12-Year-Old Juliet Daly Bravely Recounts Her Battle And Victory Over COVID-19

”I wanted for it all to stop”, these are not the words one would exactly hear from a girl who is barely in her teen years, but 12-year-old Juliet Daly bravely told Good Morning America about her battle and victory over COVID-19, the deadly flu-like virus caused by the novel coronavirus.

In the exclusive interview, Juliet recalled her transition from being a healthy girl from Louisiana to a COVID-19 patient staring death in the eyes. Three weeks ago, she was airlifted to Ochsner Medical Center in New Orleans after suffering from a heart condition triggered by COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the pandemic. She said:

“I died for two minutes. My stomach would not stop hurting. I didn’t want to move. I didn’t want to live. I wanted for it all to stop.”

Juliet, at the hospital, was placed on a ventilator and treated in the intensive care unit (ICU). Juliet’s mom, Jennifer Daly, went recalled:

“After they put the breathing tube down her throat, her heart stopped. They had to do two minutes of CPR on her. At that point, my whole world just crumbled.”

Juliet’s rare heart condition was caused by inflammation and was triggered by COVID-19, according to her doctor. She remained on a ventilator for four days. Dr. Jake Kleinmahon, a pediatric cardiologist at Ochsner Medical Center who treated Juliet said:

“COVID-19 can infect the heart and it can cause the cells in the heart to be unhappy and actually start to die.”

Before testing positive for COVID-19, Juliet complained of severe abdominal pain but did not show any of the typical symptoms of other COVID-19 patients like a fever, cough or difficulty breathing, according to her mom. Juliet’s mom further said:

“I think it’s really important to get the message out. I mean we nearly missed it. If we hadn’t taken her to the hospital on time, I don’t think things would’ve turned out okay.”

Doctors around the world, specifically in hard-hit United Kingdom and Italy, are now sounding the alarm too, sending out what they call an “urgent alert” about an increase in severely ill children as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

The doctors report seeing children with inflammatory syndrome and multi-organ failure, similar to what Juliet experienced.

Also, doctors in the U.S. stress that such severe illness is extremely rare in children with COVID-19, but that children, just like adults, should continue to practice physical distancing and follow stay-at-home orders in their local area. Sally Goza, American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) president and a practicing pediatrician in Fayetteville, Georgia, told “GMA” last week:

“Most children are going to have a very mild or asymptomatic case. However, there are going to be children who get it and it’s unknown how severe each case could be, so it’s still very important for children to do physical distancing.”

Juliet is now back home and doctors say she will make a full recovery. Her mom said she continues to go into her daughter’s room to check her pulse every night and is “grateful” to doctors for saving Juliet’s life.

“I’m so grateful the doctors were able to diagnose it so quickly and were able to get her treated,” said Daly. “We are all going through a tough time right now, some more than others, but, like Juliet, we will recover.”