What started as a headache turned into a life-changing hospital journey for 8-year-old Liv, a little girl from northern Colorado. Liv’s mom, Tasha, knew something was wrong when her daughter woke up with a headache in the middle of the night and was extremely lethargic in the days that followed. After a visit to their local ER in Greeley, and a return visit the next day, tests showed that she had a very serious infection, and doctors told the family that she needed to go to Children’s Hospital Colorado.

When Liv got to the emergency department at Children’s Colorado, she underwent several more tests, including blood work and eventually an MRI. Doctors discovered that the infection was in her brain, and it was rotting part of her skull. She was very sick and needed immediate treatment. Specialists in otolaryngology (ear, nose and throat) and the Infectious Disease Program at Children’s Colorado developed a plan to remove the part of her bone that had been impacted by the infection. Infectious disease specialists also determined the infection was in her blood stream and that the little girl was septic, so they put her on eight antibiotics to stabilize her. Liv ended up having three surgeries in three days. Liv’s mom says she’s so glad they got to Children’s Colorado when they did and that doctors were able to figure out what was wrong with her little girl. Liv loves playing with her friends and the color purple.