been an emotional one. Mary Ellen currently has her chest open in case doctors need to perform any emergency procedures. She also recalled how Mary Ellen had a heart attack that lasted nearly an hour:

After her second heart operation on Jan. 30, she was recovering fairly well from having her heart opened, but on Feb. 3, she went into cardiac arrest. She needed 45 minutes of chest compressions until her surgeon got to the hospital and gave her extracorporeal membrane oxygenation [a form of prolonged cardiac and respiratory support], which was very hard on her body but the Hail Mary required to save her life. Since then, we have battled blood clots, small brain bleeds, and her extremities not getting enough blood flow.

Frankie explained that having a child in the pediatric care unit means that the milestones you celebrate as a mom totally change:

"As a mother, having a child with these medical issues, I don't cheer her on like I would do her sister and brother. For them, it was rolling over, holding their heads up, and smiling. With Mary Ellen, I've been happy when she's just peeing or even going from drinking one to three milliliters of breast milk. There's a big difference between life as a normal mom and being a 'heart mom.'"

Despite experiencing a few setbacks, Frankie has big dreams for her sweet little girl. "I want her to embrace [her struggle] and continue to fight for education about CHD awareness and organ donation," she said, adding that: "My dream for her is to grow up like her siblings and stay the strong little girl she. I don't want her to ever doubt she can do something because she still has a lot of fighting left to do."

Read ahead to see snapshots of Mary Ellen's fight so far.